Review by: Jordan Thomas
Published: December 21, 1997

Night. A starlit field, once a calming and peaceful sight, seems to exude an aura of menace. A low, rumbling din becomes audible, like an all-enveloping rhythm of strife. As we move across the pallid dunes of grass, we begin to discover that the low, steady sound has changed, perverted into something much more terrifying. The now discernible thunder of a thousand running feet is joined by a high-pitched wail of steel-screech and death cries.

Then we crest the final hill, and behold. A hundred armored, bloodied men stand pooled at the base of the valley, surrounded by creatures so abominable that they can only be the Undead. Thousands of rotting, shambling Thrall lurch their skeletal forms forward, raising their axes in unison. Behind them, distorted beasts with scythe-like weapons leap through the ranks, closing in on the doomed human army. And behind them, massive Trow giants, each at least twenty feet in height, wade slowly past their evil kin, intent on utter annihilation of the Light.

The slaughter is so swift that you can hear the abrupt terminus to the soldiers’ lives; a hundred death screams cut eternally short.

This is the desperate world into which you are thrust. Myth: The Fallen Lords shows you a planet long since overrun by the Dark. Most of the world has been ripped steadily apart by the unswerving, unliving minions of the Fallen Lords. The only opportunity for the survival of the Light is found in short, running skirmishes, in hopes of recovering artifacts and legions of sufficient power to drive back the dead. Small satellite bands of warriors revolve around the larger human armies, hoping to stage key raids and rearguards that will tip back the already sorely unbalanced scales. You are to lead one such band.

From the dramatic introduction, portrayed in classic cel animation style, Myth: The Fallen Lords flaunts a truly commendable dedication to story and gives life to realistic, vulnerable characters. The brilliantly narrated mission profiles, coupled with the occasional subsequent cutscene, give you a genuine feeling that you are a real part of the harried human resistance… a very mortal part.

This game is about tactics as opposed to strategy, in many ways. Unlike the real-time titles which feature 2D units on a 2D terrain, and a multitude of parallel resources and responsibilities, Myth is a fully rotatable 3D world, where the focus is battle, formation, sacrifice and retreat. Like the similarly gorgeous title Dungeon Keeper, the 3D engine in Myth is completely dedicated to a changing, dynamic perspective.

The terrain graphics are smooth, and seem almost tangible, similar to the VOXEL-space technology employed in several Bullfrog titles, and in the Comanche helicopter series. 3D acceleration takes even further advantage of Myth‘s inherent splendor, completely eliminating slowdown, and adding constant focus and clarity to every detail on the ground.

You control the forces of the Light, and most of the time, the number of units at your command is centered around the size of a battalion, as opposed to an army. You do not participate in the larger warfare; rather, you take command of integral smaller-scale battles which serve the greater good. Provocation, assassination, and artifact recovery are among the savory tasks you will undertake, all interwoven perfectly into the storyline.

Each unit has an individual name, and while they are slain easily, you are granted one wonderful boon: your units can become veterans. Through battle, they gain experience, and will follow you into the next mission if they survive. The added ability to specify a custom name for your units brings forth in you a desire to see your favorites survive. With the priest-like Journeyman’s ability to heal, this is quite possible. Throughout most of the single-player missions, I was able to preserve my Archer Captain, a dangerous deadeye known as Robin. Yes, Robin. I would like to shake Bungie’s
virtual hand for the addition of veteran units, as it was one of my only complaints with previous strategic/tactical titles: Everybody was expendable. But that is simply not the case in Myth, and I appreciate that very depth.