Welcome to the Museum of Lanova — you’ve come to see the new Chaos Trials exhibit. You look at all of the stations, learning how to be a better wizard in the process. At one end is a large crowd of people, all talking amongst themselves, and at the other end of the room is an Insignia of Legend. In a moment, with a flash, the glass shatters, and a burst of dark energy crackles into your mind as you’re transported somewhere. A talking mirror lets you know where you are and why. You’ve been chosen by the Council of Magic to compete in the Chaos Trials. So go, defeat the three head wizards, grow and learn to be better. Become a wizard of legend.
“Wizard of Legend” was made by a two-man indie team called Contingent99. It was released May 15, 2018 to all platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.
“Wizard of Legend” is a procedurally-generated roguelike. For those of you who don’t know exactly what that means, it means that each time you attempt the Chaos Trials, they’ll be different every time, and each time you die, you start back at the beginning a little stronger and smarter. The first few times I played, I was slaughtered. I was unsure of what I was doing. Then I started to learn how to combo and dodge, timings and weaknesses. At the writing of this article, I have played a total of 89 runs.
The mechanics of this game are similar to “The Binding of Isaac.” You have your wizard and a starting collection of spells, known as Arcana. As you get more crystals, you can buy more Arcana to use and add to your connection, as well as Relics, which act as passive effects like quicker cooldown and more damaging critical hits. The more gold you earn, the more Arcana and Relics you can buy that will last for that run and only that run.
If you are lucky enough to have a friend, “Wizard of Legend” is also a two-player game. I have only played it that way once, and while it was enjoyable, it could have been better. For one, it was my partner’s first time playing, and when you split the controller and only use one joy-con, playing becomes a bit harder, especially considering how many buttons are needed.
This is a well-made game that is tight and polished. In terms of frame rate, I played it on the Nintendo Switch in handheld mode, where I did experience a few framerate dips while in combat, but nothing permanent or game breaking.
One major gripe I have is with how being hit can feel a little unfair at times. When I couldn’t get out of the way or get the attacks cancelled, it was frustrating, but that was one of things that made me come back to play again. I always thought I could do better, and I did. For example, the first time I got to a boss, I was crushed. It was a 30-second lesson in pain, but I learned from that and tried again with a better understanding.
I give “Wizard of Legend” 4 out of 5 stars. It’s a fresh new game that has a few flaws, but has tons of replayability and a co-op.
You can buy “Wizard of Legend” on Steam for PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.