Rock of Ages

When I wasn't thrashing foes along complex battle maps, I was laughing my ass off at the brilliant cutscene sequences.

Rock of Ages is the rare game that manages to stand completely on its own and also deliver a memorable experience.

With its genre-fusing game play and cheeky yet surreal take on ancient history it really is one of a kind.

Rock of Ages might not be the most taxing or deep strategy game out there, and with only 23 missions available, it won't take you long to polish off the single player campaign. However what's there is fun, simple and accessible.

Rock of Ages is good for a few deep laughs, has tremendous art design, and is worth experiencing by most everyone given the price and ridiculous premise.

I challenge anyone not to have fun rolling down classic figures as they scream in dismay. Even if you have not been a fan of the tower defense genre, I highly recommend giving this game a go. It more than makes up for any shortcomings it has with pure style and grace.

A lot of people out there calling themselves gamers like to cry about there not being enough creativity in the land of game development. Well Ace Team sets out to prove them wrong. They may have only released two games, Rock of Ages and Zeno Clash, but both of these titles try to do bold things with games both in the art style and interesting gameplay developments. In the least give the demo for this one a whirl. Hopefully it'll grown on you as quickly as it grew on us!

Crazy, addictive stuff. [Dec 2011, p.87]

Part Marble Madness, part Rampart and all Monty Python. Rock of Ages delivers a unique blend of real-time strategy and platforming, making this one of the most intriguing games of the year. Best of all, the game's many cinemas are worth the price of admission all by themselves!

It does a great job of mixing humor, art, and gameplay into an experience that rarely falls flat.

A game that's about as off the wall as they come, but at a modest 800 Microsoft points, it's one that definitely warrants a spin. Cheeky and challenging in all the right ways, you'll find nothing quite like it amidst today's typical downloadable fare.

A truly unforgettable experience - the only downside is the frustration level. With a bit of tuning, and maybe a minimap, this bad boy might well have scored maximum points - as it is, the difficulty is going to eliminate much of the audience as surely as a huge rolling boulder might squish a stray peasant.

Some niggling control and camera issues should not prevent you from playing Rock of Ages. It is an entertaining action puzzler with a hilariously bizarre sense of style.

This is an insanely clever game.

Nothing about Rock of Ages is predictable. Hell, it's barely successful. Essentially a hodgepodge of tower defense, bowling, and absurdist humor, Rock of Ages darts in so many weird directions at once that the whole endeavor is constantly on the verge of falling apart at the seams. And yet, by the barest of threads, the developers at ACE Team manage to keep this jalopy running--or, in this case, rolling.

In an age where any game can be explained in half a sentence, Rock of Ages is a refreshing rarity. It not only attempts fantastic originality but succeeds in that attempt more than it fails. If you appreciate originality, you owe yourself some time with Rock of Ages.

If there is one aspect of this game that is brilliantly executed, though, it's the presentation.

A charming game, full of humor, with pleasant visuals, both technical and artisticly. It is a bold proposal that brings new ideas, but falls midway because of its repetitive mechanics.

Remains fun despite its problems, and makes for some great local competitive play. The campaign gets annoying at times because of the time constraints with defense building, but is quirky and funny enough that it ultimately remains worth the time.

The single player campaign is an exercise in banging your head against brick walls until they break. Depending on the quality of your friends list, the long-term value of Rock of Ages probably lies in the chaotically level playing field of human-versus-human multi-player.

Rock of Ages is a novel idea and one that has some potential, but it feels like the balance between offense can defense in the game just isn't quite right.

There are still a few cracks, but this still rocks. [Nov 2011, p.101]

Clearly inspired by the work of Terry Gilliam, Rock of Ages can offer addictive and full with over-the-top humor gameplay, even though it can get repetitive quite soon.

If you're looking for one of those rare games that does humor right, Rock of Ages is a stand-out example. It's just a shame that the gameplay didn't quite match up.

Rock Of Ages is a fine game, that offers up an excellent challenge, it mixes genres well without diluting any of them too far. However it is hampered by some control issues, but if that can be overcome then this is a must have for anyone, especially for the time-trial mode.

A clever idea with some great, weird artwork.

Simple in design, but almost to a fault. The tower defense mechanics just don't work as well as we had hoped, but we did enjoy crushing hundreds of buildings and townsfolk with our rolling rock of doom. Oh, and steamrolling your friends so hard that they cry themselves to sleep? That's pretty neat, too.

The concept in Rock of Ages shows a great potential, but humour and polish only takes you so far. After that the game mechanics really have to shine through, which happens quite frequently. But it could absolutely do more.

If Rock of Ages eventually runs out of variety, it never runs out of charm. The game has a magnificent sense of momentum throughout, tugging you downhill towards the enemy's gates and upwards through the strata of Western culture. It is an oddball offering in every sense.

Surely, this game's existence demands to be celebrated.

Strip away the campaign's half-baked tower-defense elements, and you're finally free to focus entirely on the heady business of hauling ass and getting air. [Dec 2011, p.71]

I did have fun with it, and I'd recommend it to those who can appreciate the presentation and aren't quickly frustrated by an AI that seems to have an unfair advantage.

An interesting game, especially for fans of tower defense genre. It's a peculiar game in its category but its advantages come mainly from the visual side (design, animations) and not gameplay. Rock of Ages isn't a complicated game and success during playing depends mostly on luck. It's an arcade title and planning, though important, stays in the background.

The ideas behind the game are great, but the execution is a bit disappointing.

There's little doubting the charm. [Issue#78, p.101]

Marbling madness epitomised, but Rock of Ages' rough mechanics could have done with more smoothing. Top marks for sheer oddness, nonetheless.

Something special for a select audience who's able to fully embrace its peculiar nature. That it doesn't appeal to everyone will likely only strengthen this appeal.

Rock of Ages, while simple in design, is still an enjoyable experience that you'll have to see to believe it. The game has multiplayer modes to keep you coming back for more despite some of its shortcomings.

With bags of charm and wry humour, Rock Of Ages gets off to the best possible start. You'll want to love it, but in the end, these are half-baked ideas that ought to have been put to better use. Ah well.

Rock of Ages has a delightfully goofy concept and offers some destructive fun, but it's hampered by its weak defense elements.