I know it’s kind of odd to do a barbecue over a budget Xbox 360 Arcade title like Marlow Briggs, but what started as a diversion for a few minutes became a war of attrition and I figured I might as well make the most of my misery.
Marlow Briggs wasn’t a terrible game, but rather it’s a decent game that fell apart about halfway through when I realized that the developer’s idea of raising the difficulty was making the enemy’s seemingly impervious to any attack I threw at them. Scorpions and general baddies take a hell of a beating before going down, to the point where the boss battles were pretty easy by comparison. It eventually got to the point where I would just run past them if given the chance.
I can’t really explain what kept me playing. It was either the mindless gameplay or the fact that by the time I was getting tired of it, I’d already gotten far enough into it I might as well go all the way. It’s a short game but still goes on a wee bit too long due to the repetitive enemies and a few trial-and-error platforming sections. It’s not terribly difficult on the normal difficulty setting, but I found myself using only two of the four weapons Marlow was given, and the four “super moves” he gains access to seemed to be largely useless. It will kill lesser enemies, but the tougher ones (you know, the ones you’d really want to use a super move on) barely flinch. Also, since you can only use the super moves when you have a full bar of Mana, you’ll find that the magic daggers Marlow can throw will be far more useful.
The game ends with the possibility for more Marlow Briggs, but I wouldn’t recommend holding your breath for that one.
