Word games have always been popular, especially in board game form. Looking at the likes of Scrabble and Boggle and how well they have sold, it is good to see a game like Quarrel finally make an appearance on XBLA. Having already been released on iOS, it has been a long road to its release on Microsoft's service.
So what is Quarrel?
Imagine a mix of Scrabble and Risk and you are pretty much there. The idea is players battle over areas of a board by having word battles. The end game is to control the entire board, much like Risk.
Players will start with equal areas of a board and will take turns in trying to capture their opponents pieces. The player whose current turn it is has the choice to either attack an opponent's area and gain control, or to reinforce their own areas and give themselves a better chance of defence.
Both opponents will have the same letters available to them and they must make the best word possible with what they have. Each letter has a score attached to it, much like in Scrabble and players will use this to their advantage. What sets this apart though is how strategy plays a part. The amount of letters that can be played is based upon how many troops a player has on their area at the time. For example, if one player has five troops on their area, they can play five letters, if the other has three they can only play a maximum of three letters.
Whilst it may look like an unfair advantage, it is one that can be overcome by some clever strategical play. Going on the attack constantly will leave areas depleted of troops and vulnerable to attacks when opponents have their turn. So choosing when to end a turn and when to shift troops around is vital. Quarrel has a timer for each battle and uses this time for deadlocked scores. Essentially, if both players get the same score, it is fastest finger wins. In doing this it should cut down on opportunities to cheat and turn to anagram solvers and the like.
Quarrel sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is. The game has a fairly simple tutorial to follow, that explains the game's mechanics really well. It essentially takes you through an entire round step by step. Unlike many other games, the tutorial isn't forced upon you, or as part of the main game, which despite being a minor thing is rather welcoming.
There is a wonderful challenge to be had, both in the single player campaigns and also multiplayer modes. In the single player you will meet various character of varying difficulties through numerous levels and challenges.
There is the typical quick match, that allows you to play a single one off game, on any random level, against a random set of opponents. Next up is Domination, which challenges you to complete 12 levels of increasing difficulty. Showdown which is another variant, but this time strictly head to head vs a single other player. Challenges, which sees you take on 12 pre set challenges, such as winning five duels in a row. Finally is Make Match, which allows players to set up their own board with their own rules.
There is also online multiplayer, which despite being a little bit lighter on features than the single player offers up enough to challenge any player. There are basically ranked matches or player matches. There is only the option to play the main variant of the game, but playing against human opposition does tend to be a lot more satisfying when winning.
Presentation is wonderful too, with plenty of bright colours, cheerful characters and cheerful music, it can come across as very child orientated, but it is actually far from it. All too easily could a game like this have become sterile and boring, but Denki are masters of charm and this shows exactly why. Little touches such as showing the score you would get for various words dotted around the game, a word of the day and showing you the dictionary definition for played words. It is all worked into a neat and tidy package.
All of this adds up to a very feature rich game that deserves praise, it has taken the best bits from board games such as Scrabble, Risk and Boggle and mixed them up into a unique and satisfying experience. At 800 Points it would be more than worth it, however at just 400 Microsoft Points it is an absolute no brainer, go ahead and buy it right now.
