Rock of Ages II: Bigger & Boulder – Nintendo Switch | Review

By Jordan Demoulpied
| 22nd May 2019
| Review, Switch
| 0

The lyrics Keep rollin, rollin, rollin, rollin’ (what?) spring to mind as I control a boulder that just about smashes through some enemies gates, a boulder which has a very smug grin across its rocky face.

I didn’t get a chance to play the original or even this sequel when it was originally released back 2017, now with the release on the Switch I thought now would be a good opportunity to jump into its bizarre world.

Rock of ages is the Monty Python of tower defence games. The story campaign is told through surreal animated cutscenes, featuring zany versions of historical figures. You won’t find any of these surreal moments in the history books, let me tell you that. It is extremely funny, to the point of chuckling out loud thanks to the games VO.

The switch version runs and looks fine, it’s not as visually good looking or as smooth as you’d expect on other platforms. Some detail is lacking, but you should know exactly what is happing onscreen, so it never becomes an issue. Performance wise I never experienced anything negative, it didn’t seem to stutter in areas that explosions were triggered. Loading times are quick, you won’t get separation anxiety from your boulder and you’ll soon be back smashing castles.

Each level in the campaign will be against historical figures, the battlefield is split into two sides with each side housing the castle you must defend/destroy. Defending is as simple as placing traps and other obstacles around the area to stop the enemies boulder from flattening you like a pancake, cause that would really put a downer or your day wouldn’t it? The items you place can range from catapults all the way to cows which stick to the opponent’s ball slowing them down.

Whilst you place your defences, your own boulder of doom is been chiselled for release. When it is finally time you to roll, you must avoid the enemy placed traps, any holes or cliff edges in the battlefield as all this will waste a lot of time giving your enemy an advantage. Ultimately your goal is to be the first to break through into the castle and squish its occupant.

Within the story levels, you can unlock other modes which include obstacle courses which effectively is a race against another boulder whilst dodging the barrage of traps and yes…obstacles trying to halt your progress. Best out of three wins, but it’s best to go for all three. Progressing through the game will also allow you to unlock new traps and even new boulder to play with, giving all the motivation to carry on because gosh darn it, I want more faces for my rocky pal.

As well as facing famous historical figures, you’ll roll through history’s most arty periods, from the medieval period to the renaissance period all bringing their unique art style with them. Making each level visually appealing.

It’s a shame that during my time with the game I was unable to play the multiplayer portions of the game, for whatever reason I was unable to find other players to roll with me. I imagine playing the modes available with others would make the game a lot more fun than it already is.

Final impressions

Rock of ages 2 is a fun time waster, with plenty to do. It’s funny & wacky which should entertain throughout. It’s quite an addicting strategy game, I wanted to see what wacky period I’d visit next and what famous historical figure I was going to hopefully crush with my boulder.

Playing against another person would almost certainly enhance this fun if you are able to find people to play with. Don’t let this stop you though, as I am sure more and more people will eventually roll onto servers soon enough.

*Code kindly provided by the publisher for review*

Developer: Ace Team Publisher: Sega
Release date: 15/05/2019
Platforms: Switch, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Platform Reviewed: Switch