Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die! Oh, no, wait – wrong movie. We’re talking about a different sword fighter here. You can for the review of Zorro The Chronicles! Zorro (which means Fox) is the secret identity of Don Diego de la Vega (originally Don Diego Vega), a young man who is the only son of Don Alejandro de la Vega, the wealthiest landowner in California, while Diego’s mother is dead. In most versions, Diego learned his swordsmanship while at university in Spain. He created his masked alter ego after he was unexpectedly summoned home by his father because California had fallen into the hands of an oppressive dictator. The game, however, takes a slightly different route!
Zorro The Chronicles
Zorro The Chronicles introduces a teenage Don Diego, who faces the greatest challenge of his life as he fights for justice against numerous unscrupulous – and well-armed – tyrants! It is the birth of the most famous masked hero. The Chronicles go back to basics as they focus on the original Zorro’s qualities and take us through a whirlwind of entertainment. With villains plotting and Zorro’s cunning tricks and jokes – not to mention spectacular fights, the adventure will be complete! But Zorro never kills: he ridicules his opponents to teach them a lesson and signs his deeds with his trademark Z! Zorro will also have a clever and courageous leading lady by his side: Ines, his twin sister. With her and Bernardo, his faithful friend, Zorro returns to save us when we need him most.
The Mark of Zorro
Zorro originally made his debut in the 1919 novel The Curse of Capistrano as a stand-alone story. However, the success of the 1920 film adaptation The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks, convinced McCulley to write more Zorro stories for about four decades: the character was featured in a total of five serialized stories and 57! Short stories, the last one was appearing in print posthumously in 1959, the year after his death. The Curse of Capistrano eventually sold more than 50 million copies, becoming one of the best-selling books of all time. While the rest of McCulley’s Zorro stories did not enjoy the same popularity, as most of them were never reprinted until the 21st century, the character also appears in over 40 films and ten TV series, the most famous being the Disney-produced Zorro series of 1957–1959, starring Guy Williams. Other media featuring Zorro include stories by other authors, audio/radio dramas, comic books and strips, stage productions, and video games – which you came to read about, not the history of Zorro, I know.
Zorro – The Cartoon?
Zorro: The Chronicles solves every problem with Zorro video games. Based on the 2015 cartoon of the same name, I was initially cautious but optimistic about its release, significantly after it was delayed. But now that it’s come out, I can safely say this is not only an enjoyable Zorro experience for adults, but it could be the definitive Zorro experience for children ages 6-11. Why? Because it’s Zorro’s Creed. I always hated that the Assasins Creed series was a bit heavy for the ‘younger’ audience since it incorporates a great deal of history that can be used in school. Zorro scratches that itch a bit since it features the same gameplay elements and gives room to do some historical elemental introduction through the cracks of fiction.
Zorro Creed
You guide either Zorro or his twin sister through 18 levels of fun and mayhem, in which you combine elements of both Assassins Creed and Batman Arkham series (but with a more cartoony side). The swordplay is buttery-smooth. Attacking, blocking, rolling, finishers, and parries all have a place in the game, and fighting enemies isn’t too easy or too hard. The game even challenges you to use the environment to your advantage by kicking enemies into haystacks, fountains, and trees or just jumping off the roof to do an aerial takedown.
Another great addition to Zorro: The Chronicles is the excellent stealth system that offers unique challenges and puzzles to players, encouraging them to think smarter, not harder, and evade the enemy. Of course, you can say a lot about movie and series adaptions of games, but this one did a pretty neat job! Zorro has a charming sense of humor that, while not laugh-out-loud funny, is sure to bring out a few chuckles. Combining this with diverse enemy types allows the game to have unique challenges.
Conclusion
You might find your itch if you’re looking for a bare-bones Assassins Creed. I’m not going to lie; Zorro the Chronicles was way better than I expected. It’s by far the best Zorro game out there, and I highly recommend it, especially if you have little kids who are into these games (and you enjoy them on the side). Just keep in mind that it has not much of a story but makes up for it in fun gameplay.
