God of Word

Developer: Mega Dwarf Inc. | Publisher: Mega Dwarf Inc. | Release Date: 2016 | Genre: Casual / Puzzle / Indie | Website: Official Website | Purchase: Steam

Play as the apprentice of Hermes and put on a show for the Gods of Olympus in God of Word. Players get to re-enact the most famous tales of yore, but the catch is that your words are your weapon. God of Word is a 2D word game where players battle their way through a five-act campaign mode for the entertainment of the gods. With over ten levels per act and over 25 bosses to fight, it is not a journey for the faint of heart. Fortunately, players are showered with gold and renown along the way, which can be used to purchase new weapons and armor as well as upgrade abilities.

God of Word offers a surprising amount of content for a small, affordable indie title. In addition to the lengthy campaign mode, the game has an online multiplayer mode for challenging friends and strangers. The bulk of the game comprises word searches where players are presented with a set of seven random letters and must come up with as many possible words as possible. Each successful word deals damage to your enemies, which are typical mythological creatures. The goal is to do enough damage to enemies before the timer runs out, which means speed is also essential. Of course, only so many words can be made with seven random letters, so players can also get a new set of letters if they are willing to sacrifice ten seconds of their timer. If players succeed in defeating their enemy, they move on to the next one, and doing so three times clears the level. 

Along with the word search levels, God of Word also throws a few mini-games at players to keep them on their toes. The first is a hangman-style mini-game where players must figure out the correct word with a limited number of guesses to save a follower. Next up are locked treasure chests, which require unscrambling an anagram before the timer runs out. Last up are typing levels where players must type the words displayed on the screen as quickly as possible to survive. These mini-games are fun and add some variety to the word search levels. Players can also set the dictionary language for the game, with seven different options available. 

Visually, God of Word is very simple, which means it should have no trouble running on older hardware. The 2D graphics do have a certain charm, as everything is set up like a theater play, complete with puppet strings holding up the characters. Bosses consist of famous monsters from Greek mythology, such as Cerberus, Medusa, and Cyclops, while the regular enemies are all manner of skeletons, animals, and soldiers. Players can acquire new weapons and armor while playing, which is reflected in their character sprite. Players can even customize their character for the multiplayer part of the game. The backgrounds also change for each act, but most players will be concentrating on the letter tiles at the bottom of the screen. 

The audio in God of Word is appropriate but doesn’t really stand out in any way. Since it is an indie title, the lack of speech isn’t a big deal, and the sound effects are decent enough. The game has full keyboard and mouse support, but we found the keyboard to be the quickest and most intuitive. God of Word does have adjustable difficulty, and players can set how challenging they want the combat and typing levels to be. These can be set independently, so players better at finding words than typing fast can adjust the difficulty accordingly. 

God of Word sets itself apart from similar word games by incorporating some role-playing elements. Defeating foes rewards players with gold and renown, which can be used to purchase new weapons and armor. These have different traits, so for example, the Golden Fleece armor grants players additional gold, while the Poseiden’s Trident weapon can be charged up to give players a new set of letters at no cost. Each armor set also has five increasingly more expensive upgrade levels, which can make them even more potent. Players also have a few persistent upgrades, including extra damage, more time, more gold, and more guesses for the hangman mini-game. Finally, players can use their gold to purchase time and damage potions, which can also be upgraded. Only five of each can be held at a time, but they can make a big difference if players find themselves running out of time or struggling to deal damage.

Putting together words to deal damage might not sound very riveting, but the time limit adds some urgency to the battles. Special tiles also appear sometimes, which, when used in a word, can deal increased damage, reward players with more gold, or extend the timer. Enemies have their own tricks, though, and some are shielded from words of a certain length. We also like that each of the bosses features unique mechanics such as poison tiles, the ability to regenerate, putting together words of a specific length to proceed, and more. Sometimes, it can be a pain due to the game’s random nature. For example, putting together a seven-letter word isn’t always possible depending on the letters you are given, and burning through time to try and get a set that can actually do it can be hit or miss.   

God of Word has plenty of content but can become repetitive when played in long sessions, so we preferred tackling a few levels every night. Along with a bunch of Steam achievements and the multiplayer mode, the game also offers “Combat Marathon” and “Typing Marathon” modes to keep players coming back for more. The developers even released a free Halloween update for the game, which added new armor, new levels, new enemies, and a new weapon and boss. 

Overall, God of Word has more than enough content to justify its asking price, and fans of word games will enjoy battling their way through this one. The RPG elements are a nice touch, and the mythological setting is neat, too. It can become repetitive after a while, but it’s a lot of fun when played in short bursts.