Xbox 360 Critic Reviews

Knights Contract is simply a solid adventure game with many flaws, an awkward charm, and often pure fun.

Knights Contract is a Japanese interpretation of Goethe's Faust in hack'n'slay style. Apart from the funny, twisted story, the game lacks in pretty much every aspect: the boss fights are unfair and the AI is plainly stupid, to name but a few examples. Other games in this genre like Dantes Inferno are both better and cheaper.

Even when the game seems to be working against me at every inopportune time, the drive to see the fate of Heinrich and Gretchen made me push forward. I'm glad I did. I didn't see the ending coming, and I love how the story concludes.

Knights Contract should have been a better game, but several poor design choices really hurt the experience. Still, I found it rewarding enough to continue on and discovered that underneath some of the glaring issues, there is a solid game to be found.

It's got an interesting story, a control setup that's not too hard to get used to (aside from the annoying lock-on mechanic), and the graphics and sound are nice, though the music can get repetitive after a while.

A sword combat game which is unbalanced in many aspects. Its difficulty curve is strange, being very easy until its difficulty suddenly leaps. Those who love the genre will like it, but the rest should consider more options.

Gratifying, gory combat contends with aggravating design flaws in this intriguing adventure.

Patient gamers will be able to find some fun in this game, especially when the higher difficulty levels open up, but for everyone else, Knights Contract makes for a good weekend rental.

Unforgiving quick-time events, unintelligent AI, frustrating cheap deaths, and confusing level design are just a few problems.

The combat, for the most part, is satisfying and visceral, and the story, at times, is genuinely compelling. A mostly entertaining experience, it's marred by some terrible flaws and a handful of moments of unadulterated rage; much, we'd expect, like actually selling one's soul.