Earlier this week Codemasters announced that Overlord II was in development by Triumph Studios, the sequel to their 2006 sleeper hit. Brimming with dark humour, it can be described as a sociopath's take on Pikmin. The game is tentatively set for release in 2009, on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.
Also in development are two Overlord unique spin-offs, Overlord: Dark Legend for Wii, "featuring minion control through Wii Remote movement", and Overlord: Minions for DS, "a dedicated puzzle action title". Both of these titles are being developed by Climax Studios and are also tentatively scheduled for sometime next year.
Lennart Sas, director and creative lead of the Overlord series over at Triumph Studios, had this to say. “Epic battles, all new Minion play mechanics, a stunningly detailed new visuals and a fresh theme – Overlord II’s really packing a punch." We’re really excited about shifting the world to a new era where a Roman-inspired Empire rises as the arch-enemy of the Overlord, which leads to an epic clash between the regimented forces of a sprawling state and the faster, harder, more manic minion horde. It’s also great to see the series reaching new formats. The creativity being packed into the design for Overlord Dark Legend on Wii and Overlord Minions on Nintendo DS make great use of the platforms’ unique features and are perfect extensions to the Overlord series.”
The following is quoted from the press release.
[i]Overlord II is the sequel to the hit warped fantasy action adventure that had players being delightfully despotic. In Overlord II, a new Overlord and a more powerful army of Minions take on an entire empire in a truly epic adventure, inspired by the rise of the Roman Empire. As the Glorious Empire conquers kingdoms and destroys any sign of magic it finds, it’s time to go Minion Maximus and send in the horde.
The Minions return smarter, deadlier (and funnier) and are ready to fight in large scale battles that will see their wild pack mentality squaring up to the organised legions of the Glorious Empire. As ever, they’ll do anything and everything the Overlord commands of them, especially now that they can run ravage and wreck buildings and scenery. They’ve also learn to ride: In Overlord II, Minions will be able to mount up and ride wolves and other magical creatures around the landscape and take them into battle, making our band of merry fighters faster and fiercer than ever before.
Please enjoy the first two screenshots from Overlord II;
