Damsels in distress

Hack, slash and smash your way to victory as a knight tasked to save kidnapped princesses in Castle Crashers, an action-filled game you can download from Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade online service.

Created by US-based developer The Behemoth for the Xbox 360 console, Castle Crashers is a combination role-playing game (RPG) and side-scrolling beat-em-up, a genre whose main objective is close combat fighting against multiple opponents.

The game starts with the abduction of the king's four daughters by an evil wizard. The king then orders the player, who takes the role of a knight, to rescue the distressed damsels.

The game can support up to four players, all of whom must defeat enemies to progress, using magic and unlocking important combination attacks on the way.

The RPG aspect of the game is highlighted by its experience system, in which a character earns valuable points while fighting through the game. These points are used to favourably adjust a player's principal statistics, which include strength, magic, defence and agility.

Castle Crashers offers 20 levels, more than 40 weapons, and more than 20 unlockable characters, making this one of the largest games available on Xbox Live Arcade.

Although single play is fine, it is more fun to play with friends online or while sharing a console at home.