Orcs Must Die!

Quick review: 3

### Metric ###
1- Garbage. :(
2- Did not fulfill the purpose.
3 - Ok, fulfilled the purpose.
4 - A good game!
5 - Just play and be happy. :)

Fun quick levels

Simple timeless fun

Good fun but if you have any experience in the rest of the franchise or tower-defence, then it's probably not that challenging

I killed a lot of orcs, and you should too.

This action tower defense is amazing! I now understand why this spawned a successful franchise.
(+) Voice acting with the cartoon humor is very good!
(+) The blend of action and tower defense works perfectly
(+) Good mix of traps, enemies and maps
(+) Somewhat challenging (Nightmare more can be painful to 5 skulls)
(+) Fun achievements to go hunt for
(-) Currently does not work on Windows 11 (I played it entirely on Steam Deck and it ran really smooth)
(-) Wish there were more maps

Harder than OMD2

I can not recommend this game.

I have so much love in my heart for this franchise. This game holds up even in 2025

Fun short defence game.

Despite its flaws, Orcs Must Die! has aged remarkably well and remains an enjoyable tower defense/action hybrid. If you can tolerate some outdated design choices and the brutal final level, it’s absolutely worth playing.

I initially returned to Orcs Must Die! after being disappointed in Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap. I was curious to see if the game would still hold up, and to my surprise, not only does it still run over a decade after its release, but it also supports modern resolutions. Not all games are so lucky. I did encounter a small graphical issue where orcs would move erratically, sliding in place, but enabling Vsync fixed the problem.

Visually, the game has aged well. The stylized graphics and high-contrast colors make traps stand out in the environment. Character models look less impressive compared to the world around them, but the smooth animations bring them to life in a way that still feels engaging.

Gameplay-wise, it remains solid, though notably simpler than its successors. That’s not surprising, but something to keep in mind if you’re coming from later entries. One aspect I particularly appreciate is the game’s speed. Waves are generally short and varied enough to keep things interesting, even if most levels are essentially just hallways with designated kill box areas.

That said, the game isn’t perfect. One of its weaker aspects is orc pathfinding. For instance, if you block off a path with barricades, orcs will still walk up to them before turning around and taking the open route, making waves slower than necessary. Another quality-of-life issue is that traps must be selected at the start of every level, including retries, which can get tedious since you’re likely to use the same setup repeatedly.

Trap upgrades exist, but they are limited to linear improvements that simply make them stronger rather than offering meaningful variety. This also means that if you’re aiming for high scores, you’ll need to replay earlier levels with upgraded traps, which can feel like busywork. Additionally, as is common in the series, the voice lines get repetitive quickly, so turning them off is often preferable.

One unique aspect of the game is the Weaver system, which acts as an in-game skill tree during waves. While it does add some playstyle variety, it’s easy to fall into selecting the same few passives every run, which makes the system feel less engaging. It’s understandable why later games removed it.

Despite some minor flaws, the pacing is excellent. Levels usually take 15 minutes at most, keeping the game moving at a brisk pace. There’s also a good amount of content, with 24 levels and additional harder difficulties for those who enjoy the challenge. The game introduces new traps and mechanics steadily, keeping things fresh as your arsenal expands.

HOWEVER, if you’re planning to play this game, steel yourself for the final level. Holy moley. It is by far the most brutal stage, featuring a difficulty spike so intense it almost feels like a different game. You go from managing a few kill boxes to defending eight lanes(!!!) against overwhelming hordes. Unlike the rest of the game, which allows for reactive play, this level demands strict memorization. The worst offenders are the waves of exploding kobolds (waves 2, 6, and 10—trust me, you’ll want to remember them). These little jack wagons will either instantly kill your character or destroy your barricades, forcing you into a trial-and-error loop until you memorize the wave patterns. It’s not “hard” in a fun way—it’s just complete horse hockey. While some may enjoy the challenge, for me, it left a sour note to end the game on.

Pros:

24 levels (+5 additional with DLC)
Fast-paced gameplay with short, engaging waves
Great visual style and smooth animations
Traps feel satisfying to use
Weaver system adds variety (though not deeply engaging)
Solid amount of content with difficulty scaling

Cons:

Orc pathfinding can be clunky around barricades
Traps must be re-selected for every level, even on retries
Trap upgrades are linear and encourage unnecessary replaying for high scores
Repetitive voice lines (best played with voices off)
Final level is a massive difficulty spike that feels out of place
Levels tend to feel similar, as they all revolve around creating 1-2 optimal kill boxes

Oldie but goodie. Classic tower defense game that brings back memories. Loved everything about this game back in the day. Not many games like this made these days. I recommend this classic.

Orcs Must Die I think is one of the best tower defense games ever made. I originally saw it back in 2013 when I watched the Yogscast member Sips play it. All these years later I finally decided to pick it up and it is AWESOME! The game play allows for almost infinite creativity on how you make these orcs die! And the main character has an infectious enthusiasm for his job that makes you just as excited to get out of bed in the morning and kill orcs.
The setting and world is very unique as well and makes for a fun backdrop to the game.

All and all I can't recommend this game enough and I look forward to playing Orcs Must Die 2

very cool concept and gameplay. wish there were more games like these

i just finish this game in a day in war mage difficulty

Good game , a lil bit short than other trilogy of Orc Must Die , only worth if you buy entire Orc Must Die Franchise trilogy :v

🔥 Orcs Must Die! is an absolute blast! This 2011 gem from Robot Entertainment perfectly blends action, strategy, and tower defense into a chaotic and incredibly satisfying experience.

🏹 Why You’ll Love It:
✔ Fun & Addictive Gameplay – Set traps, cast spells, and use weapons to stop waves of orcs from invading your stronghold. Every level feels like a puzzle, and mastering trap combos is super rewarding.
✔ Great Variety of Traps & Weapons – From spike traps to springboards that send orcs flying, the game gives you plenty of creative ways to cause mayhem.
✔ Smooth Controls & Satisfying Combat – Whether you’re slicing through enemies with a blade staff or sniping them with a crossbow, the combat feels fluid and fun.
✔ Charming Humor & Style – The game doesn’t take itself too seriously, and the witty protagonist keeps things entertaining.
✔ Solid Replayability – Different difficulty levels, skillful trap placements, and leaderboard chasing will keep you coming back for more.

💀 Orcs Must Die! is an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoys tower defense with a twist. It’s challenging, hilarious, and packed with orc-crushing goodness. Still holds up after all these years!

⭐ 8/10 – Orcs had it coming. 😈🎯

it is very interting.

I'm not super great at this game, and though I wanted to play more of it I just didn't have the time it takes to put into it. That said, I think it's pretty well made and does everything you'd want it to for this type of tower defense game. I really hope someday I can get back to it and really get into this series.

Dale

Its a fun and unique tower defense game. but if You're on Windows 11 24H2 like me, you're unable to open the game unless you downgrade to windows 10, or i guess a older version of windows 11 which is outrageous to just play this game. There is a fix though. In the following folder: \orcs must die!\data\startup Create a file, user.cfg. Open the file In Notepad, type in window, save and close The game should now run, but in a window

im rsigma

pure bliss . orcs must die 1 and 2 are amazing. Robot entertainment sucks!!!

So addictive

Robot Entertainment
What a great company; a windows 11 update 14 years after the game launch broke the game from launching and instead of leaving you high and dry to figure out what is going on they actually redirect you to an explanation of what happened and how to get around it.

Really appreciate it and wish more companies were like this!

What can I say? Just pure classic ‘tower defence’ with a twist. Plays like a third person action game, while you frantically run around setting up traps and barriers. This here is just pure simple fun that rewards creativity, while providing enough challenge to keep you on your toes. Well worth the low price as it holds up from over a decade after release.

Such a good classic

Good

Still better than OMD Deathtrap.

A good classic, just mindless fun to grind those orcs to paste.
Got a bit old but still plenty of fun, you get to the end of it in 20 to 40 hours.


---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☑ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☑ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☑ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☑ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 10% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☑ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☑ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☑ Average
☐ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☑ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

---{ Author }---
☑ https://vojtastruhar.github.io/steam-review-template

Don't buy as of right now with windows 11 game can't be played

Orcs died.

Good game, bit old but fun 8/10

Orcs Must Die! is a third person shooter wave defense game where you defend against orcs. There are so many variants of orcs and likewise, there are tons of weapons and traps to built against them. I love that there is no one set play to enjoy this game, most traps are viable and you can switch up your gameplay at any time. The levels are well balanced as well and I thoroughly enjoyed each and every one of them. The only drawback about this game is that there is no co-op available, but I'm glad that they made multiplayer available in the sequel games. Definitely recommended!

Classic tower defense-esque game with a fun twist. Play it!

He's literally me

"Orcs Must Die!" - Maximilian The War Mage.

Goated Game 10/10 would play again.

Fun, but it is now bugged on PC and I cannot play it

Really really nice.

A pretty fun time for the price. The mechanics are all pretty basic and straightforward, there’s not a ton of depth, but it’s all well executed. The character design is kinda dumb, but it doesn’t matter. Just set up your traps and kill orcs, you’ll be ok.

Nyc game!!

A lot of fun! Sometimes you almost feel bad for the Orcs ... Almost.

Recommend it 110%!

PS: I hate you Armored Ogres! No pity for them!

Second and third are a bit better, but this is still good

Fantastic arcade game. Great to sit down and play with my kids. We love trying to solve the "puzzle" of each level.

The perfect blend of Tower defense and 3D hack and slash. Only downside I would say is that the enemy variety is low and half the traps are hot garbage. But all the spells have their roles and are extremely fun to use, and the sheer variety there is in terms of orc kill keeps the main gameplay loop from getting dull

This game is very simple, defend your crystal from orcs! I know that sounds pretty booring but trust me, this one is good.

First of I wanna talk about the gameplay. The gameplay is actually really addictive and fun, its not hard to understand. First the gameplay seems really simple but after some time it gets harder.
The graphics are nice and cartoony, something that I really like! and the controls are nice and tight.

Is this game worth the full price? Freaking yes! its a total hidden gem!

sure

bit jank but its ok

Loved this game on Xbox. Love it on Steam too!

What a fun tower defense game. I need more tower defense games in my life, multiplayer ones preferably, but this game was well worth the purchase.

Fun and easy to finish