Goblin Commander: Unleash The Hoard is a rare bird. It's a real-time-strategy game that was built from the wheels up as a console offering. The effort shows too. The interface is elegant and simple to learn and one fun ride. The game does have some small problems, but the overall package is lots of fun.

Goblin Commander takes place in the land of Ogriss. A human wizard named Fraziel brought the goblins into the world as laborers to help him make a great machine. One day an act of sabotage kills Fraziel. Grommel of the Stonekrushers is outraged and leads his clan in search of his master's murderer. To complete his quest for vengeance he will have to first subdue and then bring the other goblin clans under his command.

The quest is really linear. No choice about where to attack first. The player leads his forces in attacks on the Hellfire, Stormbringer, Plaguespitter and Nighthorde clans, in that order. Each clan has its own culture, which is reflected in its combat style. For example, Stonekrushers are cave dwellers and thus usually fight close and are great melee soldiers. The Hellfire clan lives in the more open woods and is best with ranged weapons. Plaguespitters live in swaps and have mastered the poisons of the plants. Each clan has both melee and ranged units as well as one special unit. The special unit serves a specific purpose such as the Stonekrusher's healing drummer or the Hellfire's far-seeing scout.

Units are created in the individual clan's clanshrine building using soul points that are obtained either from fallen enemies or (in greater numbers) from the soul fountains and soul caches found on the maps. More powerful units require more soul points to build. Gaining access to the more powerful units also requires gold. Think of this as money to develop the more advanced weapons these units use. Gold is awarded for destroying enemy buildings and even rocks. Gold is also used to improve the performance of units. In some clans that may mean hit damage and armor, in others it can be health or weapons range.

Each clan has a unique titan unit. Clan Stormbringer has its lightning elemental. Hellfire has a giant war hog. (No, I'm not making this stuff up!) These giant units wreak havoc on the enemy. The clans also have unique turret units that may be placed to defend clanshrines or titan halls from enemy attacks.

At any one time no more than three clans can be under the player's control. (Less at the beginning of the game.) Each clan has no more than ten members on the map at any time. Only one titan may be on the map and a maximum of three defensive turrets.

Control over these units could not be easier. To move a goblin clan the player moves the pointer with the analog stick to where he would like the clan to move to and then presses the clan's assigned button. The A, B and X buttons are each assigned to a controlled clan and set waypoints for that clan. Clans are controlled as a single unit. Path waypoints may also be set by holding the L button and then placing waypoints along a route of march the player would like that clan to take. By connecting the beginning and end of the path waypoints, a clan can be made to patrol an area. On the way to the waypoints, should the clan run into the enemy, they will fight to the best of their abilities.

The player can take direct control of a clan by putting the pointer over a member of the clan and pressing the Y button. The analog stick is then used to guide the clan and make them attack on command. Other clans can also be instructed to follow the directly-controlled clan, giving the player quite an army under his direct control.

Titans always have to be directly controlled. Clans can be instructed to follow titans in their attacks. A phalanx consisting of an ogre supported by ten fully-upgraded Stonekrusher Pitbosses and ten Hellfire Bombardiers is a sight to behold. Very little can stand in the way of such a force.

Since the player will find himself often returning to his clanshrines and to the scene of ongoing battle, the designers were nice enough to make the D-pad a shortcut to returning to home and back to the ongoing conflict with just a tap. It's just the thing for jumping home to create reinforcements at the clanshrine and then zipping back to the fray to directly affect the outcome. The D-pad also brings up the objectives list and explains the functions of items the player encounters during play.