Robin Hood: The Legend of Sherwood is a real-time tactics (RTT) game where Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men stick it to the Sherriff of Nottingham and foil Prince John’s nasty plans.

But wait – what the hell is an RTT? Glad you asked! Think of it as the stealthier cousin of the more battle-hungry RTS. While RTS games are all about overwhelming your enemies with an army, the RTT is all about scouting, evading, and hitting only when it counts. Well-known examples include Commandos, Myth, and Desperados.

In a practical sense, it means Robin Hood isn’t much of a killer – he’s more into knocking folks out, throwing coins to distract them, and generally being a lovably, sneaky rogue. Sure, you can kill people, but the game doesn’t love that, and neither do potential recruits for your Merry Men. (Apparently word travels fast in Medieval England.)

The gameplay is mission-based and hardcore. No open world frolicking here. Instead, you’re thrown into tightly designed levels where guards are everywhere, and civilians can snitch on you faster than a Twitter fight. The A.I. is relentless – blink, and they’ll spot you, sound the alarm, and bring their friends.

One time, I had to knock out a chatty woman just to avoid a full-scale riot. Do I feel bad? Kind of, but either she falls asleep or I lose my life. At least I can take comfort in knowing she’s made of pixels.

The art style here is fantastic. As much as people argue about rhe merits of 2D vs. 3D, what about isometric? Because I bloody love the details of the environments. And while the pixels become more noticeable when you zoom in, from a distance, it’s lush and vivid. I mean, the resolution here is 1024x768 – life was good on Windows 98 PCs.

Sound is excellent. We got medieval music to accompany us on our adventures. The voice acting is suitably over-the-top – as all games of this era were – but at least it’s charming and not annoying. As for the sound effects, vivid and sharp – perfect for hearing guards freak out when they realize you outsmarted them again.

Spellbound Entertainment developed Robin Hood. And though they no longer exist, what a legacy they have. Well-known games they’ve made are Airline Tycoon, Helldorado, and Giana Sisters DS.

Do I recommend Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive? Absolutely. But more than that, I recommend the whole stealth RTT genre. It’s a beautiful style I’d love to see more in modern gaming. Go ahead, put on your tights and ready your arrows – it’s time to sneak around medieval England.