Gladius | Nintendo GameCube

Important: Game may not include original DLC, bonus-content, online-pass, season-pass, or other digital redemption codes. Any included codes may have already been redeemed or expired.

Preorder and launch bonuses, promotional or bonus inserts, and bundled bonus-game downloads are not guaranteed. Content supplied on the game disc or cartridge is unaffected.

About the Game

Gladius is a tactical role-playing game from LucasArts built around managing a school of gladiators. Its world blends Roman-inspired arenas with northern clans, beasts, magic, and myth. You begin from one of two perspectives—Valens of Imperia or Ursula of Nordagh—then travel through regional leagues as a local rivalry grows into a threat far larger than any tournament.

Build a Gladiator School

Progress depends on recruiting fighters, arranging a balanced roster, equipping the school, and developing combatants across many battles. Gladiators belong to different classes and sizes, with strengths that interact through matchup rules rather than a simple “highest level wins” system. Terrain, movement range, facing, initiative, status effects, and elemental or class advantages all matter when choosing where to stand and which opponent to pressure.

Turn-Based Arena Combat

Fights play out on gridded arenas, but attacks include timing-based input that can improve a strike when performed well. Objectives go beyond defeating every rival: some contests ask the school to hold ground, protect a target, survive special hazards, or work around unusual arena conditions. Victories earn experience and access to tougher leagues, while the larger campaign ties the school’s reputation to story events across Imperia and Nordagh.

Modes & Presentation

The campaign is the center of the experience, supported by offline play for up to four participants in compatible modes. Progressive-scan output and Dolby Pro Logic II audio are supported on the GameCube release. With deliberate battles, long-term roster planning, and a mythic setting, Gladius is aimed at players who want strategy and character development rather than real-time brawling. The North American edition is rated T for Blood and Gore, Comic Mischief, and Violence.