Since Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is going to focus heavily on the Persona 5 cast Atlus USA has released a new trailer that introduces every member of the cast, showing a little bit of their abilities in battle, and a sampling of how they will sound with the Japanese dub. While not focused on in this video, Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth will feature characters from Persona 3 as well as Persona 4 though it is worth noting that the heroine from Persona 3 Portable is said to have the biggest role of all the characters in the game.
You can check out the video below and keep an eye out for Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth when it is released on the 3DS in North America and Europe on June 4th.
Those who may never have played the original game in the Borderlands series will soon have a new chance to as 2K Games and Gearbox have revealed that Borderlands: Game of the Year Editionwill be getting released next week on April 3rd where it will be available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
This announcement follows the earlier reveal of Borderlands 3 and is going to be the perfect chance for people to re-discover, or perhaps discover for the first time, how the “shlooter” series began. Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition will contain a substantial visual upgrade, numerous quality of life improvements, brand new weapons, all DLC that was originally released for the game, and more.
In what has been a long time coming Gearbox has officially announced that Borderlands 3 is on the way with a decently sized reveal trailer that gives us a look at many familiar faces, including those from Tales from the Borderlands, as well as a glimpse at the four new playable characters that will be introduced in this game.
In the video, found below, we see some of these characters’ abilities being shown off as well as a number of the crazy weapon types that will appear in the game, one of them being a gun with legs of all things. Gearbox and 2K are expected to announce more information for the game on April 3rd as currently no release window nor platforms have been confirmed.
After being announced last year we haven’t heard much about Wolfenstein: Youngblood but it looks like we now have a release date as Bethesda and Machine Games have announced that the game will be arriving on July 26th. To go along with this announcement the company also revealed that alongside the previously confirmed PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC platforms that the game will also be heading to the Switch on the same day.
Wolfenstein: Youngblood is set nineteen years after the events of the second game and BJ Blazkowicz, hero of the second American Revolution, is missing. After spending years training and receiving guidance from their father, Jess and Soph are forced into action as they team up with a new cast of freedom fighters and brave the unsettling sights and sounds of twisted, alternate reality 1980s Paris.
When someone hears the name Viz Media they tend to think of the numerous manga and anime that the company has published in North America over the years. Now it seems that the company is looking to expand a bit as they have partnered with Rose City Games to bring out an indie title named The World Next Door. Blending match-3 style combat and some visual novel story scenes, is this title worth your time?
Story
It is interesting to note that The World Next Door does have a short prologue comic and while reading it isn’t really required to understand the game it does provide players with some initial context before diving into the game. In The World Next Door the Earth has a parallel dimension that it is connected to by portals that open up roughly every twenty years and connect it to an alternate realm known as Emrys where magic is a reality and numerous races of all kinds live their lives. While in the past it is described that war had previously raged anytime these portals opened now these two realms see this as a chance to connect with one another in harmony.
So much in fact that there is a lottery held to select various humans to travel between realms because so many people want to interact with the other side. Jun just so happens to be one of these lucky lottery winners and she is overjoyed with the fact that she can meet with her internet friend Liza and explore the world of Emrys for a day. Unfortunately after meeting many of Liza’s friends and doing a bit of illegal spelunking Jun ends up trapped on Emrys after the portal to Earth closes. Trapped with no way home, Jun, Liza, and the rest of the group must discover a way to get Jun back home as the magical realm of Emrys apparently will kill a normal human if exposed to it for too long.
The World Next Door doesn’t hesitate when it comes to throwing a number of new and interesting pieces of lore and characters at the player but what it does have an issue with is actually turning these things into more than barebones groundwork. Throughout the game players are introduced to a number of Liza’s friends as well as a few other members of her social circle but over our time with them we end up learning very little about any of them. What makes this more disappointing is the fact that the game offers a number of seemingly important social interactions with these characters. Many of them will have limited time quests that involve tracking down an item, answering a series of questions, or tackling a number of difficult puzzles or battles in a row to possibly bond with them.
Along those same lines players are informed that they can only text a number of characters at the start of a given day but other than seeing a few extra lines of text that generally play out the same for every character, actually fulfilling all of these conditions does nothing to really develop them any more than what they were introduced as. In fact even the lore aspects of how certain characters are part spirit or dragon is left by the wayside other than an explanation for their overall design.
This leaves players with a story that rarely moves beyond its own premise of attempting to get Jun home. Various events do occur that put the player and their friends at risk but so many plot points are just left hanging by the time the credits role, other than stinging the player with one resolution in credit artwork, that players will feel like there is just so much more to actually offer in The World Next Door than what they were given, especially since so many events and circumstances are left completely unexplained.
Gameplay
Most of your time in The World Next Door is spent traveling through shrines and fighting against enemies called Grievances using magical powers. Even as a human Jun is capable of wielding magic that is derived from runic glyphs that appear from the floor. Jun has the ability to move one rune at a time to any other place on a stage and any set of three can be activated to trigger a magical spell, with the more runes in a combination allowing for a more powerful version of that spell. There happens to be a healing spell accompanied by a number of offensive ones that cast fireballs, slow moving black holes, direct strikes, and stunning floor shocking spells.
Casting a spell next to an already prepared collection of runes will temporarily boost the power of that spell as well, allowing players to tie together a series of powerful attacks to fend off foes if they need them. Using more than three runes in a spell also spawns a special rune that can be formed into a special design to call upon the help of your friends. Each friend has a different spell and powerful spell that can be used to devastate the enemy and you gain access to more designs as you advance through the story.
That being said, if you are looking for a real challenge then The World Next Door really doesn’t offer too much of one. Most enemies choose simply to bum rush Jun in an attempt to deal damage while others can cast spells from a distance but simply dashing out of the way of these attacks are an easy enough affair. While exploring dungeons there are also numerous healing wells that will fully restore health lost between battles but these will rarely be needed unless you end up in a bad way at the end of a previous fight though this generally should only happen near the end of the game once a few more tactical foes start appearing.
Boss battles do change things up slightly as most bosses can trigger various stage effects that either remove ruins that have been placed on the ground, temporarily block the use of all runes, or throw down stage hazards that must be avoided. Even here though most of these battles don’t end up being too difficult but there is an “easy” mode that makes it so Jun is invulnerable to all damage if you end up having trouble with the game.
Outside of fighting players will generally just be finding various objects scattered throughout the world and solving puzzles, though for what reason is unknown. Various side quests can be obtained from talking to various NPCs in town or finding items inside of a shrine but other than a few bits of extra dialogue most of them only reward the player with an item that has no real purpose and an explanation that doesn’t really add anything to the lore. Even completing optional puzzle challenges reward the player with items that seem like they will play a role somewhere down the line end up having no use.
Visuals & Audio
One of the best elements of The World Next Door are the designs of the game’s characters. Jun features a fairly standard human design but the use of the mask is nicely handled and the various magical beings of Emrys are quite varied in species with some unique designs mixed in with the group. The standard enemy designs are fairly basic in nature though the boss designs are nicely detailed though the designs of the shrines are as generic as they come. The same can unfortunately be said about the limited areas players can explore in the base city as there are only four screens to be seen here.
It is interesting to note that the game only features one voiced character while the rest of the cast is simply given gibberish voice work. The spoken character is simply a television reporter that players can interact with between missions. The soundtrack does feature a nice little array of background music but nothing that stands out in any noticeable way.
Overall
The World Next Door may be a solid title but it also is one that feels like it is half baked. The world of Emrys is an interesting place to see and is filled with a colorful cast of characters that we only get to interact so much with while the lore is barely tapped into during the game’s short run time. Numerous plot points feel like they are left by the wayside in what ends up being a rather short title that feels like it could have been so much more. Instead we find ourselves a game with solid enough match-3 combat that is a bit on the easy side and a storyline that, while set in an interesting world filled with characters begging to be given more time, is cut short.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Penny Arcade’s D&D Sourcebook Acquisitions
Incorporated Launching June 18
Pre-Orders Available Now Exclusively on the
Penny Arcade Store Until Monday
SEATTLE – MARCH 28, 2018
–Acquisitions
Incorporated, the official third-party Dungeons & Dragons
sourcebook from Penny Arcade and Wizards of the Coast, brings hilarious fantasy antics
straight to players’ homes June 18.
For the past decade, the
renowned retrieval company known as Acquisitions Incorporated has shared their
(mis)adventures with hundreds of thousands of attendees at PAX and viewers on
Twitch. Dungeon Master Jeremy Crawford (Lead Rules Designer of Dungeons
& Dragons) does his best to shepherd the mischief of Penny Arcade and
PAX co-founders Jerry Holkins (Omin Dran, Cleric) and Mike Krahulik (Jim
Darkmagic, Wizard) as well as a rotating cast of celebrity guests including
author Patrick Rothfuss (Viari, Rogue) and gaming icon Morgan Webb (Môrgæn,
Ranger).
Now, with the 224-page
sourcebook, Dungeon Masters and players alike can experience the uproarious
exploits of Acquisitions Incorporated in their own game. New spells, a
new race, and introducing character positions mean it’s easier than ever to
join the company and take part of this universe. Want to jump in headfirst? The
book also includes an adventure module so players can get started right away.
From now until April 1, Acquisitions
Incorporated will be available exclusively on the Penny Arcade store for $49.95 and will come with a free
exclusive pin.
“Being able to give
back to the game that I’ve been playing most of my life is incredible,” said
Jerry Holkins, co-founder of Penny Arcade. “I can’t wait for players to join my
friends and I in Acquisitions Incorporated, not just because it’s a book and a world
we’re very proud of, but also because my character gets a cut of their
earnings.”
For more information on
Acquisitions Incorporated, the D&D sourcebook, please go to the official website.
For more information on
Acq Inc, please visit the official website.
About Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade is a webcomic focused on video games and video
game culture, written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. With
over 3.5 million readers, it is the most popular and longest-running gaming
webcomic online. Penny Arcade is also responsible for the Child’s Play Charity,
the Penny Arcade gaming expos (PAX) in Seattle, Boston, San Antonio,
Philadelphia, and Melbourne, multiple video games based on the brand, and
multiple online video series.
TEAM17 AND BLACK MATTER UNLEASH HELL LET LOOSE ON STEAM EARLY ACCESS
ON JUNE 6
PRE-ORDERS NOW OPEN FOR REALISTIC
PLATOON-BASED WWII SHOOTER
WAKEFIELD,
United Kingdom – March 28, 2019 – Team17,
together with independent development team Black Matter, announced today that
their hotly anticipated authentic WWII shooter Hell Let Loose will launch on Steam Early
Access on June 6, priced at $29.99. Budding recruits can pre-order
now to secure a place in three upcoming betas for themselves and two
friends ahead of launch. The opening salvo will take place over the weekend of
April 5, with a further two advances coming at a later date. Backers of Black
Matter’s successful
Kickstarter campaign will also be eligible to jump into the action!
From today, volunteers can enlist for battle
via two pre-order options:
Soldier
Pack: Purchase the Soldier
Pack for Hell Let Loose
and receive:
1x Steam game code
with access to the full game, as well as up to 3 betas before early access
launch on June 6, 2019.*
2x Additional
beta keys to share with friends. Each granting access for up to 3
betas ahead of early access launch on June 6 (these codes will be
terminated on completion of the 3rd beta).*
Unit
Pack: Purchase the Unit
Pack for Hell Let Loose
and receive:
6x Steam game codes with
access to the full game, as well as 3 betas before early access launch on
June 6, 2019.*
This Unit Pack purchase will come with a 10%
discount.
Each pack will also kit new recruits out with
an exclusive pre-order helmet for both the German and U.S. forces:
German M42 Helmet Cover
with Sniper Veil.
US 505th 82nd Airborne
variant.
* 1st beta will begin on the weekend of April
5, 2019; there will be 2 more following that beta before early access launches
on June 6. Next month’s beta marks the first time Hell Let Loose will be playable for those who
have pre-ordered the game and
features a brand new map: Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, the location of a critical
military engagement between the American 101st Airborne Division and the German
Wehrmacht on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The beta also features the sprawling Hürtgen
Forest map, where a series of fierce battles between American and German forces
were fought on the Western Front during the winter of 1944.
Hell Let
Loose is a teamwork-based brutal multiplayer
first-person shooter set during the Second World War and built using Unreal
Engine 4. Offering 50 vs. 50 tactical battles in which players must coordinate
to capture sectors and resources to beat the opposition into submission, the
game creates an epic theater of war across huge maps. Authenticity is key, and
players will be able to experience history using a realistic period
arsenal with accurate weapon behavior.
Black Matter, a development team based in
Australia, Russia and
the United States, has been working on the game since 2016 and completed a
successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017. For more information on Hell Let Loose, please
join the official Discord
server, sign up for the newsletter,
follow us on Twitter
and like us on Facebook.
Add Hell Let Loose
to your Steam wishlist here.
Assets are available to download from http://press.team17.com/.
###
About
Hell
Let Loose:
Hell Let Loose is a realistic
multiplayer World War II first-person
shooter with open battles of 100 players with infantry, tanks, artillery and
a shifting front line. At its core is a unique resource-based strategic
meta-game that is easy to learn, but hard to master. This is World War II
at a scale you’ve never played before.
An Epic Theater of War :Take
to the battlefield in 50 vs. 50 multiplayer across huge maps. Choose one
of 14 playable roles within infantry, recon and armor
unit types, each equipped with different weapons, vehicles and
equipment. Play as an officer, scout, machine gunner, medic, engineer,
tank commander and more to experience every aspect of World War II combat.
Unprecedented Scale: Placing
you on real-scale iconic battlefields of World War II is at the heart of
the Hell Let Loose
experience. Historical vehicles, weapons, uniforms are intricately
detailed, and the combat is as brutal and bloody as it was on the day.
Combat takes place on huge, to-scale maps from real battle locations,
recreated using archival aerial photography and satellite imagery in
stunning detail using Unreal Engine 4.
A Unique Meta-Game: Fight
for victory by breaking through the enemy lines on a large, evolving
battlefield. Manage resources and supplies to call in support, reinforce
strongpoints or flank enemies. Strategy
is key
to success.
Fight Together, Win Together: Hell Let Loose is not all about kill/death
ratios and unlocks – teamwork is central to gameplay. Communication is
essential. Players work together beneath the leadership of officers and
their commander to take strategic targets on the battlefield and dominate
the opposition. Hell
Let Loose is a game that demands teamwork and communication
not only to win,
but to survive.
About
Black Matter
Black Matter is an independent studio founded
in 2015 to support the development of debut title Hell Let Loose. Made
up of an international team of selected artists and programmers, Black Matter
is focused on creating beautiful worlds ruled by emergent, player-driven
game design. Visit www.blackmatterstudio.com for
more info.
About
Team17 Group plc
Founded in 1990, Team17 Group plc is a
leading international video games label and creative partner for independent
developers. The portfolio comprises over 90 games, including The
Escapists, Genesis Alpha One, Overcooked, Yoku’s Island
Express, Yooka-Laylee, the Worms franchise and many more from developers around
the world. Visit www.team17.com for
more info.
LINEAGE 2: REVOLUTION INTRODUCES NEW AGATHION SYSTEM
New
Field Boss, New Territory and Other Game Improvements Also Available
LOS ANGELES – March 28, 2019 – Today, Netmarble Corp. has released a major update to the popular
mobile massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), Lineage 2: Revolution,
introducing new pet companions called Agathions for its in-game hero
characters.
The Agathion System offers equipable pets that follow
the heroes, along with mounts and summons. Agathions are unlocked at Lv. 15 and
do not participate in combat. However, they have substats that help to
strengthen hero characters. Agathion substats range from P. Atk. / M. Atk., Max
HP/MP, Penetrate, Resilient, Crit. Rate, Critical Resistance, Accuracy and
Evasion, which can all be obtained from most equipment and soul crystals. The
main difference is that Agathions have a set substat, so players cannot adjust
these values, but can only increase and strengthen their Grade. For
strengthening Agathion substats, players will use the Agathion Menu’s
Strengthening tab for a cost of 30,000 Adena or 300 Red Diamonds to increase
the selected substat.
Grade Strengthening is only possible when the newly
obtained Agathion Soul’s Grade is higher than the Agathion players already own.
In this case, the lower grade Agathion can be overwritten with a higher grade,
while the existing lower grade will be returned as Agathion Souls to be used in
Agathion combination.
Agathions are sealed by grade and can be summoned by
collecting Agathion Souls, which can be acquired in the Scarlet Libra Shop and
the Bundle Shop.
Available Agathions include:
Little Demon
Little Angel
Royal Hamstar
Jiangshi
Agathions will also utilize specialized pieces of
equipment that only Agathions may equip called Charms, and feature exclusive
Charm slots ranging from one to six. The obtained Charm’s name and number must
match to equip, adding a fun challenge for players. Charms will have fixed
substats depending on the slot, but the value may change. When using
auto-equip, Charms with higher substat values will automatically replace the
existing Charm, which then disappear so players will have to take caution when
auto-equipping.
The Agathion System will also utilize a series of
combinations to create more powerful results. Higher grade Agathions and Charms
can be obtained by combining if a player owns three or more of the same grade.
Combinations cannot fail and over time, players can obtain all Agathions and
Charms. Grade SR Rare Agathions can only be obtained by combining Grade SR or
Grade SR Rare Agathions. It’s important to remember that a Charm of the same
number must be used as material.
In addition to the Agathion System, new Field Boss
named Marlox will challenge players by summoning Demon Totems, which
must be destroyed. If players fail to destroy three summoned totems within the
time limit, they will be attacked with an AoE attack called Demon’s Sword Aura
and will have to defeat Marlox with a different strategy.
Also, a new territory called Schuttgart is now
available for players to explore. The territory includes the Northern Immortal
Plateau, Schuttgart Snow Field and Spine Mining Zone, as well as new Main
Quests, Runes and monsters for players to explore.
Players will get a bit of help in taking on these new
challenges, as the max level will be expanded from Lv. 320 to Lv. 360. For
current players at Lv. 320, this will challenge them to reach the max level again. In
addition, after reaching Lv. 360, players may accrue Exp. up to Lv. 370 and
also increase Skill Levels.
Game to Release Two Months
Earlier into F1® Season
Larkspur,
Calif. – March 28, 2019 –
Codemasters® and Koch Media today announced that F1 2019, the official
videogame of the 2019 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP™, will ship a full two
months earlier into the F1 season and launch worldwide on June 28, 2019. The
game will be released during the Austrian Grand Prix weekend and, unlike
previous iterations, ahead of the British, German and Hungarian Grands Prix. F1
2019 has been in development for nearly two years, making it the most ambitious
release in franchise history, and launches on PlayStation® 4 computer
entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X
and Windows PC.
Working
in partnership with F1, for the first time ever, players will be able to get
behind the wheel of a 2019 regulation car specifically designed in
collaboration with F1’s technical team, headed up by Ross Brawn and Pat
Symonds. The car, which will be available in Multiplayer, adheres to the 2019
regulations and comes with a range of livery designs offering players a new
level of personalization. The 2019 F1 Team liveries will also feature on the
car in early marketing materials, but will be replaced by the final Team cars
ahead of the game’s release.
Having established itself as one of the highest-rated racing franchises of all time, F1 2019 will build on the success of previous iterations and deliver an experience that rivals the quality and production values of its real-life race counterpart and includes several new game features which will be revealed in the coming months. To whet the appetite Codemasters has today released the F1 2019 Teaser Trailer, which showcases some of the game’s brand new look and feel.
“We are
absolutely delighted to be able to release F1 2019 earlier in the Formula 1
Season, so that the game can be played and enjoyed at the same time that the
real-world championship picture is starting to form,” said Paul Jeal, F1
Franchise Director at Codemasters. “Our close relationship with Formula 1 has
played a major part in achieving this key objective for the franchise. That in
addition to our near two-year development cycle, has allowed us to develop some
exciting new features and other firsts for the franchise that we can’t wait to
share with our community in the coming months.”
“The
exciting collaboration with Ross Brawn and Pat Symonds has created new levels
of player personalization in F1 2019 through the inclusion of the new
regulation car,” said Lee Mather, F1 2019 Game Director at Codemasters. “With
the continued growth of the F1 series, it’s great to give players more control
and new levels of car and driver customization and we can’t wait to talk more
about this alongside the new multiplayer features in the coming months.”
For
future news and details on all the new features follow Codemasters F1 games
blog and social channels on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
# # #
About
Codemasters
Codemasters
(AIM:CDM) is an award winning British video game developer and publisher with
over 30 years of heritage. The company specializes in high quality racing games
including DiRT, GRID, ONRUSH and the BAFTA award-winning official F1® series of
videogames.
For more
information on Codemasters’ product portfolio, please visit www.codemasters.com.
Join in the conversation with @codemasters on Twitter or Like us on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/codemasters.
About
Deep Silver
Deep
Silver develops and distributes interactive games for all platforms. The Deep
Silver label means to captivate all gamers who have a passion for thrilling
gameplay in exciting game worlds. Deep Silver works with its partners to
achieve a maximum of success while maintaining the highest possible quality,
always focusing on what the customer desires.
Deep
Silver has published more than 200 games since 2003, including its own brands
like the open world extravaganza Saints Row, the zombie action franchise Dead
Island, and the grim post-apocalyptic future of the Metro series. Upcoming
highlights from Deep Silver include Dead Island 2. Deep Silver also owns the
development studios Deep Silver Dambuster Studios in Nottingham, UK; Deep
Silver Fishlabs in Hamburg, Germany, and Deep Silver Volition based in
Champaign, IL, USA. For more information please visit www.deepsilver.com
Koch
Media is a leading producer and distributor of digital entertainment products
(software, games and films). The company’s own publishing activities, marketing
and distribution extend throughout Europe and the USA. The Koch Media group has
more than 20 years of experience in the digital media business, and has risen
to become the number one distributor in Europe. It has also formed strategic
alliances with numerous games and software publishers: Bethesda, Capcom,
Kaspersky Labs, NC SOFT, Sega, Square Enix and Tecmo-Koei, etc. in various
European countries. With Headquarter in Höfen, Austria Koch Media owns branches
in Germany, England, France, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, the Nordic
regions, Benelux, Australia, Czech Republic and the United States.
All
product titles, publisher names, trademarks, artwork and associated imagery are
trademarks, registered trademarks and/or copyright material of the respective
owners. All rights reserved.
All
other copyrights or trademarks are the property of their respective owners and
are being used under license. Developed and published by Codemasters.
If there’s one thing that you should take away from this review, let it be that I strongly believe Warparty is the rightful spiritual successor to Warcraft 3. Need I say more? Warparty is the debut real-time strategy game of Belgium based developers Warcave in collaboration with Crazy Monkey Studios. But can this game find mainstream appeal and shine bright in a video game market oversaturated with similar games?
Story
Warparty’s campaigns focuses around the three factions, The Necromas, Vithara and Wildlanders; vying for control over the land through their use of Go’n powers which were found by the ancient tribes. The stories of the three campaigns intersect at times.
The Wildlanders story focuses around Chieftain Mika leading her newly formed tribe called the ‘Wildlanders’ which is focused around humans and keeping the tribe alive.
In the Vithara (means ‘Life’s Vengeance’) storyline, you play as the Sage, who is ashamed of humankind and uses the Go’n arts in an effort to correct nature’s mistakes. The Sage can command wildlife and bring it onto his side in battle. This race is similar to the Night Elves in Warcraft, with its focus around nature and its inclusion of ‘Trees of Life’ and Wisps which collect resources.
Last but not least, the Necromas, whose leader Char, is everything but Lich King in name. Char had gotten lost from his tribe and discovered a ancient mace inside a Go’n temple, which leads him to attempt to eradicate life from the planet.
Gameplay
Warparty contains multiple game modes, AI Skirmish, where you set up the parameters of a match and play against the computer on pre-made maps; Survival mode, where you face waves of increasingly difficult enemies; and the campaign, where you progress through three separate story campaigns and their missions.
I thoroughly enjoyed Survival mode, the maps in the game for this mode were challenging to defend, but at the same time felt so rewarding when your network of defensive towers were able to just hold back the enemy as your units came to reinforce. I would of liked to of seen more maps for this mode and it would be excellent if they could add co-op for this, as it would be very fun with friends.
Much like other games in the genre, Warparty doesn’t stray too far from the established formula in terms of controls. The game, compared to something like Warcraft 3, contains some much appreciated elements, such as your maximum unit selection being (at least seemingly) unlimited.
That’s not to say this game doesn’t bring its own unique elements. Warparty delivers on what many games fail to do, present three similar but completely different in strategy playable factions without requiring the player to learn brand new play-styles. Every race was able to feel unique, and I loved the Vithara mechanic of taming wild beasts to fight by your side, along with the (very overpowered) Necromas mechanic of being able to raise a dead soldier to fight on your side for every soldier you kill.
On the other hand, this game isn’t perfect. This game fails, like many other games, to make the ‘human’ faction feel special outside of not having any major abilities. In addition, the defensive towers in the game feel way too under-powered and disadvantages players who want to focus on building up before they attack outwards. Finally, in campaign mode, some of the missions (Especially mission 2 for Wildlanders and Vithara on normal difficulty) feel overly hard for the sake of being hard.
Visuals
In strategy games it’s important that the graphics don’t get in the way of, or distract, the gameplay. Warparty’s graphics find a perfect fit between flashy and utilitarian, the units are easily identifiable in battle and it’s not too confusing to tell the difference between your units and the enemies. The building styles of each faction makes it easy to identify in the moment who you’re fighting.
Warparty excels in delivering a timeless look, although it’s not a look that’s unique to Warparty. The graphics are reminiscent of the timeless realistic-cartoon look which has appeared in games like World of Warcraft, DOTA 2 and many other games.
Audio
I’ve spent some time as I’ve written this review trying to figure out if the voice acting in Warparty is excellent or awful. The voice actors sound like they’re voicing orcs directly out of a 90’s strategy game, which may be intentional if the creators of this game want us to make that connection between their game and the classics from the 90’s.
The music in the game sounded uninteresting and repetitive, with some of the tracks making me wonder if the audio had locked up. It is the worst aspect of this game, especially compared to the epic music that’s usually expected for games like this.
Overall
You may have noticed throughout this review that I cannot get this Warcraft 3 comparison out of my head. Sure, the game is similar in story to the Warcraft franchise, but does that really matter?
No, I don’t think so. After all, good artists copy, great artists steal. Warparty is as close as we can get to a modern Warcraft 3 (at least before the release of the remastered Warcraft 3) and it’s exciting that this game is taking the proven groundwork of the great games that came before it, and adding it’s own little twist and fixes.
It’s something dreadfully needed in this current industry where every developer feels the pressure to always innovate.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
