Added: 16.07.2015 19:21 | 4 views | 0 comments

is something of an oddity. It opens with the premise that you've played some other fantasy 4X game and lost. The world is now under the rule of an evil wizard with god-like powers, and you’re the ward of a small province under his control. Your goal is to build up your forces and form alliances to challenge him without drawing his suspicion. All the while, you'll see a ticking "doomsday counter," which marks how close the villain is to re-making the world in his heinous image.

That counter is a big pace-setter. Early on, when you're leading a pathetic band of covert rebels, you have little to contend with. As you grow your army, capture more territory, and forge alliances with other factions, however, the Sorcerer King will respond in kind--and you must be ready. Your basic troops, mostly bog-standard soldiers, pikemen, and archers can only do so much on their own, and they soon become obsolete unless you track down new items and equipment. This is where Sorcerer King's strongest feature--roguelike-inspired encounters--comes into play.

Throughout the map you’ll find caves, dungeons, inns, abandoned villages, and plenty of other locations that offer isolated role-playing moments. Each one presents you with a situation that you have to resolve. Some are as simple as solving an obvious murder, while others require you to make judgment calls, such as guessing the intentions of a creepy-looking undertaker. How you proceed in each one of these situations will affect several stats, such as your fame in the world or your favor with the gods. Those traits, in turn, determine how other factions respond to you and how quickly the Sorcerer King recognizes you as a capable threat.

These vignettes do most of the heavy lifting when it comes to establishing and fleshing out the setting. Each is well written, often laden with nuanced takes on morality as well as a wink and a nod to leave you with a chuckle. In my time with this not-quite-retail build, I found dozens of scenes across two matches--and not once did I see a repeat. It's still too early to see if that will hold for much longer, but my initial impressions are positive.

It's great to see so much effort put into these scenarios because when it comes time for the mid-to-late game, they are the only way to get essential gear. As your poorly outfitted conscripts begin squaring off with ogres and dragons, they need more than dull knives and leather armor to survive. Completed quests will net your army a variety of rewards, such as a permanent reduction in the doomsday counter, holy weapons, or magic scrolls. You can then either equip your armies with the new loot or upgrade and enchant items for even bigger bonuses down the line.

Like many games of its type, Sorcerer King comes in two main pieces: big-scale strategy and tactical skirmishes. Both depend on each other, but the meat of the play is in the up-close-and-personal fights. Here, all the work you've put into crafting the perfect soldiers pays off. Depending on which items and enchantments your forces have, they'll gain powerful abilities or have the armor to shrug off all but the mightiest blows. Even before you hit that stage, the tactical battles are excellent. Archers, pikemen, and mounted units all have their own strengths that play off each other, making for a broad array of options. During one of my favorite moments, I ordered my soldiers to circle a group of ruffians. When it was time, I used a shield-bash to push the bandits into a narrow path. With the enemies blocked on all sides, my marksmen let loose a hail of arrows on the helpless scoundrels. Laying out these kinds of plans might sound involved, but Sorcerer King's interface makes it quick and easy.

On the other side of that coin you have the grand strategy. In this part of the game, you'll develop alliances, build cities, tap resources, and launch a broader assault on the wicked Sorcerer King. One of the biggest new additions to the game since its debut in Early Access last year is the "favor system" for courting potential allies. Given that the whole premise is founded on asymmetrical combat between rebels and an all-powerful mage trying to the end the world, you'll want some friends to help you out.

Yetis, wraiths, dwarves, and plenty more dot the map and await your olive branch, but there's a catch. The Sorcerer King isn't dumb, and he's working each of these factions too. Speaking with any group will cause your relationship with one of the others to deteriorate, pushing them closer into the Sorcerer King's eager embrace. The yetis and the dwarves, for example, don't have much love for one another--so you'd better be ready to make some sacrifices and figure out who will be the best match for your own strategy.

It'll be interesting to see how diplomacy plays into Sorcerer King's single-player campaign, but, at the time of writing, the story mode isn't live. So far, there's only a sandbox in which you can customize your leader and pick some options for your starting map. I haven't had time to finish one of these matches yet, putting four hours into one and eight into another. I'll have a more complete review in a few days when I've had the opportunity to dig into the end game and the campaign.

Added: 16.07.2015 18:25 | 25 views | 0 comments

Fallout 4

Few RPG franchises have as loyal a fan base as Fallout. We already knew that the game will be set in Boston and will feature a rather fearless German shepherd along with his vault-dweller human. But at a June 14 press conference, creator Bethesda also revealed a megaton (see what we did there?) of new images, features and abilities. Even better: A real release date, for November 2015. (Photo by: Bethesda)

Dishonored 2

trigue! More backstabbing! More sneaking around! And now there's a new character to play: Emily Kaldwin, the rightful scion in the original game. The first game raked in plenty of awards and accolades, so the sequel should get a lot of attention. (Photo by: Bethesda)

Halo 5: Guardians

We're talking about a franchise that has raked in more than $3 billion in revenue, so, naturally, expectations are high for this release. The gameplay demo revealed at E3 looks righteous, and fans have been waiting a long time for this new installment. (Photo by: Microsoft)

Doom

The seminal first-person shooter is back! The original Doom series from the 1990s is credited not only with birthing a new gaming genre, but also racking up a serious following. (We're talking 10 million units sold.) Bethesda's resurrection looks as slick as it does utterly sick. (Photo by: Bethesda)

Rise of the Tomb Raider

Again, the existence of this game is no surprise. But it remains one of the most anticipated games out there, and the new footage shown at the E3 showed a scope and attention to detail previously unseen in the franchise. (Photo by: Microsoft)

Gears of War 4

Long rumored and even longer awaited, the latest game in a $1 billion franchise finally got some official love at E3 this year. The footage shown was dark (way too dark) but what we did manage to see looked pretty darned promising. (Photo by: Microsoft)

Dark Souls III

It's official: Dark Souls fans will get to die, die, and die some more (presumably in fresh ways) via a third installment of this vicious action franchise. And expect it to be huge; the first two installments have sold into the millions of units. (Photo by: Bandai Namco/Microsoft)

Star Wars Battlefront

Star Wars fans have been waiting for years for a brand-new cooperative online shooter to call their own, and Electronic Arts made that dream officially come true at E3 this year. Recruit a scrappy team of fighters, and enjoy classic Star Wars mainstays like the AT-AT here. (Photo by: Electronic Arts)

Mass Effect: Andromeda

The story of Commander Shepard may be over, but that isn't stopping Electronic Arts from rolling out a brand-new story set in the wildly popular Mass Effect universe. Bring on the reapers! (Photo by: Bioware)

Assassin's Creed Syndicate

A stealth action-adventure franchise with more than 70 million copies sold has to be doing something right. Syndicate is expected to fire on all cylinders, thanks in part to a new assassin protagonist and a refined combat system. (Photo by: Ubisoft)

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Wildlands

This military-ops franchise has been around for more than a decade, so, naturally, it has a huge fan base. Now the series finally gets its Skyrim-ification, with a new, open world.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

It's the adventure-action series that has moved more than 21 million copies worldwide, and now comes the fourth installment, which brings our hero back from retirement. Its lush graphics–one of the hallmarks of the series–look to be more gorgeous and colorful than ever. (Photo by: Naughty Dog)

The Last Guardian

Movies aren't the only projects to suffer through development hell. Just ask gamers who have six years for this highly anticipated puzzle solver. Maybe it just takes that look to put feathers on a giant chihuahua.

Final Fantasy VII remake

Yes, it's a remake. But given the reaction from fans when Sony announced said remake at E3, this is one huge deal for Final Fantasy fans. The original 1997 title has sold more than 9 million copies and spawned a straight-to-DVD feature film.

No Man's Sky

Perhaps the most ambitious game announced at E3, this title introduces a world so open, so huge, that even the designers didn't know exactly where they were going when they shared some of the gameplay at the con. This is one highly anticipated debut. (Photo by: Hello Games)

The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Heroes

Any new Zelda title is big news for Nintendo fans. The upcoming 3DS encourages friends to cooperate to solve puzzles and collect items to make cool wardrobes. (Photo by: Nintendo)

Super Mario Maker

Nintendo fans already knew this title was coming, and they already knew that the game (finally!) allows players to get in on the level-building action. But at E3, it finally got a release date: September 11, 2015.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

A cyberpunk franchise with more than 4.5 million units sold is getting a new title. Again, fans knew it was coming, but a Deus Ex announcement is always an event, and the new weapons teased at E3 look to add even more options to the gameplay.