Tears of Avia
Update: I originally wrote this review on launch day, I have now completed one full playthrough and adjusted some comments to reflect this.
A great genre aware indie game. If you love JRPG’s then this will embody every trope, cliche and worn-to-the-ground charisma you’ve come to love in the best ways possible.
With a selection of protagonists straight out of a pregen dungeons and dragons adventure, colourful and classic personalities along with bright and iconic designs (RIP Reina’s spine) there’s someone you’re bound to love. I myself was torn between the obviously-the-protagonist Kai and the all too matching a description Iris. And the rest of the cast, so far, hasn’t been a let down either for me. From the hard working superior you bump into to the obviously-not-merlin (which I have nicknamed Fauxlin) provides plenty of laughs. Although you don’t spend much time with some of the later characters, revisiting previous locations will sometimes provide interesting inter-character dialogue that you can watch while in the tavern, and replaying some levels with mixed up parties will let you see interesting dialogue combinations. With the added bonus who you recruit and how you treat your party members changing their outcome in the epilogue also, some of which can be quite sad.
– Real player with 38.0 hrs in game
Read More: Best Fantasy Story Rich Games.
This review has been updated to reflect my thoughts after completing the game on normal.
1. Nice character and enemy designs
2. Nice animations (you can skip them and enemy movement)
3. Good music and the main menu theme song is catchy
4. Varied skill trees kind of encourage skill experimentation
5. Loot from battles is worthwhile - a nice gameplay loop of finding better gear
6. Combat is streamlined (healed after battle and can quickly retreat to town)
7. When you equip a new weapon its shown in battle and also the main character in town exploration
– Real player with 17.8 hrs in game
Alder Forge
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An Adaptive Turn-Based RPG, and an easy-to-use Combat System.
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A Story-Driven Adventure through the eyes of the 5 Members of your Party.
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A Cast of Characters with their own stories and a unique world, handcrafted and built for your enjoyment.
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An easy-to-use Camp Menu and Crafting System with equipment, party, and skills management.
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Special Skills for each Player Class, unlocked either by solving mysteries, finding new Anima Stones, or just Leveling Up.
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Plant harvesting and Alchemy Craft made simple to help you easily acquire usability drinks during or out of battle.
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Fight, Explore and Walk the path of heroes in the world of the Alder Forge.
The Alder Forge story is set in the western part of the Ertheryan Continent, the game will take you during its 4 chapters to the Duchy of Elysia, the Kingdom of Royne, the Mighty Kingdom of Orvys, and the Atlas Court (The seat of your employer). In your adventures you are going to face a dark plot that will try to engulf the continent and break the two centuries lasting peace, meanwhile, you will discover that nothing is ever simpler than that while facing the complexity of human behavior and the lines that draw good and evil in each character you encounter throughout your journey, secret organizations, political entities, and other groups, each has their agendas and plots, meanwhile, the 5 protagonists will be in the center of those events.
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Adriel: Party Leader, known by his intelligence, pragmatism, and powers, Age:21
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Mirabelle: Anima Caster, funny with a massive appetite, but serious when things get heated, Age:13
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Cassandra: Heavy Arms, and the strongest defense of the team, Age:21
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Leo: Archer and a disciple of the legendary Dead Eye, fun and quick to spot threats, Age:22
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Fiona: An Elysian Knight, serious and unforgiving, she’s equal if not stronger than Adriel, Age:21
The Alder Forge environment was carefully designed to convey the world you will engage and invest your time in, but it is also full of enigma, hidden secrets, and backstories, each element placed, sculpted, and handcrafted is there for a reason, The Fate of Ertherya is now in Your Hands.
Read More: Best Fantasy Turn-Based Combat Games.
Disciples Sacred Lands Gold
be me
have a semi-decent stack
decided to attack a stack with a medusa, and some random enemies
fail to kill the medusa
proceeds to get para-locked to death
Don’t forget to (de)buff fellow boomers.
Disciples Sacred Lands, is a turn-based fantasy strategy similar to Heroes of Might and Magic. Like the good HoMM games it also a bit old, and as such the graphics in particular are dated. If you are willing to look past that this game might be for you, if not maybe Disciples 2 is more your thing. I’d even go as far as to say Disciples 2 is the better game, but I still think Sacred Lands is worth playing.
– Real player with 190.9 hrs in game
Read More: Best Fantasy Classic Games.
Recommended for fans of Turn-Based Strategy, Fantasy, and games from this era (1997-2004).
Great gem of a game. It’s likely you are here after playing either Heroes of Might and Magic series, or Disciples 2 in your younger days. Disciples 1 is exactly like Disciples 2, except graphics are about 5yrs younger. Literally, 90% of the units, heroes, and characteristics are the same - just the graphics changed. So why play D1 instead of D22? That Old School Charm I guess. The game does hold up really well on its own - IF you like 1999 graphics. Note you can get a fan-made “HD mod” to improve them.
– Real player with 38.8 hrs in game
Faery - Legends of Avalon
I would not get it just for myself, but I did really like some aspects of it would definately reccomend this game for younger players as a gentle introduction to open(ish) world RPG/adventures. With the turn-based combat, it plays a bit like a later Final Fantasy game, but simpler, smaller, and with less mature themes. Also, most of the play is simple enough that kids shouldn’t need a lot of help/coaching to make progress.
Liked- Pretty detailed character customazation. My kids love to just load the game up and build a new fairy. Your skill choices alter your character’s physical appearance, and gameplay is forgiving enough that you don’t have to metagame at all to keep up with the difficulty. So you can pick the abilities just cuz they look neat on your character.
– Real player with 25.7 hrs in game
–—TL;DR—– at bottom.
I did everything I could/knew to do except: missed out on some dialogue (especially between the companions - so much), left no more than 4 locations undiscovered throughout the 3 Mirrors (and I combed every World, damn), locked myself out of helping those in the poor district of the last world (grew tired of bein' called a goody-goody so I challenged ‘em and yeah, 3 side missions I failed because of me merc’in ‘em).
10 Hours Straight. It was awesommmme.
Any time I’ve ever heard the term “guilty pleasure,” I’ve always associated it with certain females who, at times, indulge in, say, chocolate. Thus, I’ve never had a guilty pleasure of my own. Faery - Legends of Avalon is my first blatant guilty pleasure [unless a sequel is eventually made… ;( ]. I plan to play through this game at least twice more, even though my first run-through was on Hard and there’s no point in going again, other than for my own entertainment – thethethethethe game is just too fun and awesome.
– Real player with 15.5 hrs in game
Metal Slug Tactics
METAL SLUG is back with a brand new entry in the METAL SLUG universe. Discover a new side of the emblematic run’n’gun and jump into a dynamic tactical RPG with roguelike elements! Super fun and lighthearted, Metal Slug Tactics takes what makes METAL SLUG so special and unique and brings it to the tactical genre!
TACTICAL RPG WITH ROGUELIKE ELEMENTS
Experience the iconic dynamic battles of the METAL SLUG series with a brand new perspective. Build up your adrenaline bar to unlock super attacks and use them wisely. Gain some precious war experience after each battle and unlock weapons or bonus perks to upgrade your team’s firepower.
SOLDIERS! ASSEMBLE!
Choose between iconics brothers-in-arms to create the perfect team to stop the war.
Launch simultaneous attacks on your targets with the sync. mechanic to deal a hell lot of damage to the enemies! Don’t forget to call in some reinforcements if your team isn’t enough! They will send over the heavy artillery to support you: the Metal Slug, air raids, you name it, you get it!
FIGHT YOUR WAY TO VICTORY
Ending the war won’t be easy. Many challenges await, prepare to die again and again but never give up!
Play and replay your favorite missions as much as you want! Use the skills you acquired through each battle you have won so far to take down your enemies!
Donald Morden is back! After a long time being hidden in a country opposed to the World Government, he patiently staged a coup d’etat and is finally ready to take revenge upon the World with the army he gathered throughout the years.
The Peregrine Falcons will have to do everything in their power to make it through the enemy lines and take down Morden before we get further into the war!
● Discover the first tactical RPG of the METAL SLUG Series
● Experience huge replayability with hand-crafted terrain tiles
● Enjoy amazing pixel-art graphics respectful of the series
● Face challenging die and retry mechanics with your squad
● Challenge iconic bosses from the METAL SLUG series
● Choose between iconics brothers-in-arms to create the perfect team
● Find the best combos to beat your enemies in epic battles
Might & Magic X - Legacy
This game has pro’s greatly outweighing the con’s and is worth even the full price (strongly recommend the Deluxe version including the genuinely great Might and Magic VI game). There is considerable depth and rewards from exploration, party play and skillful tactics to make the game enjoyable and (if the first “Con” is solved first) well worth it.
The story diverges from the other MM games and was made to kowtow to the MM Heroes games. It is neither interesting nor fun.
Cons:
Playing, even after purchasing on Steam, requires UPLAY and a Ubisoft account. Players have had numerous problems with this and 90% of the complaints are entirely based on this. Those complaints are valid. I recently read the riot act to one of the Ubisoft developers who viisited the forum for this game, making it clear that players require this to at least be seamless. I recommend opening a Ubisoft and Uplay account first, then, succeeding with that consider purchasing the game on Steam.
– Real player with 796.4 hrs in game
Summary: Modernized retro dungeon crawler
Multiplayer: No
Completion: 90 hrs
Cards: No
Cloud: No
Windows Save Location: Drive:\Program Files (x86)\Ubisoft\Ubisoft Game Launcher\savegames[random string]\403
Might and Magic X is a square-grid-based, turn-based dungeon crawler that exudes a strong classic vibe. While it’s the tenth entry into the series, this is the first (and possibly last?) main game produced by Ubisoft since its acquisition from 3DO. MMX takes place in Ubisoft’s world of Ashan, which started with Heroes V. All the sci-fi elements are still vacant, resulting in a typical fantasy setting, with a standard story to match. Perhaps to capitalize on nostalgia, this game brings back numerous names and references from previous games in the franchise, but as far as I can tell, they are connected in name only. For instance, you may see a quest to bring a young royal to a circus as a nod to MM6, but then the quest is jokingly removed.
– Real player with 372.3 hrs in game
Warlock 2: The Exiled
Warlock 2 is a truly fantastic game, despite what some of these reviews may say. If you’re a lover of 4X strategy games and fantasy lore, get this game – you won’t be sorry.
One of the reasons this game has so many harsh ratings is because it can be a little buggy. But on the right system (Windows 7, 8 and 10 all work well), it’s a ton of fun and you’ll encounter few bugs. I can safely say this after 2000+ hours of game play.
However, the Linux and Mac versions do not work. The developers were forced to abandon the game before they were fixed, so avoid this game if you’re using one of those systems.
– Real player with 5783.6 hrs in game
I bought Warlock 2 during the Summer Sale, and I’ve quite easily gotten my money’s worth. It is a lot of fun, though not without serious flaws. My review is based on three (partial) plays of “The Exiled” story mode, and one full playthrough in “Battle for the Outplanes” mode.
A big complaint a lot of people have is that it seems like a content update, rather than a sequel to Warlock. This is true to an extent. However, the handling of the planes was the biggest flaw of Warlock 1 but seems to be the central appeal of Warlock 2. In Warlock 1, there were other planes, and they were full of big bad monsters, but they weren’t very interesting and the rewards for going there weren’t significant enough to bother with them. A game of Warlock 2, on the other hand, has a hierarchy of planes, where you (and your A.I. opponent mages) start on less threatening planes, and you work your way down through to planes with significantly more dangerous fauna (and sometimes flora), or back up the hierarchy to fight the other great mages. Each plane has its own unique flavor, and most special resources only occur in one or two types of plane. The special resource thing is key… most races don’t have strong research-producing buildings, so you need to chase after the research-producing resources, which tend to be a couple planes down from where you start. The first time I reached a Shadow Plane, and established a fortress there to defend myself against the horrible shadowy horrors that awaited me, it felt … well… I would say “epic”, but that word is way overused these days. But it was awesome.
– Real player with 223.5 hrs in game
Fantasy Wars
This - on the surface - is a very simple game, but it is complex in its simplicity.
It appears to be a fantasy sim with the diversity of characters you can command, and towns and castles scattered throughout the map; however, there really is no building to be done.
Gold does exist, but it is only to recruit creatures.
If a unit dies - then it is gone, and the longer they stay alive the more experience and skills they acquire.
Thus, there is a short-term incentive to win each map level…but there is a long-term incentive to keep ALL units alive through the campaigns, otherwise the player has to start over with new units with no level skills and experience, and because each level gets progressively more difficult, having an army with mostly new units is almost certain to lose.
– Real player with 170.8 hrs in game
Поражению нет никаких оправданий, а победа в них не нуждается.
- Warhammer 40,000
1C неожиданно анонсировала King’s Bounty II, но лично мне KB2 куда больше напоминает сиквел Кодекса Войны (aka Fantasy Wars на Западе).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JZdZBzLims
- Кодекс войны - это классический варгейм со всеми вытекающими отсюда достоинствами и недостатками. Именно с тактической стороны вопросов к игре почти нет - сражения удались. Придраться можно разве что к тому, что иногда знание/незнание что будет дальше слишком сильно влияет на успешность вашей стратегии. Особенно это актуально в начальных миссиях кампаний, когда у вас еще нет прокачанных разведчиков, которые могут быстро и далеко просветить местность, а низкоуровневые герои дохнут от малейшего фокуса. И проблема даже не в том, что они мрут, а в том что чаще бывает проще начать миссию заново чем продолжать, расставить правильно войска, заранее зная что на этом фланге нужна конница, а на другом лучше поставить пехоту под прикрытием стрелков. Такой сейвскамминг очень влияет на эффективность и вообще на выбор стратегии. Да и реиграбельности никакой из-за того что все условия миссии жестко прописаны разработчиками - всё на что вы можете повлиять, это привести ветеранов или неопытных рекрутов/героев и найти или пропустить артефакты.
– Real player with 95.6 hrs in game
Lords of Xulima
Polished, entertaining game. Played through it straight twice, and I can see myself playing through it again in the future.
I could list some pro’s and con’s or repeat what others have already said, but instead I will highlight a few points which may clarify some of the mixed points you will see in other reviews. The purpose, I hope, is to help potential buyers in figuring out the perspective from which other reviewers are coming from.
1. The game is “linear” in that you are expected to go a certain path on the game world, but the path is not in a straight line. This will throw off some players who are used to the typical themepark RPG set-up where the game holds your hand on how to get to the next area.
– Real player with 606.1 hrs in game
Lords of Xulima is the game I have invested the most time into on Steam, so I kind of have to recommend it. But that recommendation come withs a lot of caveats.
I’ll start with the reasons why my playtime is so large. One simple reason is that this is a pretty long game. Depending on difficulty, dying and how much you save-scum, I’d estimate 50 to 100 hours to beat the game. The fact that I suffered a number of crashes, losing progress, extended that further. If you want to try out all the character classes available, you’ll need to play at least twice; I actually ended up finishing the game three times to 100% it.
– Real player with 398.9 hrs in game
Manafinder
In a world vastly untapped by mankind, powerful beasts roam the land. A community of survivors, the exiles, depend on the power of manastones to keep their settlement safe. Manafinders like Lambda risk their lives seeking said stones in the wild. Against external threats and internal conflicts, the mission starts becoming increasingly complicated. Can Lambda achieve a miracle?
Manafinder is a Japanese-style RPG with original pixel art and turn-based combat with an emphasis on weapon selection and elemental affinities. Immerse yourself in this tale of drama and intrigue, hope and suffering, fantasy and morality. Explore the beautiful and fantastical world of Aevi, and fight your way against ferocious beasts and other threats in the quest for manastones as you define the fate of the exiled!
Key features
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8~12 hours of playtime!
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Explore the fantastical environments of Aevi, with over 23 different biomes!
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Fight over 120 different beasts, each with a unique design and combat strategy!
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Use different weapons and elemental ores during combat to exploit enemy weaknesses!
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Collect items and weapons, find manastones, harvest healing plants, and mine elemental ores to aid you in your quest!
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Meet exiles, manafinders, nomads, the Gods, and other mysterious characters!
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Choices made throughout the game will not only define the fate of the exiled but also result in one of the two completely different final chapters!
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Take a break, and take on side quests with varied activities (including minigames!) that dive deeper into the lives of the exiled.