The problem isn’t with the setting, which is actually quite well-conceived. So why on earth, given all this quality, does Planetfall carry such potent Mediocre Game Energy? While I found the strategic mode a little less exciting than the tactical, it soon picked up for me when I began thinking of it as a medium for developing better options on the tactical scale. You'll need to master them, too, as the AI is impressively competent, and will use all its tricks against you. From unit mods, to battlefield-altering hero abilities, to classic elemental damage and vulnerabilities, there’s a good depth of systems to master if you want to perform well on the battlefield. There's quite a learning curve, but not in the frustrating way - there's just a lot to play with. The tactical mode is tremendous fun, the strategic mode is serviceable-running-to-good, and they're tied together elegantly. It’s like a calling card).Īnd it all works bloody well. This “tactics and strategy with a side of RPG” play has long been the staple of the well-regarded Age Of Wonders series, and I’m happy to say it’s flourished since developers Triumph Studios were picked up by Paradox in 2017 (you can tell it’s a Paradox title now because the diplomacy system features liberal use of the term 'Cassus Bellis'.
I've made him look as much as possible like the main prawn from District 9, only in my headcanon, he's become a sort of 90s kid's rapper, with cool guy shades and a sweet rapper's cape The connecting pin between both modes is your faction leader, an RPG-style-customisable figure who acts as both a hero unit in the tactical game, and a figurehead on the strategic level, changing your society bonuses and research options based on the perks you’ve picked for them. When said gunishment begins, it’s time to zoom into the contested hex, which becomes its own hex-based map (pleasingly faithful to what was there on the strategic scale) with the troops laid out ready for turn-based fun.
You spread your cities across the strategic map, doing all the usual stuff like moving up a tech tree, wiping out rogue NPC settlements, and gunishing or diploming your rivals. Planetfall is a tactical combat game resembling a hex-based XCOM on a large scale, wrapped in a civ-like strategic layer (I’d call it a 4X, but given the term came from a 1993 preview of Master of Orion, I’m beginning to feel like either the term, or the genre, should move on). But then, I would have missed out on the rich, dense marrow within. Like a jaded ogre examining bones for shreds of meat, I nearly tossed it aside with a grunt, letting it plonk down the bone-hill into the Steam refunds ossuary. I’ll be honest, I came dangerously close to not recognising Age Of Wonders: Planetfall for what it is: a solid, well-designed strategy game.
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