Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin, Reviewed
In his sporadically coherent The Waste Land, T.S. Eliot yearned for the seasonal cycle of death and rebirth to apply to human society, not just the natural world. As it turns out, that also pretty much explains why it was once such a staple of high school English Literature classes: though it’s almost quaint today, […]
Age of Wonders 4 Review
Age of Wonders 4 (Steam Link), developed by Triumph Studios and published by Paradox, is a modernized fantasy 4X game of dramatic size and scope, long unafraid to skew from genre tropes and that stands out from competitors with compelling battles and distinct playable factions, a hallmark of the series right from its very first […]
eXploring Songs of Conquest: A Reinvention of Heroes of Might and Magic
Let’s just rip the bandaid off: Have you played Heroes of Might and Magic 3? I know. I hear your groans. At this point, it’s thoroughly cliche for touchstone games to get trotted out and compared to any new 4x or 4x-adjacent. Any game that starts with little people in loincloths discovering farming is compared […]
eXploring Old World’s New Challenges in “Behind the Throne”
I love Old World. I consider it a masterpiece, rank it among my all-time top five 4Xs, and consider it the best historical 4X I’ve ever played. And yet, I approach every new DLC with a certain amount of trepidation because I have something of a love-hate relationship with some of the game’s systems. And […]
Dominions 6: Masterfully Crafted Magic and Combat Systems
Dominions 6 – Rise of the Pantokrator, developed by Illwinter Game Design (Dominions), is without equal in the fantasy 4X genre. I write that easily and without hesitation because I don’t think it can be compared with any other game in the genre. Sure, it sounds like your typical fantasy 4X affair if you list […]
eXploring the Abyss in Age of Wonders 4: Eldritch Realms
Eldritch Realms is finally here, writhing its way onto the scene along with another big patch, this one called “Mystic.” At one time this was to be the end of Age of Wonders 4’s content cycle, but with a second season of DLC confirmed, it’s actually only the halfway point (for now)! When I originally […]
What to eXpect of Ara: History Untold
Ara: History Untold has been one of my most anticipated games of the year. To be honest, I don’t love grand-sweep-of-history games that take the player from the stone age to the space age. For me, it’s hard to feel invested in a faction that undergoes so many fundamental changes over the course of the […]
Age of Wonders 4: Primal Fury Review
With Eldritch Realms already on the horizon and even more premium DLC confirmed after that (a second season of DLC is a first for the series!), let’s look back at the Wolf and Primal Fury era. Hungry Like the Wolf Well known for being the sickest animal to have painted on the side of your […]
Solium Infernum Review
When Solium Infernum was first announced, I confess to being excited without being particularly informed. I didn’t read any of the coverage, and consequently, I imagined a traditional 4X set in Hell. The prospect of interesting factions, units, and mechanics captured my imagination, and I jumped at the chance to review the game. It turns […]
Terminator: Dark Fate – Defiance Review
Introduction Terminator 2 holds a special place in my memories and an RTS set in the universe definitely piqued my interest. Unfortunately, Terminator: Dark Fate – Defiance is set in arguably the worst timeline of the Terminator movies, which is saying something for a franchise that revolves around an AI blowing up the world and […]
