![]() ![]() ![]() Developer Triumph Studios has also done a marvelous job of making its turn-based clashes between little Goblins and giant Dragons play fast and smart. And the music, much of it remixed from previous games in the series, remains a highlight. Warg-riding Goblins and Elvish Crusaders all look and play differently, adding personality and depth. Like previous games in the series, Age of Wonders embraces the very best of its familiar fantasy setting, crafting its units and its world with affection and detail. Hero customization is especially strong the ability to set character posture has great effects on the personality they exude. You can find yourself getting attached to unique heroes, and nothing is more devastating when you’ve invested the time to level them into war machines, only for a golden dragon to crush them in a single attack.Play AoW3’s form is conventional: pick a hero from a fantasy race like Dwarves, Orcs, or the lizard-like Draconians, expand across a Civilization-like map, explore dungeons, and conquer rival heroes. They can also find weapons, armor, and special items in dungeons or the like, which they can utilize in combat. Special Hero units, which can level up in combat to gain different abilities and increased stats, can lead your armies into battle. Even the type of terrain you are currently fighting on grants advantages/disadvantages to different units. Some units are weak to poison, others to fire, cold, etc. Everyone, from the lowly irregular units for each race to the powerful tier V units have their own strengths and weaknesses which you will want to exploit whenever given the opportunity. Triumph Studios has given every unit in the game a unique set of stats, skills, and abilities. This is by far my favorite part of the entire game. What you thought was once a simple 4X strategy game harbors a fully fleshed out, and terribly engaging, tactical RPG battle system. It is here where the curtain is pulled back to reveal the second game hidden away inside AoW. The other option, however, are the “manual battles.” This is where the magic really happens, and where AoW proves it’s by no means a Civ clone.ĭepending on the terrain you are standing on, be it wilderness, road, a gold mine, etc, you and the other humans in game are taken to a visually appropriate battlefield. Sure, you have the overworld stuff, unit grouping, and city management to take care of, but what happens when two or more forces clash on the battlefield? Well, you have the option to simply “autoresolve,” where the computer crunches numbers and the victor emerges, while the loser’s army feeds the crows. You could take a quick glance at a screenshot for Age of Wonders III and think it’s just a Civilization clone wearing a fantasy mask. You’re entirely in charge of your cities' production, exploration, unit management, and what spells you want to research. Age of Wonders III is one of those fancy 4X games (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate), and you’ll be running your empire from a top-down perspective. In case you’ve never played any of the AoW games, let me break it down for you. You and a friend can face off against six angry computer wizards, or if you’re feeling really mean, you and six other friends can band together and trash one poor, lonely AI. The scenarios and random maps, however, can feature up to eight players, any number of which can be humans or AI. Unfortunately for us co-op enthusiasts, the campaign is entirely single player. Those without much time to dedicate to ruling a fantasy kingdom may want to turn back, but if you’re willing to put in the effort to understand the systems, you’ll definitely appreciate the depth of Age of Wonders III. It’s a marriage between overworld strategy and surprisingly deep RPG-like battle tactics, blending into something that might actually resemble what warfare would be like in a mystical realm of dragons and magic. Age of Wonders III isn’t your regular empire building strategy game, nor is it just that game with a gleaming coat of fantasy paint. ![]() And that dungeon over there ain't going to raid itself. You’ve got to make sure you’ve got enough coinage for the gryphon roost, and at least enough mana coming in to rain poison blades down upon your enemies. Being the head of an entire nation isn’t all fun and games, you know. ![]()
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