I don't think it's as puzzley as you are imagining. There is an element of that for sure, but depending what units you pick and how you place them and use them there are definitely different ways to victory within the same missions. It's fun replaying using a different approach to see if it works out better or not anyway. Skirmish does play out differently (you can choose all archers for example, where in campaign there is a limited pool - which you can increase by picking missing that give you the reward you prefer in the branching story) but the lack of variety in maps there is going to be a limiting factor eventually. Would be great if they update it with some tested variations. But without doubt the campaign is much more open ended than "1 correct answer". Do you push forwards? Group up? Keep a frontline and move gradually? Even back-up and let the enemy come to you? What units do you take, what ones move first, what formations? There are literally thousands of combinations of decisions to make at some scale or other as each mission plays out. If you get very good at the game (better than I am now) then ultimately you'll be planning moves 3 or 5 ahead so you can efficiently use all your move cards with the units YOU want going across the board (rather than like I was, and just making the best of what I had move by move).
Well, those are three of my favorite games released this year, so that's a very encouraging coincidence. And thanks for your reply to my previous query above, it sounds like Battlelore is the kind of game I was hoping it would be.
Had to leave off a star for this one. I think it is a full 5 minus the 2 MAJOR issues I have. And they are linked pretty heavily in the overall pain the butt. The game is just top notch, I mean the landscapes, models, mechanics are just stunning. I am a huge board game fan and this game really breathed wonderful life into a great strategy BG. Ok love rant through. The missing star (and upon a patch I will change to 5) is due to the lack of auto save or manual save option mid match and the crashes that have occurred RIGHT AFTER WINNING A MATCH! Lol. Twice now the game crashed after hard fought wins right as the match was ending. Frustrating. Now it's a fresh release, these things happen, I work in the game industry, fully aware, however the lack of coordinating a save feature on a mobile platform game is a severe oversight. A round of Battlelore can run you 15-25 minutes, which isnt cohesive with quick doses of a superb game on the go. But being able to pick up where you left off... Golden. Take a page from Playdeks awesome manual. Add in a auto save after each opponents round or make it manual, whatever. I know this has been discussed here. Jus needed to blow off steam after a crushing "defeat" at the hands of the iPhone it was one lonely archer vs Ravos and an exciting cat and mouse game and finally as the beast lurched forward. BOOM headshot! Lol aaaannnd crash. So sad. But just to wrap up... Amazing game! Worth the price! If you have a remote interest in war gaming, grab it! The campaign is elegant and allows for choosing different routes, so I see multiple play through ahead. The Skirmish is solid with the different modes to choose from. Still haven't gotten many skirmish matches in but it will come in due time.
Thanks for the response, Tutt22. I'm trying to make my 6+ fill my old iPad and iPhone roles, and boardgames are tough. I may just grab this though.
Other players are saying that the dice rolls seem loaded in the CPU's favor, and that there is more luck than strategy to winning, so I'll have to pass - I never was lucky! I also like to take my time in strategy games, and not being able to save during a battle is the last straw for me.
Hmm. I think the lack of mid-battle saving would annoy me. While I don't mind playing this in Aeroplane Mode with the Wi-Fi off [to avoid any crash potential] and playing through a mission in one go, this is a reasonably significantly priced game for missing a feature that should be a given on a portable gaming device. While it appears to be very very good, I'm going to hold off until this is added.
I thought the developer said this patch included that though? Maybe he just forgot to put it in the notes. Can anyone with the game please clarify for us?
Can anybody buy it yet? The DLC doesn't seem to be available yet to me here in California (right next to Ground Zero, Cupertino).
I've had this game from the begining and although I really like it I haven't played much. I just updated and the multiplayer is synchronous. If you start a game you have to wait in the gameroom until another player joins. And there were no other players in the room. Nor were there any other games hosted by someone else which I could join. Looks like this is going to suffer from Catch 22. Too bad. If you want to play a game my GameCenter name is same as here. and if I'm available I'll play.
