75

Great strategy game

Prozac | Dec. 30, 2012 | See all Prozac's reviews »

I downloaded the demo and spent more time playing it then my full game of Elemental. For those of you not familiar Elemental is a turn-based strategy game that was horribly produced and delivered. Essentially it was nothing more than a shell when first launched, even though it sold for $50! After experiencing Elemental I was nervous about Warlock, but I played the demo and immediately pre-purchased the game. It was that much fun. Plus, it appears to be well tested and smooth running.

Warlock is a mixture of Might and Magic and Civilization. There is no small scale combat, like in M&M. All combat is at the one on one unit level, with units taking damage in turn based attacks. There are spells that can be used against enemy units and cities, as well as buff spells for your units. I really don't miss the small scale tactical battles as much as I thought. I think doing things this way provides a brisker pace of play, and forces more strategic vs. tactical focus.

The interface is nearly perfect, with reminders for all activities that need to be considered. The graphics are appropriate, and I like the unit variety. There is a fair amount of randomization, so that each game provides a new challenge, even if the basic map layout is the same.

There doesn't appear to be any grand story here, so if you are looking for that sort of thing then it might not be your cup of tea. Basically your goal is to setup a game, using the available parameters like map size, number of players, etc, and then win using up to four different ways.

In summary, if you like turn based strategy, I think you'll really like this game.

70

Oldschool Vibes I get

Angeluzian | Dec. 22, 2012 | See all Angeluzian's reviews »

This game gives me the oldschool vibes I enyoy in games, but not the upgrades I would seek from it like a game like Legend of grimrock. But it's still an above average game, and if your into strategies, it's a game you should try if you're willing to spend some money on it.

81

Good "CIV" game, with Majesty lore

Wizardino | Dec. 11, 2012 | See all Wizardino's reviews »

Warlock: Master of Arcane it's a turn based strategic game published by Paradox Interactive. The game it's similar tu Civilization: you must build cities, produce food, gold (and mana, it's a fantasy game!), recruit soldiers... and your Objective it's, obviously, to win against other opponents (up to eight). You can detroy them, conquer power points (place where you can build special temples, like in Majesty 2), or launch the Unity Spell. Because in this game you can use magic! Instead of reserching new tecnologies you must research powerful and useful spell that can helpo you during your match. Another interesting point it's the possibility to hire Heroes, special unit with great power and special objects A recommended game

90

Very enjoyable game.

sadachara | Nov. 20, 2012 | See all sadachara's reviews »

I don't like overly drawn out, and complex strategy games, and this one is quite enjoyable for me. I love the fantasy theme based on the Majesty world. The graphics, sound and music are very good for a 4X game. I like the unit promotion/leveling/power system that quite dramatically improves your units, and changes the gameplay.

Overall I am having a lot of fun with this title, and feel it has more of a 'come play me' feeling about it compared to Civ5 and Fallen Enchantress. The DLC's add quite a lot to this game, and I recommend most of them. Many games don't draw me in after the initial play, something feels missing about them. This game has a good feel that keeps me wanting to play it, and for that I consider it a very fine game with a lot of effort from the developers to make a streamlined, fun 4X with a strong fantasy element.

65

Interesting attempt, sadly this is all it is.

Wredniak | June 30, 2012 | See all Wredniak's reviews »

First thing that comes to mind while trying to describe this game is Civilization in fantasy settings. The similarities are numerous: hex grid, cities generating zone control which expands with city growth, only one unit per hex. Fortunately there also are differences that allows it to be more than a clone. To build an unit you need specific building in the city, some of them have prerequisites and they need to build around the city limiting total amount that can be constructed. For every citizen in the city you are allowed one building or "tile improvement" as some can only be build in the tiles with specific resource like pumpkins or silver. Some resources has alternatives for example silver offers free upgrade to the weapons or boost to the city income. Another nice touch is that each unit type has unique promotion on top of more general ones which some can be bought instead of earned after level up. The main feature of the game are spells that can be cast by your warlord and which replace technology known from similar titles. Sadly most of the are just addition that doesn't produce much impact. This is tied to the greatest flaw of the game: a constant need to expand and maintain huge battle forces. Most monsters spawn from their specific settlements that are generated randomly on the map, which sadly doesn't mean that single ogre can't pop up out of nowhere next your capital even if it's surrounded by other cities. This forces player not only to secure borders but watch over seemingly secure areas. The game offers several ways to win you will need expanded military just to survive which makes all but military conquest rather pointless. The game is part of Majesty world which is nice touch for the fans of the series. The multiple planes are interesting but require even more military might to explore making gameplay monotonous. I'd recommend the game for those that wondered how civilization would look with fantasy elements but if you are just looking for a good turn-based strategy I'd point towards Civilization V especially now with a new expansion out. On the other hand if you are looking for the interesting magic system and fantasy world it may pay out to check the Age of Wonders series. The main problem of this game isn't the fact that it is bad, most of it's drawbacks could be fixed by balancing patch, but the fact that there are better options that simply outshine it.