Last time I wrote an article talking about the very worst of the worst of Game of Thrones games that languishes across our industry- and it wasn't all that hard of an article to write given the fact that pretty much none of them are good. That's kind of a lay-up when you think about it. Despite the wealth of potential clearly present in the source material, few have risen to the challenge of doing it justice and even in the places where they did for a time, no one could quite keep it up until those last few precious moments. But what if I told you that the only reason I brought up the worst was in order to sally forth my personal pick for what is actually an excellent Game of Thrones game for anyone why wants a bit of Westeros in their life and isn't exactly picky about where they get it. (Hmm. I sound like a back-alley drug dealer selling special cuts of K he labels 'Jon Snow'.)
But then, why did I not bring up such a game during my article on all the Game of Thrones games out there? Why was it not listed as a counterbalance against all the licenced Game of Thrones titles that litter this polluted earth? Well, that might be because the game in question is not, explicitly, a licenced title from the HBO series. In fact, I don't think HBO would ever have even considered a style of game like this one, despite it's aptness, because in the cold vacuum of a board members brain critical thinking and deduction is of no use. Theirs is a breed that see's big number and wants big number to work for them, which is how we get several dozen high budget AAA games dedicate themselves to the same genre year after year and then wonder why diminishing returns ensue. (The snake loves chomping down on it's own tail!)
Never in a thousand years would such a creature ever think that the perfect genre for Game of Thrones would be anything as niche as a tactical game. Even though when it comes to the machinations of large nations moving battlelines across the course of world changing geo politics, 4x Tactics games are kind of the go-to. Based heavily around the War of the Roses, Game of Thrones hardly ever shies away from the wars that wage up and down Westeros in the back and foreground of major series events, and although it seems the very ethos of the story was designed to undercut the significance of it all in that final act- which the show totally bugled to a legendary degree- there's still a large sector of people out there who would simply love to just push those big armies across a virtual board to their heart's content.
Whilst I'm quite sure of any 4X style Game of Thrones experiences, although I'm sure one sits out there- for my money the best tactical offering is 'Realm of Thrones'- the total conversion mod for 'Mount and Blade: Warband' which brings every bit of the complex geopolitical machinations to the Mount and Blade engine for all your bizarre fan fiction desires. Do you want to rush the Frey's in order to prevent the Red Wedding? Go for it! Is the Stark domination of the north rubbing you the wrong way? Hunt them down like the rapid wolves they are! Does Dani's prolonged faffing about on the otherside of the world for the first 5 years rub on your last nerve? Become her vassal and stoke fires of war on her behalf- I'm sure the Dragon Queen won't mind!
Mount and Blade: Warband is already a fantastic tactical RPG medieval simulator with plenty of flexibility on your rags-to-riches journey through society. Starting a mercenary group, regularly sacrificing your mercenaries on a mad dash to acquire as much reputation as possible, and then breaking the game economy when you figure out how workshops work. The only problem with the game is that it's various factions feel a bit... samey. When you interact with nations mostly my invading them over and over in a never ending war, the only way they stand out is the way in which they fight and in a medieval game- there's not a lot of room for 'individual expression', so to speak. And the solution to that problem? Borrow all of George RR Martin's!
As a supplicant of the Lannister's I of course busied myself hopping about the lands of the south filling out that mental map of Westeros the series intro imbued in my head with all those inbetween locations that usually get brushed over- because now they were places of significance in my conquest! Of course, it was all in preparation for the time when the Starks would become our enemy, and we'd battle in the frigid northern snows. It's that kind of arcade-style but true to heart franchise experience you get out of games like Star Wars Battlefront. A small hit of the essence of that world injected directly into the veins. Maybe it's not true to the book, or to the show, but does that really matter?
And who doesn't love carving their own path through the familiar? I went through hell and high water to lead a dangerous expedition into the north the moment I learned Arya Stark led her company out into the wilderness for a bit- and though I was being chased by armies literally twice my size all the way back- I returned with a captive Starkling- in doing so preventing the worst twist ending ever conceived by man! No ending the long night early this time around! Can't wait to see what happens when the leaders of the Lannister house start getting picked off, considering my character is currently married to Myrcella and thus has a convoluted path to the Iron throne if things bend the right direction! That's what I'm talking about- the headcannoning is the heart of experiences like these!
Now is it perfect? Not quite. Pretty sure Twin Lannister somehow survived past the events of Season 4 which is... slightly scuppering my marital plans. Kind of hoping he dies of old age at this point, Mount and Blade doesn't really feature any 'covert assassination' mechanics that I know of. I also haven't had the pleasure of encountering the dragons I know this mod has, which could either be very cool or a mistake. We'll see when they get here. But otherwise with the attention to detail in creating the land, the modelling of the various amours and units and dedication to creating a fully immersive Game of Thrones world to play within, unlike literally every other official game before it, Realm of Thrones rises head and shoulders above all other pretenders. Play it, seriously.
No comments:
Post a Comment