RedKey

Finally the perfect game to scratch my TBS/4X itch! I have a feeling that in 15 years or so I will still be playing Age of Wonders 3. I make this prediction because once in a while I still play the original AoW and it came out in 1999. So unless they come out with an AoW4 or standalone expansion that is even better in every aspect I think this game will stay on my computer and my next computer and the VR headset after... a long time. My favorite part of AoW3 is its focus on tactical combat while still including all the 4 Xs (explore, expand, exploit, exterminate) plus RPG elements. There are cities to form into an empire, heroes to level up, spells to research, dungeons to loot, resources to manage, etc... On top of it all players are engaged in battles early and often. The battles are killer fun tactical experiences that take place on their own maps separate from the primary strategy map. When a hex is attacked on the strategy map the armies/stacks in that hex and all neighboring hexes get pulled into the tactical battle. This means there could be 42 units (7 hexes x 6 units/hex) in the same battle and they could even belong to several different players! The combat mechanics like attacks of opportunity, flanking, guarding, and 3 action points to use for movement, multiple attacks, or multiple reactions are very well done. When playing single player I almost always choose to fight each battle manually because they are so much fun, but there is an option to automatically resolve them if you wish. One thing that is disappointing about AoW3 at first glance is the number of races. Past AoW games had at least 12 races but AoW3 is releasing with 6. However, this is made up by the new class system which did not exist in previous AoW games. The developers have done an amazing job making both race and class matter. An elven archdruid feels different than a draconian archdruid or an elven warlord. Thus, instead of having simply 12 races to choose from you have 36 race/class combos (6 races x 6 classes). There are also specializations/spheres that further customize your leader and playing experience, similar to previous AoW games. I expect more races to be added in DLC or an expansion and am fine with that. The only bad thing I can say about AoW3 is that it feels like the morale systems need to be flushed out a little more. My wish for morale is that your starting/ruling race should have more influence on the morale of your cities and units and diplomatic relations with independent cities. It was important in past AoW games. These things will probably get improved with some patches, and should not stop anyone from buying the game. There was a period of years where I played a lot of Civ4 and some Civ5. Eventually I found myself thinking - I wish there was more action in these games and battles were more realistic like... Age of Wonders. Before AoW3 was announced, I searched for recent games with gameplay similar to AoW but nothing seemed to be on the same level. Warlock was too simple and too Civ-y... Total War just didn't draw me in... Others didn't even look worth buying. Age of Wonders seems to fill a special niche that no others do. Bottomline: AoW3 takes many of the best parts of its predecessors plus some new goodness to create a masterpiece of the TBS/4X genre.

A game with great story, atmosphere, and heart. I love the narrator's voice and the way he unfolds the story. The ending(s) of the game is an amazing experience that I would recommend to everyone. It drops just short of 10 because I only give that score to games that I consider very replayable. After experiencing all the different endings to Bastion I don't feel much urge to replay it.

If this game was the first of a series I wouldn't rate it so low, but this is Civilization 5 not 1! The Civ series should be nearing perfection not becoming worse. Civ4 is a better game even without any of its expansions. I will break up the rest of my review into what Civ5 did better, different, and worse than Civ4. The only part of Civ5 game play that I found better than Civ4 was that there is a limited quantity of strategic resources like iron. Civ5 has some things that are different than Civ4. To me these things don't really make the game play better or worse, just different. City states, more ranged combat, hexes instead of squares, and updated graphics are examples. Now the list of things Civ5 does worse: 1 unit per tile (this one has a lot of repercussions on the pacing of the game), global happiness, the AI, less flexibility in your economy due to the removal or research/culture sliders, less flexibility in your government due to policies that last eternity rather than civics, removal of the health system with nothing to take its place, and probably many more things I'm forgetting at the moment.

IMO this game is overrated. I do not like the combat system because I often have to pause in the middle of combat to give orders to multiple characters. I also didn't find "a wizard stole my soul" to be that great of a story.

The pinnacle of the Civilization series so far. You feel like you are developing a civilization in an alternate world, but Civ5 feels like a board game in comparison. The game is very good as is, but there are also many mods that add more to it or even transform it into an entirely new game (e.g. FFH2). All turn-based strategy fans should own this.

This game and the original Age of Wonders are still my favorite fantasy strategy games even though it has been almost 10 years since Shadow Magic came out. The variety of races, units, and spells gives the game near infinite replay value. This game has just the right blend of combat, exploration, research, and RPG elements. City management and diplomacy are quite simple but I prefer it that way. There are also many user created mods and scenarios that enhance the game.