Despite bordering on being simplistic, Crowntakers' turn-based combat offers a fair amount of strategic options. Fortunately, mercenaries are worth the effort of keeping them alive. Experience is divided between your hero and whatever mercenaries you have brought along for the ride. Unfortunately, by the time you've figured that out, it's often too late and the enemy has grown too strong. There will be playthroughs where you are so unlucky with the loot and gear that you find that the quick route is the only viable route. What I can tell you is that you won't have time to backtrack too much lest the enemy grows disproportionately strong. From my time spent with the game, I've found no obvious choice between making a mad dash for the exit and meticulously combing through each area of the map. As you tarry, explore and level-up, the clock is ticking and each day that passes enemy troops grow stronger. Ehm, gathering? Yes, you see, time is not your friend. Buildings and caves can be explored for loot, occasionally offering up a choice to proceed further - at your own risk - or get back onto the road.Įach map has an exit leading to the next that is invariably guarded by an end-boss, surrounded by whatever army he or she has been gathering. It gets a little more creative than that, but not by much.
The variety of objects is fairly limited and ranges from grass, roads and trees, to hovels, inns and watch towers. The journey takes you through eight randomly generated maps that consist of hex-shaped tiles. That's all there is to the story, the rest you make up yourself on your journey to the jailor's castle. An untold number of half-brothers have failed and you are your father's last hope. I must admit, though, that Crowntakers brings a certain appeal to being insane.Ĭrowntakers puts you in the shoes of the bastard son of an imprisoned king, tasked with freeing his father. I am in good company here, as Albert Einstein defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results". If that sounds contradictory, then you should know that - my - dictionary lists "Roguelike" as synonyms for "Frustrating" and "Futile". It's an intriguing mix that has kept me playing for longer than I had expected. Assembled at Bulwark Studios, Crowntakers certainly fits the bill as a blend between turn-based strategy, Roguelike perma-death and a character progression system that could be described as RPG-light. The ability to sit back and fully absorb a situation before taking action adds a layer of depth real-time games simply cannot match. I like games that make me think rather than act on base instincts' reaction speed.