For the King II Review (MTSSLY)
I really can't recommend it and I feel like, with 40+ hours in, I've given it a fair shot. Several months post release and the final fight still doesn't function properly with the added tiles. Every time my group plays we find new bugs to report and honestly we've given up on this thing ever being truly fixed.
I appreciate that the developers keep adding new items, classes, and game modes, but it doesn't mean much if the base gameplay is constantly breaking. It just results in new bugs to report.
Overall I think this would be considered a great gameplay improvement over the first game. The change to the tile system really mixes things up and makes you consider more strategy over just trying to play the numbers game of who to attack next. You now have to consider weapon choices, positioning, how to apply status effects on enemies (sans acid and confusion which seem to only effect party members, hard to tell if this is a bug or intentional), how many secondary actions you have, etc.
The new scourges and how the scourges level up adds some consideration for how to deal with them. The item shop at the start is an interesting addition even though I feel no one in their right mind would choose anything other than the permanent candy upgrades. Optional paths in the dungeons add some replayability, but it can be a long trek to get back to that part of a campaign.
The campaign itself is serviceable. It's fun in a campy kind of way and the character interactions are enjoyable.
There are clearly some classes that are just better than others. Herbalist is basically a must have if you want to make any real progress in the game. On the flip side the Friar is more likely to get your party killed than actually help in a fight. They will occasionally proc effects to the rest of the party including negative effects like confusion. Again it's hard to tell if that's a bug or not. Sheppard can go an entire campaign without spawning a wolf, but maybe we just got unlucky (or maybe it's bugged idk).
See when you've got so many bugs it's REALLY difficult to say what's the intended gameplay and what is broken. The first For the King was a game of trail and error. Figuring out what works and what doesn't and eventually finding a path to victory. This is also a game of trail and error. Figuring out what is bugged and what isn't and eventually realizing the path to victory is the uninstall button.