Gord Review (Jerry Seinfeld)
A Misunderstood Game
From the reviews I've read it seems people were expecting your typical colony survival simulator. Because of this, it has gained lots of negative press. Gord is a much more simplified colony sim. That's not to say it's easy because it's not.
When I say 'simplified' I mean to say that this game lacks some of the more complex management features you'd expect in a game like this. In Gord, your colony isn't going to exceed more than maybe 15 members. So, because of this I'm assuming the developers thought that it wouldn't be necessary to implement a work order menu like in Rimworld for example. All of the management is done through micromanaging. You yourself must click on a colony member and order them to gather any kind of resource node. Once it's depleted that member will go off on their own to gather more in an unspecified area that could possibly endanger them. This is the most frustrating aspect of the game in my opinion. Having to go back and check on them to make sure they haven't gone off to gather resources from another node is distracting because it forces you to stop whatever it is you are doing to go back and check on them. However, this doesn't make it a bad colony sim, just a weaker one.
Now to address the combat.
I don't understand all the negative feedback in this department. It plays like any other RTS. You gather your warriors and send them to attack. That's it... What else do players want? If that's not brain teasing enough you yourself can cast attack/buff spells through a separate tab allowing you to deal another kind of damage to liven up the combat. It's simple, but fun watching your warriors slaughter the enemy in bloody combat. The combat sound effects are impactful and bloody which is a plus. One disappointing aspect is the lack of unit types (so far.) It's limited down to archers and axemen. Take that however you wish. It personally doesn't bother me at all.
The story of Gord is a simple one, but how it evolves and sidetracks itself is done really well. The cutscenes are enjoyable and always welcome to watch, and there's plenty of collectible lore furthering your understanding of the world you inhabit.
The soundtrack of Gord is fantastic. It's comparable to that of the likes of The Witcher. It fits the overall atmosphere of the game. Thumbs up to the composer.
Graphics are nothing to write home about, but that isn't to say it's not artistically sound. It's dark, gloomy, and unsettling.
In conclusion, I believe this to be a competent game that's worth your time and money. Granted, you could argue that it's a bit steep in price, but that's subjective I suppose. I think it's worth the price just because it has everything I tend to enjoy: a mature story, blood and gore, and a gloomy atmosphere.
I recommend Gord