Thronefall Review (LB)
Considering how short this game is due to it being Early Access, I don't think I've had as much fun with a game straight after opening it in... maybe years. This cute little game has the makings of something wonderful, and I felt it the instant I opened the main menu.
Let's start with the artstyle. I love it. The buildings, settings, and player character all look amazing. The enemies, although lacking that little tinge of "cuteness" that affects the rest of the game, are differentiable, which is what is important at this moment in time.
Next, gameplay. At a glance, it looks a little samey -- predetermined building placements, known enemy spawning locations, etc. But, at this moment, it's made up for it in difficulty. This game can get tough! There's a highscore aspect that is clearly meant for you to compete with your friends, with each clear giving you an end score, and the only way to increase that score is to purposely apply debuffs, called Mutators, to yourself. Sort of like how Heat works in Hades. Similarly, there's a perk system that buffs certain aspects of the game, like charms in Hollow Knight or Ori. Just in my limited experience I have already felt the difficulty spike with each Mutator I add. This difficulty is what truly gives you the sense of strategy that you need even with predetermined building placements. You're forced to make choices on whether you should prioritize making money for the later waves, or on improving your defense *now*. It's been a ton of fun. The only downside is that it's quite short -- there are only four main levels and the endless mode. But, I assume that's going to change quite soon. :)
The music, though repetitive due to lack of tracks is great and will probably be a big highlight in further expansions. It's probably one of the things I'm most excited about, actually.
The perks actually feel balanced, though admittedly I haven't unlocked them all. I have my favorites, but that's just my playstyle. With each clear, you gain XP, and that XP gives you access to more perks -- but it's never felt like each perk was a direct upgrade of a previous one. In fact, there's one perk that's available from the start that I've been using every game. And again, the Mutators cause you to think carefully of which perks you take with you.
Overall, this game is amazing at its current stage and it's future definitely feels bright. It's still in Early Access, which always has its risk of development suddenly stopping -- but, for what it is right now, it's definitely worth the price, even if it's not on sale. In fact, I feel like I'm ripping off the devs a little by buying the game for so cheap knowing that it'll continue to grow. It's definitely something special, and I suggest you come along for the ride!