There have been a ton of turn-based strategy games lately and I don’t mind that one bit. The downside to all these great releases is the fact you get a bit fed up with the staleness of these types of games. Luckily Wartile Complete Edition is here to add some much-appreciated flow to the genre.
Norse mythology
In Wartile it falls upon the son of the recently deceased Jarl to lead his people through tough times. The plague is raging rampantly and people are suffering. While unhygienic circumstances might have caused the real plague, this plague seems to have different origins. Origins which will soon become apparent when traveling the lands. Ghouls and other fantasy creatures are roaming the land and water of the Norse mythology-inspired backdrop of Wartile. Luckily you’re not entirely on your own as you’ll encounter other heroes to aid you.
WarhamTile
Wartile presents itself in a unique tabletop inspired way. Heroes and enemies are presented as miniature figurines on the map. The map itself consists of a bunch of hexagonal spaces that are made into a stunning looking diorama of the battlefield. The boardgame look might have you thinking this will be yet another stale strategy game but that’s absolutely not the case with Wartile. Every action by heroes and enemies is done simultaneously in real-time. Battles ensue whenever you’re in reach of enemies. Replacing your figurines is done in a smooth fashion – even during battles.
Look for an advantage
As with most strategy games, Wartile is all about positioning to get the advantage. The beautifully crafted terrain offers the first possibilities for advantage. There are often different routes to take in approaching the enemies. Taking a detour might prove beneficial to pick a pack of enemies off one by one. Having a higher ground also gives you an advantage. Flanking on enemies might prove to be the best tactic to get rid of an enemy fast. All these mechanics are to be used to your advantage, just watch out for enemy movement because they will also try to get to a more advantageous position if you’re not quick about it.
Flow
As mentioned before, Wartile isn’t your typical turn-based strategy game. Everything in Wartile is done in real-time. Well almost… You can slow time for a few seconds in order to access your current situation and adapt to it accordingly. This slowing down means you’ll have enough time to make a decision but this doesn’t stop the action entirely. If you take too much time it might still be too late to tip the outcome of the encounter in your favor. All this adds a certain flow to Wartile not often experienced in strategy games.
Action cards and abilities
When you start in Wartile, you’ll have the game explained to you as you get through your first few missions. Once you get the feel for the game and learn how you can get items and earn experience, the game really opens up. Before each mission, you get a brief introduction so you’ll know what to expect. It’s up to you to chose which miniatures to go on the mission and what they’ll bring along. Besides the weapons and armor, each character can choose up to 5 action cards to use in the mission. Action cards can for instance heal figurines or set traps for enemies. Once used, a cool-down period is triggered so you can’t use them immediately again.
Each character in Wartile has a special ability. These abilities work the same way as action cards but are more a go-to attack option when getting overwhelmed. These can really change the outcome of the battle in your favor. If you happen to feel the current line-up of figurines is not cutting it for you, you can first try to upgrade them in order to buff them out. If you want some more options, you can also collect new figurines to further add more strategy elements to the game.
Conclusion
Wartile complete edition offers the base game previously released in 2019 and all the current DLC available. The package offers a great deal for any strategy enthusiast out there. Purists of the genre might frown upon the fast-paced decision making needed to play the game, I, on the other hand, enjoyed the change in pace a lot.
