Highlands

[h1]Alluring & difficult to put down // Recommended for critical thinkers and casual gamers alike[/h1] [h1]~Full Disclosure: This game was reviewed with a key given by the developers~[/h1] + Each 'tile' feels uniquiely designed, and sets it aside from other titles of the genre that often settle for uniform tiles and grids + Absolutely incredible musical score; very melodic, and really pulls you into your chair + Random events keep one on one's toes, often doling out punishment instead of reward + One of the most important strategic elements involved is that of resource management; the game pulls this off successfully, despite there only being three essential resources to balance + Tutorial is well-woven into the early plot, and does an excellent job of introducing the game's mechanics + Hand-illustrated artwork is superb, particularly the storyboard pages that are use to advance the plot + Permanent death of one's characters is in effect; this does much to lend gravity to one's decisions, and it elicits a nervous reluctance to sacrifice your units (which will often be absolutely necessary) + There is actually a commendable amount of character development afoot; this is certainly refreshing for a strategy game + Forces must be properly utilized, not only in terms of proper dispersion and front line management, but also in using them to reorganize territories, post-liberation + The challenge builds substantially after the initial stage, getting the hook into newer players relatively early on + Disney-esque art style contrasts wonderfully with the dark tone pervading throughout + Class system is basic enough that one will pick it up quickly; the impact of its utilization is the critical component in your success on the battlefield, and is overall solid in its implementation + Equipment management, character stats, and the experience system are all par-for-the-course; nothing revolutionary, but it certainly adds to the depth of gameplay without feeling out of place - Replenishment of enemy forces, while effective in creating a sense of urgency, can be horribly unforgiving on larger maps - Unit lists expand awkwardly when attempting to select from the stack; feels a bit odd, in that it can be hard to get the right number of characters within the cursor's selection box, as they move outward when passing over them - New recruits have a small pool of models to draw from - There is no skirmish or custom-battle mode; in fact, although the main campaign is very well-done, the game would be well-suited to host more in the way of game-modes in the future (until that is implemented, there is limited replayability) [h1]LockeProposal's Big Day Out[/h1] [url=http://steamcommunity.com/groups/bigdayout#]Community Group[/url] [url=http://store.steampowered.com/curator/7611703/]Curator Page[/url] [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/SeriousSteamReviews/]Serious Steam Reviews subReddit[/url]

Alright, two hours into this bad boy, and I'm comfortable reviewing. Highlands is a Risk-esque resource management/strategy game with RPG elements, to lay it out at its core. While the pics provided up there might make you think it's very simple, there's a lot more depth than I thought there would be. Gameplay: You have armies that you shift around different areas, and the entirety of your army are heroes. There are four classes: combatants, leaders, academics and mechanics. Combatants' sole purpose is to fight, to add greater numbers to your army. Leaders develop the lands they're on, allowing those lands to generate resources for you. Academics heal your people, simply put. Mechanics fortify areas and also craft items that can be equipped by your heroes. As they level up, they get stronger, acquire different skills and increase in health. You can carry a few minor heroes over with you between games, usually the best leveled ones. For those who've played Risk, the battling is very much like that. Force on force. Now, you need to get used to two things: you're going to lose heroes, and you're going to lose land. I've seen a couple reviews mention this game is hard, and while it is, it becomes easier once you realize both lands and minor heroes are disposable. Heroes become disposable (the non-important ones, anyways), so you usually shift the brunt of damage to them, while trying to win a battle of attrition and keep your strongest units and critical units intact. In fact, the entirety of this game is a battle of attrition. You fortify some places that serve as choke points, while leaving other lands open so you can lure armies in away from the big armies sitting next to them. Sounds easy so far, right? Well, not so fast. Every...I think it's 9 turns, enemies populate every land the enemy owns on the map. Never enough to truly be of concern, but enough to reinforce the big armies and keep you on your toes with the smaller lands so that you don't lose something you didn't mean to lose. There are also warlords, who are generated every once in a while and move through the map just like you are. It keeps the pace up and ensures that unless you're sitting at the end of the map, you're gonna have to keep moving and keep attacking. All in all, it turns into a much more complex strategy game than I was expecting, though I still think a little more flexibility needs to be in the actual combat itself. Aesthetic: As you probably suspect, the aesthetic is very well done. While the music isn't quite Supergiant-esque, it's still adds a pleasant ambience to help keep you frothing at the mouth in frustration. The cartoonish graphics are great, even in the more grim moments I've seen across the game. There's really nothing to nitpick at here, though I do wish there more character designs for each class. I know that there are dozens of designs across the classes, but considering how many heroes you just throw away, I think there needs to be more variety. Especially in combatant. Story: The story is quite simple, but enjoyable nonetheless. The characters aren't completely one dimensional, but aren't exactly complex either, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The game has its little random events here and there, and there are little scenes at the end of each map that are well written enough. I will say that I have spotted some errors here and there within the script. Nothing laughable, but another look-over by an editor wouldn't have hurt. In case you're curious, there's no voice acting that I've seen so far, outside of the opening. All in all, I'd say this is a good game if you're looking for something not too complex, but challenging. If you're looking for something very in depth, you might want to watch some LPs to decide if this will be enough to scratch that itch.

A great indie turn-based strategy game. [b]Visually:[/b] It reminded me of a mix between "The Banner Saga" and "Bastion", colorful, well drawn... especially the environments, which is definitely an improvement over standard/generic hex-grids. [b]Storyline:[/b] Not necessarily the most original plot line, but it is well written, gets the job done. [i]{Seeing as I'm the type of person who generally doesn't read anything... my opinion doesn't mean much}[/i] [b]Soundtrack:[/b] It's decent, a bit on the light side {ambient} and not too memorable but I kept it on during my whole playthrough. [b]Gameplay:[/b] Having done a full playthrough, {Hard mode} I can safely say that this is where the game shines... as it should. It starts off rather simple, an ability per class with somewhat straight forward scenarios... making it easy to pick up. Then as you progress, other abilities are added in. Maps widen, scenarios become tougher, more possibilities/choices to be made. Proper use of game mechanics to: push/pull, control zones, manage ressources, while constantly being on the clock from constant reinforcements... becomes a must. Knowing when to attack, when to withdraw, moving units/crafted items around to be more efficient, which ressources to focus on and what to use them for... as well as purposely sacrificing units when need be, adds to its complexity. [i]PS: When a unit dies, it never comes back.[/i] [b]Negative points:[/b] It lacks replayability, which shouldn't come as a surprise, since it is a single player game. It also could have used a few 'Quality of life' features: discarding crafted items, filters, having more game menu/graphical options, etc... nothing too serious. Overall, It's a great game, well worth its 15$ price tag. [i]PS: If you're experienced in these type of games, I would advise playing it on hard difficulty right off the bat, as I found it be well balanced.[/i]

Highlands is a unique strategy game that does exactly what it says on its store page. But just as importantly the devs at Burrito Studio are VERY responsive to community input. Steam achievements are already in and a new "casual" difficulty is being added (within the next day or so) mainly due to the fact that Highlands' gameplay is so different to what we are used to that extra climatisation may well be needed for the average player despite already having a well made integrated tutorial. There is little doubt that this is a challenge that none should take lightly. In addittion, the guys have added some nice extra features including extra craftable consumables, extra character abilities, and extra enemy abilities. All in all, the 1.1 build will radically alter an already good game for the better making Highlands very close to being a must-buy for anyone interested in a fresh look at the tactical turn based with RPG elements genre. Overall an extremely professional piece of work destined, at the very least, to become a cult classic. *edit* Don't underestimate that word "unique" up there - everyone claims it but few actually achieve it.

This is probably one of the best hidden jewels all over steam... If you like storytelling games with a strong tactical and role play element...search no more,This is it! It plays a lot like a board game,but with a type of artistic quality and simple mechanics only possible in a computer game. My main reason to make this review,is related to the fact of how little attention it was able to get...If you were looking in the first weeks,during and after release,you probably know"HIGHLANDS",if not...it can be noticed just by chance.In fact there is no real excuse for not to play(beautiful game with hy reviews and a very fair price)...if only pepole could actually see it...!?!

Mechanics are shallow. AI is meh. Only strategy is...lets keep loading more units! Artistically, it's nice. But that's where the fun ends.

[h1]Нейтральный отзыв, просто для того чтобы поделиться впечатлениями и возможно, предостеречь от покупки[/h1] Лично мне, игра не понравилась, но учитывая что её делали пара-тройка человек, что стилистически, она весьма приятна и что я банально, ожидал от игры другого, решил что ставить палец вниз, будет неправильно. Мне почему-то казалось, что это некий гибрид тактической стратегии, рпг и визуальной новеллы, но по итогу, она проявляет себя крайне посредственно, во всех трёх стезях. Тактика тут заключается в том, что на экране битвы, выбрать одного из своих солдат, который будет получать весь урон. И это, собственно, всё. Да, там есть буквально два расходника и ещё столько же тактических приёмов, но они все всплывают буквально на 2-3 (из семи) карте, а дальше уже воюешь по накатанной, почти не включая мозг. Не помогает ещё и то, что урон проходит рандомно, причём в весьма приличных диапазонах. Да, я понимаю что тут всё скорее про стратегическое планирование и умное распределение ресурсов, но и оно тоже подводит, ибо быстро уходишь плюс по всем фронтам, а монотонные автобитвы утомили уже после первой трети игры. Ролевой отыгрыш и кастомизация персонажей, весьма скудная. Все характеристики растут автоматом, при лвлапах, а из обмундирования, доступен слот под оружие и под дополнительный предмет. Бинты, знамя, броню, инструменты и прочее. Понравилась рисовка. Дико жаль что нам толком не рассказывают об этом мире, ведь смотреть на все эти парящие в небе островки суши, одно загляденье. Весь этот антураж, придёт игре некий оттенок сказочности чтоли, хотя при этом, весь сюжет крутится вокруг войны, смертях, голоде, революции, кровяке и всём таком прочем. Хм, ну как сюжет - враги сожгли родную хату. Мы же, в роли королевского семейства, чей отец скончался ещё в обучении, возвращаем под контроль свою страну, попутно выясняя, откуда же у рейдеров взялись роботы, и кто же этот "внезапный" предатель, снабжавший их ими. До последнего надеялся, что сами персонажи будут хоть мало-мальски интересными, но узрев их диалоги, понял что даже до уровня шаблонных, они не дотягивают. Видать из-за военного положения, но все общались лишь строго по теме, больше рапортуя, нежели ведя диалоги. И их в принципе мало, что учитывая содержание, наверное и к лучшему. Из однозначно порадовавшего, так это случайные ивенты в секторах, которые хоть и сводились лишь к тому, что народ пытается выжить в условиях оккупации и голодает, но хоть чуточку разнообразили скучное прохождение. Ну и ещё понравились пресеты наёмников в тавернах. Мелочь, но ещё один плюсик художникам. Это даже странно, ибо я обычно к ним равнодушен, но порекомендую обратить внимание на ачивки. Откровенно скучая, я залез туда, дабы посмотреть что же вообще есть. В итоге понял, что на каждый лвл есть по одной ачивке, выполняя условия которой, можно создась себе какие-то доп. трудности, которые не дадут заскучать окончательно. В общем, посоветую брать разве что по неплохой скидке, либо если вам просто нужна ненапряжная игрушка, где можо сделать пару ходов в перерывах. У меня вон аж часов 16 накапало, пока висела свёрнутой. Думаю, по факту там геймплея на часов 6-7. Приятного дня:)

Симпатичного вида стратегия про королевство летающих островов, на которое внезапно напали слишком уж хорошо вооружённые разбойники, и теперь наследникам трона нужно разобраться, что же произошло и как освободить родную отчизну. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1761445076 Игровой процесс представляет собой аналог известной настольной игры "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/227920/Risk/]Риск[/url]": всё поле разбито на секторы произвольной формы, нападая на которые происходит битва "на кубиках" (чем больше войск вы привели, тем больше кубиков метаете, тем, соответственно, больший рандомизированный урон наносите). При этом вокруг захваченного сектора вас радушно приветствует новая часть вражеской территории, откуда на следующий ход нападут новые войска, и приходится постоянно гарцевать туда-сюда, чередуя атаку с обороной, а так как здесь мы играем с компьютером, то выманивать очередную порцию врагов, чтобы не раздувать чрезмерно линию фронта. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1761445150 В отличие от традиционного "Риска", здесь появилось четыре типа героев, каждый со своей специализацией (воин, лидер, механик и лекарь), с небольшой прокачкой, скилами и артефактами. Есть даже кое-какой крафтинг и случайные события на карте. Врагов тоже несколько типов, со своими особенностями. Вся игра разбита на семь больших уровней, связанных достаточно прозаичной сюжетной частью и умеренно банальными диалогами. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1761542284 На мой взгляд, игра в принципе неплохая, но с одной стороны игровой процесс слишком уж механический, без особых стратегических решений, а с другой — ему явно не хватает приятных исследовательских элементов (как в "Героях", Disciples и т.д.). В каждой миссии вместо того чтобы отправляться в чудесное приключение вам нужно аккуратно вырваться из плотного вражеского оцепления, закидывая супостата боевыми кубами. Я бы рекомендовал Highlands только самому невзыскательному игроку (либо если вам нравится медитативный игровой процесс и бухгалтерское распределение ресурсов), а с механикой "Риска" лучше познакомиться, к примеру, на более компактном [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/235620/Small_World_2/]Small World[/url].

Picked it up during the sale and was only expecting it to be decent at best. Boy was I wrong; this game turned out to be amazing! It is pretty simple yet incredibly deep, Other reviews complained about the difficulty but hailed its gorgeous scapes. The latter remark is became very evident as the sky-city steampunkish world came to life, an aesthetic that sort of reminds me of Bioshock Infinite. However, the complaints about the difficulty I have to strongly disagree (I should note that the developers did already address those complaints before I picked up a copy as they shifted the "normal" difficulty to "challenging" and have now created an easier "normal"). But after I beat it on the new normal I decided to give challenging a shot and that is where I discovered how the strategy of this game really starts to come out. Honestly, this game reminds me of the old Advanced Wars games for the GBA in the way that it is pretty straight forward and easy to follow yet requires a ton of strategy and maneuvering of forces. I'm now going through the game for my third time on the "brutal" difficulty and I have to say that I'm still loving it! Only thing I can knitpick is that their is no skirmish mode or challenge missions outside of the story mode. But as is this game is well worth the money, so lacking those other things only gives me hope that the developers are still working!