Polytropos: A Tactical Odyssey

Imagine a game that combines Heroes Of Might And Magic 4 gameplay with Vampire Survivors unlock system. You don't have to imagine it anymore 'cause it's here and it's Polytropos! A roguelite turn-based strategy. Echidna (also known as Stara Cedeta) has unleashed the band Skillet upon the world... the monsters spread all over the globe and now a hero is needed. You can be Odysseus, Achilles or even Kanye West. All you need to do is slay the beast and bring balance to the force. Six patrons will help you along the way: Zeus, Athena, Michael Jackson and so forth. Each bringing you different boons to spice things up. I will not lie to you, this game has more in common with the odyssey than the actual Nolan movie about it. Each run is different depending on which character and upgrades you'll choose. The graphics are good, music slaps and the gameplay is addictive. There is a free demo out so you can check if it's up to your tastes. I dig it and had a great time playing through this.

Enjoying this game so far. The mechanics are clearly explained within the game and there seem to be a variety of different strategies to achieve success. Different heroes and roguelite unlocks give the game replayability.

This game is fun! I appreciate the attention to detail from the time period accurate music and verbiage to the extensive amount of artwork/characters you’re able to play. Along with the beautifully done Greek mythology theme, every run feels a different because of all the combinations you can choose, which keeps it interesting! There’s a built-in tutorial as you play so it’s easy to get the hang of combat. If you’re into roguelites or tactical strategy games, I’d definitely recommend giving Polytropos a try!

Very fun game! So many ways each run can differ!

[b]I like Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey. I liked the demo, putting about 2.3 hours in it, and I like the launched game. I recorded my progress in Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey, clearing 2 runs, (once on the highest difficulty), as well as offering some observations and thoughts. Please take a look if you prefer a more audio / visual format.[/b] https://youtu.be/9b2aaEOSIpA Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey is an Indie, Turn Based Tactics RPG that feels like an ancient mythological take on HoMM style battles. [h1]HoMM Style Battles:[/h1] Just the battles, but yes You pick your hero, recruit your unit stacks using gold in between events and battles, and fight in out in the turn based battles, through here the action is hex based, not tile based. Unlike in most of the HoMM series, your hero here is a direct combatant on the field, directly engaging enemy stacks, not just hiding behind your troops, so you directly go forth and beat down enemies personally if you wish. Also like in the HoMM series, your hero levels up from winning battles. Here, after each battle, you get 1 stat increase, and pick 1 of three boons, boosting your hero, or their army. You also unlock new spells in the run, using favor from the gods to cast, a twist from the expected mana system. [b]Meta Progression:[/b] Unlockable heroes, spells, and upgrades are unlocked as you make progress in the game. While I did enjoy my time with Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey, I did find some areas where it could be even better. Please let me know if any of this is off-base, but I find directness works best here. I will try and keep this organized. Suggestions: [h1]1: No Rebindable Keys?[/h1] This is especially a problem here, as the options / settings key is for some reason “P”, and not “Esc” as is expected for PC games. [h1]2: “Esc” Does Not Close Open Windows?[/h1] It is such a seemingly small thing, and yet the UI not functioning as expected in PC games makes this one often feel very clunkie and cumbersome in play. Following expected PC control layouts, or at least allowing them to be changed by the player to something more familiar, would have went a long way towards making the gameplay feel more familiar and playable. As opposed to somewhat clunkie and cumbersome, as it is currently. [h1]3: Where’s My Money?[/h1] I would be nice to be able to select cash instead of yet another magic spell you might not have any use for, and might not want. Anyway, those few critiques aside, I did enjoy my time with the launched version of Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey. Polytropos A Tactical Odyssey is an Indie, Turn Based Tactics RPG that feels like an ancient mythological take on HoMM style battles, and is easily worth a wishlist and a watch. Watch?

Fun game! strategic and flexible. Takes a few runs to get a full grasp of the systems at play but the learning curve isn't too bad. Looking forward to learning the intricacies and increasing the difficulty.

Polytropos has the combat system of the King's Bounty series with the unlock system of Vampire Survivors. That's mostly it! You can stop reading now. TLDR: It's a relatively simple game, with a nice set of unlocks that's fairly straight forward. It won't replace more complex tactical games in your library, but is great lunch break game if you're strongly into the genre of King's Bounty like combat games. Each "run" takes you through some rogue mechanics similar to FTL and similar games. You can choose a battle, a choice, or buy things from the store. You play through procedural battles and then face specific boss monsters or groups. The game has diverse difficulty options, hero choices, upgrades, and spells. The UI lacks a little polish here and there. Some extra animations sometimes might be welcome, some buttons just vanish when you click them which isn't very satisfying but it all works. A lot of the combat is "one-click", and it can sometimes take a little effort to get information on special abilities or other information. Once you know how to get there, it's fine though. Balance in rogue games can be a little all over the place. I've found, so far, that hero heavy builds tend to become weaker over time as your monster / soldier stacks get bigger and bigger. The AI is also so-so, but this isn't necessarily a negative with a game like this. You can always turn up the difficulty for a higher challenge. Casting spells uses up the turn of your hero (with the default hero being Odsseyeus). Early game, this leaves you with balancing defending your monster stacks and remembering to heal your hero or use your "kudos" (kind of like mana) to cast useful defense or attack spells. This leaves some different options to play through the game. The heaviest criticism is that the lack of another layer (overland / strategy etc...) is sorely missed. It would be great to have something else to manage between combats given the simplicity. Either that, or some more stack / unit abilities might take the game a little further. Fans of sci-fi might prefer FTL or Voidwar, and heavy tactical players will want some more depth, but it's solid simple fun for those who want something quick and a little less complex.

Good!