Shadows of Forbidden Gods

Meeeehhhhh....I'll recommend this game because its like a replacement for a similar one--whose name I've forgotten, its been so long--that seemed cool on Kickstarter, but was abandoned. This game seems like an attempt to make up for that loss so I'll support it. Even so it's kinda dreary IMO, and not in a good way. The music is so lifeless and the heroes (or villains, given the game's nature) kinda generic, I was hoping each of the different dark gods would have their own, but alas. Ah, well, can't complain too much for shelling out for it and the DLC for that matter. Such is life. At least the dark gods themselves are pretty cool.

Dünyanın Sonu Hiç Bu Kadar Planlı Olmamıştı Shadows of Forbidden Gods, strateji türüne çok farklı bir pencereden bakan, "kötü adamı" oynamanın ötesinde gerçek bir "kukla ustası" hissi veren nadir oyunlardan biridir. Eğer ordular kurup haritayı boyadığınız klasik stratejilerden sıkıldıysanız, Shadows of Forbidden Gods size aradığınız o karanlık ve derin "manipülasyon" tecrübesini sunuyor. Burada bir komutan değil, dünyayı yavaş yavaş deliliğe ve yıkıma sürükleyen kadim bir şer güçsünüz. 🌑 Neden Oynamalısın? Gerçek Bir Manipülasyon Simülasyonu: Oyunda amacınız doğrudan saldırmak değil; kralları delirtmek, kahramanları yoldan çıkarmak ve halkın arasına veba salmak. Bir şehri ele geçirmek yerine, o şehrin konseyini gizlice ele geçirip komşusuna savaş açmasını izlemek inanılmaz tatmin edici. Prosedürel Derinlik: Her oyun, kendine has dinamikleri olan farklı bir dünyada başlıyor. Krallıkların birbiriyle olan ilişkileri, kahramanların kişilik özellikleri ve dünya olayları tamamen prosedürel. Bu da her seferinde farklı bir "kıyamet senaryosu" yazmanıza olanak tanıyor. Karakter Odaklı Yapay Zeka: Oyunun dünyası yaşayan bir yer. Kahramanlar sizin yaptıklarınıza göre seviye atlıyor, sizi avlamaya çalışıyor veya kendi aralarındaki çekişmelere dalıyorlar. Yapay zekanın bu kadar organik hissettirmesi, stratejik derinliği katlıyor. Öğrenme Eğrisi ve Zorluk: Oyun "kaybetmenin de eğlenceli olduğu" türden. İlk başta arayüz biraz karmaşık gelebilir ama mekanikleri çözdüğünüzde elinizdeki gücün ne kadar çeşitli olduğunu fark ediyorsunuz. ⚠️ Dikkat Edilmesi Gerekenler Grafikler: Görsellik oldukça minimalist ve tablo vari. Eğer göz alıcı grafikler arıyorsanız hayal kırıklığına uğrayabilirsiniz, ancak atmosferi destekleyen müzikler ve metinler bu açığı kapatıyor. UI (Arayüz): Arayüz bazen çok fazla bilgi yığını sunabiliyor ve alışması zaman alıyor. 📝 Sonuç Shadows of Forbidden Gods, Project Zomboid gibi "anlatı oluşturan" oyunları veya Song of Syx gibi derin simülasyonları sevenler için kaçırılmaması gereken bir cevher. Stratejiyi sadece rakamlarla değil, kaosla ve entrikayla yönetmek istiyorsanız kesinlikle tavsiye ederim. (Kıyameti getirmek hiç bu kadar keyifli olmamıştı.) Puanım: 9/10

Good game, but the dev released a mid DLC and then stepped away from the game and left it to the community, if it was still being worked on I would recommend it more

Civ-lite-but-you're-Sauron ----------------------------- An addictive and engrossing game where you get to be the Dark God, darkening the world with your Shadow, corrupting the righteous, infiltrating society, making use of Dark secrets and powers, hiding in plain sight, and more as you slowly bring humanity to ruin while preparing for your imminent return. The immersion and vibes are greater than the sum of the parts

[h1] Swallow the World [/h1] Shadows of the Water Gods is a hex-based, turn-based strategy game where you play as an evil deity that seeks to return to the world and basically end it. There are multiple ways to go about it, but let's start with what this game actually is. It is a POLITICAL SIMULATOR where you actually play as agents (and eventually corrupted heroes) of your god, and try to manipulate heroes, kings, leaders, etc. into doing things that somehow favor you. For example, you can make a certain hero take more risky actions to get them to kill themselves on quests, or you can try to get them to hate (or not hate) other heroes. While you're doing this, every turn the heroes are doing their own thing, including waging conflicts with each other, taking actions against you (or helping you), or just putzing around. The sheer scope can be overwhelming at first. A good goal at first is to typically spread "shadow", and if you spread enough shadow you win the game. If a hero's home is consumed by shadow 100%, they may subsequently become enshadowed and can be corrupted. This is good for you, as it makes the heroes act in your favor, but it also raises awareness. Too much awareness, and your agents could be killed, or, worse, the entire world might try to put an end to you. You can't actually control armies outside of very special circumstances, so the only real way to fight the doomstacks of enemies is through political maneuvering, which some may not like. As for the gods themselves, they are pretty varied. As you become stronger, you unlock more abilities, which can range from just 100% enshadowing a town for free to summoning small armies, to even changing the dynamics of the towns themselves (towns have stability and resource requirements). There are also special agents that you have one chance at, which have unique abilities, most notably being the Monarch which allows for the creation of the Dark Empire of all enshadowed kingdoms. Overall, I think if you like complex political management sims, then this might be for you. However, don't expect anything too deep, as many of the mechanics are just there to further your main goal of enshadowing provinces. I highly recommend playing the demo if you're thinking about buying it, just to get a feel of the game. [h1] Pros: [/h1] [list] [*]Complex and expansive political system of various heroes, kingdoms, and religions that you are free to manipulate to your heart's content. [*]There are numerous ways to approach the ending, from building shadow to destroying the world to making every one insane. [*]Varied and unique gods, with some being for beginners and others having very challenging mechanics. [*]This game has a very "unique" magic system, and literally treats it like a weapon (it even calls it an "arms race"), requiring careful planning. If your agents become too powerful, they will be hunted just like your god. [*]There is A LOT of extra side content when you decide to explore around with your agents, who knows what you might discover? [*]You can win via water. [/list] [h1] Cons: [/h1] [list] [*]The side content with the elves and orcs was a nice addition (I originally played this game before they were added), but they feel too weak to be useful in vanilla (there's a mod that adds onto it). [*]The Deep Ones take WAY too long to develop, and sometimes the gain you get from doing so just isn't worth it. [*]The Dark Empire was very disappointing, and feels very pointless. The Monarch can't really do anything beyond declare war and "forcing to surrender" (if the area is already enshadowed, and this only like hurts the town he's in, it doesn't make the kingdom give up). So the Empire can be a dud if it starts small. So it's like what's the point if you need to enshadow the place anyway (ignoring VP contribution)? [*]You can't hurt army stacks (usually), but you can't control armies yourself outside of special cases (don't mention orcs because they're weak as hell compared to the doomstacks). I feel the lack of ability to produce and control armies was a poor decision. [*]While I appreciate the uniqueness of some gods, some abilities I really just never used and couldn't find a use for. [*]Infiltration is a conundrum to me, because it's a heavy requirement to pretty much do anything in locations in the game, but why do you still have to do it in locations you've enshadowed (the Monarch can actually ignore this, but there's only one Monarch)? [/list] [b] Verdict: 7/10 [/b]

Kind of like civilization if you only controlled the diplomat units, but they had a MUCH larger list of things to do. Oh, and you are destroying the world.

This game tackles a very unique niche and scratches a particular itch. If you have that itch, you'll be able to forgive the learning curve, basic visuals and undercooked UI. The simulation elements carry enough complexity to make very different approaches towards victory viable. The game also has a surprisingly varied assortment of mods with custom gods you can play as. Each of those brings a new flavor to a campaign through unique gimmicks and mechanics. If you're thinking that playing this game you might happen upon emergent stories and memorable characters, like with Dwarf Fortress, this game is not it. It's a much more mechanically focused experience. You'll be scheming, manipulating rulers and setting plans in motion, but you won't meet anyone worth remembering along the way. It's also fairly cheap and deep enough to sink a couple tens of hours into. Thumbs up

I need more handholding than this. I really don't think I understood what to do. I played the tutorial and that taught me how to create plagues, summon agents and infiltrate. But then in the real game that's all I knew how to do. I just spent so many turns passing while my agents did one of those things. I was lost in all the menus. To be fair I also found Crusader Kings too complicated so maybe I'm just not smart enough for an indie game like this.

I believe one of the most underrated games on steam. Fantastic, a great mix of plague inc and a more traditional strategy game. Mod support and variety of gods and playstyles keeps it super interesting and alot of strategies viable. I hope we get more and if youre curious I highly recommend, its worth the price

This is the only 4x game I've ever finished a run of. good game.