Ravenmark: Scourge of Estellion Reviews

A focused, to the point turn-based tactics game with some quite interesting rules and an original combat system. There's no bloat or RPG mechanics here. Just a campaign with a series of missions with fixed troop deployments. Sometimes, less is more, and this is true here.

I really liked the tactical element of the game. How there were different advantages and disadvantages to using larger formations and how small groups shone in mobility. But there were two elements of the game that ultimately had me moving away from it. The first was the narrative. It was pretty clear from the start that the developers had spent a lot of time fleshing out their world, but it is all introduced at a breakneck pace with very little context. Within the first three missions the players is introduced to over ten characters from three different parts of the world. It feels like you've picked up a novel and started reading from the middle. You barely know what is going on. The other issue I had was that your forces do not carry on to the next mission with you even though the missions narratively follow each other. So if you lose almost all your troops in one mission, the next mission you'll have whatever troops that mission wants you to have. This is just a personal pet peeve of mine since it makes me feel like there are no consequences to your choices in battle as long as you win.