Against the Storm

2024-11-25
Fantastic little game that combines the idea of roguelikes with a base builder. The end result is a game which takes one of the most fun parts of a base builder, the initial start of the game, and basically makes that the whole game. For me this is a win because I am one of those people that finds the start of a base builder, an open map full of potential, as I rush to destroy the environment and bend it to my will, to be an incredibly fun experience in video games.

And yet the core loop of starting town after town which seems like something I always wanted starts to become a bit rote even with randomized roguelikeness of the whole thing thrown in. Randomness in this case comes through the form of randomized maps which will determine which resources you have, which goals you have, and effectively how you need to play each level. And that's the thing it's really a game of small city building levels. Yes starting a game in a city builder is fun but the real joy for me is when I can hunker down and build a sprawling metropolis.

All of that is to say while you might not want to play this game for 40+ hours I had an absolute blast of a time playing it for 12 or so hours and would recommend it to anyone who loves the rush of starting a new town.

2024-01-15
Fantastic little game that combines the idea of roguelikes with a base builder. The end result is a game which takes one of the most fun parts of a base builder, the initial start of the game, and basically makes that the whole game. For me this is a win because I am one of those people that finds the start of a base builder, an open map full of potential, as I rush to destroy the environment and bend it to my will, to be an incredibly fun experience in video games.

It's visual style as well seems to be a nod to Warcraft 3, all primary colors and weird cool beast races to lead.

While it borrows from roguelikes it lacks the long-term staying power of roguelikes. The core loop of starting town after town starts to become a bit rote even with the randomness thrown in. Randomness in this case comes through the form of randomized maps which will determine which resources you will have access to in your playthrough. These resources in turn determine what type of town you can build and what final complex products you can produce. These final products, the result of a series of combining resources together to make more complicated byproducts are the main way to win each game. This is further complicated by the fact that which buildings you have access to are also determined by randomness because each time you unlock a building you draw several building cards randomly and have to pick one.

Despite all these complications thrown into the mix after 10 or so games I felt like I had seen all the game had to offer. You can bank points and so forth to have permanent alterations made to how you can start or what buildings you had access to but these felt like very small changes to the formula meaning each game would remain more or less the same.

All of that is to say while you might not want to play this game for 40+ hours I had an absolute blast of a time playing it for 12 or so hours and would recommend it to anyone who loves the rush of starting a new town.