Champions of Anteria delivers a light-hearted fantasy romp with solid strategy elements, but a lack of content beneath surface level means the game lacks that special something.
In spite of its status as one of the most long-running strategy franchises on the market, it’s been a quiet time for
The Settlers series of late. Indeed, since 2010 and the release of
The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom and
The Settlers Online, the franchise has been silent. However, when news broke of a spin-off title named
The Settlers: Kingdoms of Anteria, many fans of the franchise were intrigued to see what Ubisoft Blue Byte had in store.
Unfortunately for purists of
The Settlers, things did not quite go according to plan, and after a period in beta Ubisoft revealed that the project had morphed into something else entirely. The game has now seen release in the form of
Champions of Anteria, and the title does feel like a very different beast in comparison to its franchise origin.
Champions of Anteria blends together RPG and RTS elements, and the core gameplay comes in the form of single player tactical strategy. The player is put in charge of up to three heroes at once, and is tasked with the usual fantasy fare of fighting of ghoulish creatures and bandits. The title has real-time combat but with active pause functionality, meaning that users have a fair amount of control over proceedings.
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Of course, many of the problems with the
Fable series are also apparent here – albeit in a strategy setting rather than a full-on RPG. It’s a lovingly crafted world with a cartoonish artistic style, and a great deal of humor and charm. However, when that veneer is stripped away, the core gameplay feels very primitive.
Nonetheless, those after a light bite of RTS/RPG gameplay with a positive attitude will find a lot of fun with
Champions of Anteria. It is unlikely to blow any players away, and fans of
The Settlers will find little to keep them occupied, but there’s a nice little game here. Without expecting too much,
Champions of Anteria delivers a decent injection of fantasy humor into the market.
