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| Author |
File Description |
The Great Artiste
(id: Great_Artiste) |
Posted on 07/29/18 @ 12:29 PM
| File Details |
|---|
| Version: |
Age of Empires II (2013): Rise of the Rajas |
| Required Modpack (if not included with the download): |
Warsmithy's (Catbarf's) Byzantine buildings mod |
| Style: |
Other |
Great Artiste's DTS18 entry, brought to you by Monsoon Studios.
Join Honore La Chapelle and his crew, as they sail the Mediterranean Sea.
Credits:
- Special thanks to both playtesters, Cataphract887 and Clerkius, my fellow Monsooners and the creator of the Byzantine Buildings Mod, Warsmithy/Catbarf
- Music: Napoleon Total War and Empire Total War
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| Author | Comments & Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
|---|
HockeySam18
Staff
Official Reviewer |
Posted on 09/02/18 @ 04:49 AM
Playability: 4
This scenario was extremely fun in that it presented the player with a series of quite diverse and challenging defense stages after a short and effective opening cinematic. Each was refreshing and interesting to play: the defense of a ship against broadside boarding parties, delaying an enemy force in the field while defenses are prepared, and the final defense of the outer ring of a fort and later its bastion. Diverse enemy forces kept the player on his toes, requiring the maintenance of viable troop positioning, the use (but vigilant watch over the safety) of heroes, and focusing down dangerous enemy units and siege engines. Strong map design and balance efforts contributed to the overall level of enjoyment, and the scenario overall had a very polished feel, although it did feel somewhat linear and scripted, and lacking immersion at brief points.
Balance: 4
Throughout the scenario, the gameplay felt extremely fair and was more than intuitive, requiring a combination of macromanagement and micromanagement that was manageable but nevertheless required skill. If a critique was to be made, it would be that the various stages of gameplay did not demand much variation in the player’s approach or strategy beyond plonking units in place on defensive stance and focusing down important targets, but overall this sphere of the design was quite well done.
Creativity: 4
All non-vanilla gameplay mechanics were sufficiently explained, and the map design also demonstrated a commendable level of creativity (more on that later). The author made a commendable effort with regard to producing an enjoyable fixed force-style game that pushed the boundaries of design within a reasonable amount of suspension of disbelief.
Map Design: 4
The author fearlessly negotiated a diverse array of settings - an enormously creative (if not particularly convincing) take on the decks of a pair of ships in a broadside battle, a beach defense, and a withering fortress (along with several minor cinematic areas that all looked the part). Each of these looked excellent, although admittedly the broadside stage is enormously difficult to pull off without modding, as the use of vanilla assets demand a level of suspension of disbelief that is perhaps too high. Nevertheless, for the most part the map was top notch work and incredibly pleasing to play and look at.
Story/Instructions: 5
Likely the strongest point of the entry, it is clear that this sphere was given special attention by the author. The intermingling of gameplay and cinematic portions culminated in an understandable and engaging storyline that was fed to the player in manageable doses.
Additional Comments:
A worthy third place entry and certainly the author's best work to date, this is a thoroughly recommended download. |
 
HGDL v0.8.2 |
| Rating |
|---|
| 4.2 | | Breakdown |
|---|
| Playability | 4.0 | | Balance | 4.0 | | Creativity | 4.0 | | Map Design | 4.0 | | Story/Instructions | 5.0 |
| Statistics |
| Downloads: | 295 |
| Favorites: [] | 0 |
| Size: | 20.21 MB |
| Added: | 07/29/18 |
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