Okay, let’s dive into this Early Access world again. I honestly love it. It’s like peeking into a game’s soul while it’s still figuring itself out. Early Access used to be a swamp, a real quagmire of half-baked ideas, where developers just kind of left things to fester while they collected cash. Not saying all, but it was a scene. But, hey, times change! Now, there’s some seriously cool stuff popping up on Steam. Right now, I’m buzzing about Vanguard Exiles – let’s take a closer look.
Oh, and who’s crafting this gem? The mind behind Magic: The Gathering. That’s some heavyweight brainpower! But don’t expect cards everywhere – it’s more like a tabletop game without, you know, the actual table. I wouldn’t be shocked if this became a physical board game with pricey miniatures someday. If so, I’m putting my dibs on a set!
So, where were we? Right, Vanguard Exiles – it’s still in the works, needs some tweaking before it’s polished. Keep that in mind as I ramble about its current state. My gripes, minor as they are, mostly swirl around RNG stuff.
Picture this: you’re leading mercenaries through trenches – gritty stuff. The goal? Hold key rooms, rack up points, first to 80 wins. Simple. Sort of. Each room gifts you points, gold, or maybe just tosses you into a bear fight. Prioritizing where to go is crucial because you can’t have it all, no sir.
Here’s a quirky twist – it’s an auto-battler! Yep, love it or hate it, strategy is in choosing where to plop your units, not in who wallops who. Sure, flooding a high-value point with troops is tempting, but then what? Hand the rest of the board to your foe? Or scatter them sparingly, knowing they might get squashed? Choices, choices.
Right, the units. They’re varied but presented randomly, so you might not see them all at once. Gold is your friend when snagging powerful ones, but there’s always a freebie if your pockets are empty. These aren’t reactive cards; they’re more like your strategic play pieces. Makes everything less card-gamey, more straightforward.
Fun as Exiles is, some parts are still gray. No story mode yet, which is a bummer. You’ve got elves, dwarves – very fantasy lineup – but no depth. Not that it’s a dealbreaker yet; they’ll probably flesh it out post-mechanics polishing. But for an immersive dive, narrative fluff is the secret sauce.
Balancing – or the lack thereof. Games can tip unfair fast, and once you’re losing ground, it’s hard to recover. It kind of feels like rolling a boulder uphill. You get a sense of your eventual doom by round three or so, and, well, might as well restart. Hope they tweak that, soon!
One last gripe before I go off on a tangent – those darn unkillable units. Some dwarves are like mini tanks early on, making skirmishes frustratingly stale. Does armor need to be a game-start feature? Just my two cents.
Despite these hiccups, I’m hooked on Vanguard Exiles’ progress. It’s shaping up to be a great strategy outing. With more updates, I believe it’ll rock the genre. Stay tuned, folks. It’s looking like a promising adventure.
I was lucky to get my hands on an Early Access copy from the publisher, by the way. 😊
