Eador. Lady of the Worlds: Previous (Gamesmir 2012)

Domestic developers studio Snowbird – That’s who, it turns out, determines the date of the onset of the Apocalypse. The other day, they announced the “decisive abolition” of the end of the world in December 2012 in connection with the alleged release of the strategy “Eador. The Lords of the Worlds “ In 2013, instead of this fall, as promised earlier.

Nevertheless, a certain playable version of this step-by-step strategy has already been presented at Gamer Snowbird Game Studios Vladimir Peretsov He willingly told what to expect from the “Vladyk” and how the new project will differ from the “Eador” of the 2009 model.

All for one

Story “Eadora” It is worth familiarizing yourself with it. The strategy of Eador in 2009. Creation “was an exemplary representative of indie format. Created by a single enthusiast, this game was largely like Heroes of Might and Magic 3, and in some places-even as Heroes of Might and Magic 2. Enthusiast is called Alexey Bokulev, And he created a hundred percent two-dimensional, hellishly hardcore step-by-step strategy with anachronic graphics-and something else, perhaps, that they blurred the “soul”. In any case, “Eador. Creation “was to the taste of many, quickly overgrown with folklore, fan arts and no less fan literature based. Incredible success for indie strategy, a distinctive feature of which is graphics at the level of 2000!

Pay attention to the number of parameters. All not all, but at least half of the values ​​in general terms will have to be taken into account in order to achieve victory.

After the project was so successfully published, the question of its modernized reprint was practically solved. Two studios connected to the development of “Vladyk” – mentioned above Snowbird Game Studios And Unicorn Games. Alexey Bokulev remained the ideological inspirer and honorary curator of the project. By the way, the current developers are openly admitted: they tried not to interfere in the gameplay – they were mainly engaged in the modernization of the interface and graphics. So as not to show people to show new fans to attract.

Collect the astral puzzle

To show people a preview of the version in the option in which she arrived at Gamirmir was not ashamed. We saw a beautiful three -dimensional picture, a simple and understandable strategic map, the usual hexagonal battles with some “highlight” features. The developers have plans to “Tutorial” for beginners, multiplayer and further improvement of the interface, so that the world is before the user “Eadora” I came “with a human face”, so to speak.

“Eador” In its structure, it reminds a little … nesting doll. According to the plot, our protagonist, one of several great lords, must unite the fragments of the once beautiful universe in the astral plane in order to build a new empire from them. The problem is that only one fragment belongs to us initially, and local inhabitants live on the rest, who did not hear about any such lords. In addition, sushi areas, drifting in the “great nothing”, already have their own masters and overlords. They, of course, do not intend to share power with us.

Here at this astral stage we get acquainted with the upper “matryoshka”. As soon as we decide which fragment is the first to colonize, a global map with a large astral and small ships of the earth floating in it, as in the broth, is replaced by a strategic map of ground territories. And now we are already the next, invested layer.

Welcome to Earth

On the ground, where the lord controlled by us is stepping, the enemy lives. At the very moment when we land on land, this enemy begins to collect strength to destroy us. To win, we must get ahead of him – to capture the opponent’s castle before the opponent won our. True, in which particular place the opponent sits, we do not know – most of the map hides the fog. Only small provinces nearby are visible. There are just local residents-traditional fantasy-Supnobor: people, orcs, elves, goblins and other creatures.

You can interact with the natives in different ways. We can try to agree with them or rush to conquer immediately. Someone willingly make contact, and someone will not even want to talk with a potential invader like our lord. It largely depends on karma: the good and sweet ruler will love light creatures like elves, and in evil and cruel a kindred soul will rather feel the orcs.

When there are few units on the board, you can afford to provide each mana, endurance, character, wife, mother -in -law ..

Karma system is one of the main chips “Eadora” at all. The game determines our belonging to bad or good guys based on the decisions that we make in the course of the game. It is often necessary to decide in extreme situations: provinces can easily ask our help at the most inopportune moment. The robbers attacked, for example, on the village – these are the inhabitants and pray to our powerful lord about the protection. We respond – we will get a “plus” to a reputation. We will not want to contact – we will stand on the step closer to the forces of evil.

The developers promise to make karma very flexible, reacting even to the most insignificant and past, at first glance, the actions of the protagonist. Concept Alexei Bokulev regarding the scale of good and evil, it is quite peculiar: the creator “Eadora” I tried to bring the state of affairs to reality as close as possible, practically forcing us to do something like this, usually politicians on this side of the monitors.

The fact is that in the early stages of the game to be bad much easier and economically more profitable. But closer to the Endspil, the evil Lord suddenly discovers that unseemly acts imperceptibly led him to very noticeable problems. What to do? That’s right, to “fly” karma as they move to the end.

Normal heroes always go to expense

But back to our “nesting doll”. Under the strategic layer, one more is hidden – combat. This is where significant differences are manifested “Eadora” From the series Hom&M And King’s Bounty.

The hero here in no way can be considered an enduring value. His death does not end the game. Moreover, death is not even final. Heroes will die a lot, often, we need to prepare for this, be patient and resources for resurrection. The corpse of the unsuccessful leader in a few days will be delivered from the battlefield to our capital. For a certain amount of gold and crystals, we can resurrect it if we want. You can not resurrect – then the poor man will be lost forever.

Tactics “recruit a giant staff of troops and crushing the enemy by the number” in “Eador” It doesn’t work at all. The hero under the scope is not units from a heap of people, but only a few fighters. One slot – one warrior. Going into battle with a detachment of three unfortunate militias is a common practice at the beginning of the game, because we simply cannot take with us physically. To defeat, you need to clearly know how different types of relief are affected on the combat power of each fighter, monitor the maintenance of high morality in the detachment, not let the wards overwhelm over and sensitively listen to what the hero tells us before the battle.

However, sometimes the heroes come across cowardly and panic in vain. “I will be very surprised if I manage to win,” warns another scout or wizard in our service. And he is surprised, because opponents almost themselves lie under the blows of our soldiers.

Despite the apparent inconceivability of death, chapcaming is not a way in “Eador”. Heroes, of course, can not be protected, but then we run the risk of being left either without combat power or without resources. The cost of the services of each next mercenary will increase significantly. It is understandable: there is a non -shaped glory about us, subordinates like flies to us – here are new candidates and raise the price for the risk.

Medicine for idleness

They promise us at once in several ways to spur, so that we will conduct our conquering campaign as soon as possible. IN Snowbird They want to make the gameplay more dynamic, and the parties are shorter. If you think too long, you can finish to play out that chaos, gradually devouring fragments in the astral plane, will eat and our possessions.

In addition, the game provides a huge number of buildings (in the “creation” there were more than two hundred), many different types of troops and other “buns”, which can only be obtained by expansion. Landed on a fragment – discovered new technologies. Sing on the clouds and rest on the laurels we are unlikely to have time. The developers, however, promise to adapt the gameplay to different styles of the game. You can go to the fact that lovers of unhurried conquests will eventually find a suitable strategy for themselves.

In any case, now “Eador” It becomes entertainment not only for seasoned hardcores, but also – may it forgive us almost a abusive word – for “incidents”. Indeed, in the new version, the game can be preserved in the usual, not perverted way. Players who better like the time back, instead of the traditional preservation, the time ago, as in “Creation”, will not lose anything. Experiments with a spatio-temporal continuum will remain, but along with them it will be possible to choose more traditional “saves” in order to preserve not only progress, but also nerve cells.

What is definitely enough for every taste in the game is the endings. The authors threaten to give us twelve finals options. Smells of epic and depth. Already now “Eador. The Lords of the Worlds “ promises to be a multi -layer game in which it is curious to plunge.

Can be included in the troops of slugs or hydra, attach yellow balloons to the knight’s helmet. Do not try only to win a beauty contest, being a goblin.

When an indie project leaves the indie format zone, fans inevitably have fears: whether the result will become more mass-cultural? Whether it will not work worse than it was, whether a special charm will be lost inherent in the game precisely because its creator, not yet connected by various agreements and obligations, could create freely?

So far we cannot answer this question definitely in connection with “Eador”. But by all signs it seems that it should not become worse. On the contrary, it is very similar to the fact that the game will bury without losing its original essence.