Didn’t see a thread here, and I recall some love of the Commandos games. This is basically those set in Feudal Japan. Similar view, though you can rotate the camera now, and gameplay. You control a squad of characters with unique abilities and must stealth your way through the map completing objectives. Demo is up on Steam now.
Very cool. Are the devs related to the commando devs, or do they mention commandos as an inspiration?
Edit: Shadow mode looks really well done.
It looks fantastic, but Daedalic? I’ll definitely wait for reviews.
They are just the publisher. Check out the demo on Steam.
Mimimi is a young, Munich-based studio that is in no way directly related to Pyro. They were always were open about how Commandos was the inspiration for the game.
Also, Kalypso Media will publish the console versions of the game.
I played the demo, and it leaves a very strong first impression.
Like it has been said, it feels like Commandos, with the QOL improvements of the new school of stealth games.
The setting isn’t too irritating either, with decent voice acting and not that many concession to the Harikiri prejudices toward feodal Japan (It is not that hard to actually pick names that are Japanese - psst, Slitherine). The first level got a lot of atmosphere, it is a very strong introduction.
I also liked their idea of houses being merely shortcuts for ninjas - saves on production & pathfinding tediousness, and made me chuckle, all at once!
I had some issues with the controls and the so-called Shadow mode: it is the fancy name for a planning mode, though for some reason you seem to be able to give a single order/character only. It was a bit of a tedium when I wanted someone to rush and not sneak, as the game defaulted to that all the time. Even just two orders queued (like “stand up, then do this”) would really deepen the possibilities, I think. The workaround was just to set up some orders, then trigger them and do the rest manually.
Anyway, I really enjoyed my hour with it.
They even have an option for Japanese voices.
Yeah, it took me a little to figure that out, and it would be more useful to be able to stack commands, but I guess they want to restrict it to one action so you are only using it for critical maneuvers.
Good point, thanks.
Anybody else have trouble getting the demo? I keep hitting the “Download PC Demo” button, but nothing happens.
EDIT: Never mind. Glitch on my end.
RPS glowing review
Skimmed the article, caught the word “foe-festooned” and figured it must be Tim Stone.
So, did anyone pick this up? Interested in hearing impressions of this one.
Only $28.79 on GMG,downloading now!
Cool, look forward to hearing your impressions, I’m not likely to pull the trigger on it till it drops a bit in price, stealth isn’t my thing, but there’s enough about this that intrigues me that I’m willing to dive in when it’s like half off if the hive mind here gives it a thumbs up.
Did you try the demo, it’s pretty good.
I’ll grab it tonight. Though I’ve been kind of sucked into Let it Die so may not really get into it for a bit.
There’s a very high chance I’ll buy this in the next few days. I loved Commandos back in the day.
Not yet, but good point, I’ll have to grab it and take a closer look.
I’ve just played for a little over two hours straight and finished the first two missions. It’s excellent. The different characters are great, each with their own unique abilities (e.g. the warrior can deal with multiple enemies at a time, but can’t easily climb on rooftops, while the ninja is more nimble, but also more fragile). I like the little touches that sets each character apart, even if they stick to archetypes. It just works.
You can hide in bushes, get rid of bodies (in bushes, buildings, or water), create “accidents” (which won’t cause any alarms), and so forth. It brings back fond memories of earlier real-time stealth tactics games, while still being its own thing. The presentation of the game is also great, and the controls are smooth. It even supports a gamepad, if you’re so inclined (though I prefer the precision of mouse and keyboard in a game like this). There are multiple “badges” (i.e. challenges) you can try to attain in every mission, so there’s ample reason to play again and again.
I cannot recommend this enough. In a year with lots of great releases, this might well be the high point for me. If you’re still in doubt: download and play the demo. It gives you the first two missions to play.
Thanks for dropping by and providing first impressions, definitely now on my wish-list, I’ll still probably wait till it goes 50% off as I’ve gotten the AOW3 bug due recent patch release that sucked me back in hard, I’ve got “just one more turn” bad right now, over the last week I’ve played through 2 full campaigns on large maps with underground turned on and finished them and I’m in the midst of my 3rd, can’t stop playing…