Goncalo Tordo (Tech-Gaming) has reviewed Legends of Eisenwald. A snippet:
More information.At times, cosmetic themes and backdrops become so ingrained in a genre that even small variations are enough to set new entries apart from competitors. High-fantasy is perhaps the most common example, being often associated with RPGs and strategy games with integrated role-playing mechanics. In this regard, Legends of Eisenwald follows the age-old mantra that less is more. While its competitors provide increasingly elaborate spells, fantastical army units and unit designs, Legends of Eisenwald is content with stepping back and providing a visually grounded approach. Ironically, this makes it arguably more original than its peers.
This isn’t to say Legends of Eisenwald aims for realism, quite the contrary as it instead provides a low-fantasy world for players to explore. Magic exists but it’s based around antiquated superstition and how it would have influenced the world had it been real. Gamers will not face off against elves, orcs or lizardmen, but might instead meet a witch apt in sorcery or seek a priests offering divine protection. These themes are tied via a believable, medieval world closely mirroring Central and Eastern European feudal societies.
Unlike many of its contemporaries, Legends of Eisenwald is an RPG first and a strategy game second. Focus is placed solely on the main player character with no additional armies or heroes to tab into. Moreover, there are no randomly generated maps to engage in as you would expect to find in titles like Age of Wonders 3. Rather, players are given a campaign and two additional scenarios to choose from and must follow their stories to completion. Granted, players are often given dialog prompts to choose from, but they provide little variation. Worse still, the main plotline is often static, offering few if any meaningful branching paths. […]