It's finally time to talk about Age of Wonders: Planetfall. This game has been on my 'most anticipated' lists for god knows how long - time to see if it lives up to the hype! If you'd like some multiplayer action with this game, consider joining our discord where MP games are already being organized - discord.gg/6Tq3ut5. And remember, you can pick the game up here to support charity and the channel - www.humblebundle.com/store/age-of-wonders-planetfall?partner=PartyElite ! Cheers!
*Note* - one of my issues (about animation speeds) is addressed with double clicks and right clicks. It was a minor issue, but also turns out it wasn't an issue to begin with.
I believe the reason for the similar civic upgrades is due to multiplayer balance. This serie's multiplayer is with the full gameplay, not just the battles(as it is in TW games) and I am guessing having to come up with 6 individual and deep technology trees for civics proved too exhausting(and somewhat redundant). As for DLCs, based on the previous titles they usually provide a new faction, class and specialization(secret technology). Anyway, this title looks very cool.
AoW3 is worth checking out if only because it has the most unique fantasy human faction I’ve seen in a 4X; focusing them around aquatic shenanigans, priests, and cheap cavalry. Something I will say to newbies, AoW is less “Total War on a hex grid” and is instead “Turn-based Starcraft”. Any turn you didn’t fight somebody is a wasted turn and all your empire building is geared toward getting you into fights.
AoW3 is far superior than planetfall in everything except empire development and how flying units are handled You will never come across fantasy 4x whose units have the most creative abilities if not in AoW3 Planetfall unit abilities are rather similar between races, far inferior im this case compared to 3. Tactical and strategic spells in planetfall also feels slightly more generic than in 3 However, honestly from someone who plays AoW3 very extensively, like several years and several thousand hours of play time, planetfall is in my opinion actually a good game, it certainly far exceed my expectations.
Only problem with AoW3, is the inbalance between species, and classes. (Like the Magic limitation that cause the Sorcerer to not be able to make their armies in huge quantities. Or like how the Rogue, gets the strongest unit in the game, how Blight has been said by the developers to be the worst damage, yet refuse to buff the Goblins which rely mostly on Blight damage, or how Frost damage is basically the best damage in the game caused by that little to no one can resist frost damage and much, much, more.) I wish they would also go and make it so the Sorcerer and Druid's summons can be Recruited instead of just summoned.
I'm really not into fantasy settings though. And I will also say that while I appreciate the spin on things yes I do realize how entirely transparent Planetfall is about having a dwarven, necromancer, elf, imperial knight, etc faction in fact the only not really derivative faction on here is Syndicate with the bug creatures being I guess how scifi typically reinvents the green tide of orks/goblins. I do like how 40k at least tried to add some flavor beyond elves in space and goblins in space but really I always fucking hated that fantasy setting. It's a huge shame to me how much of fiction ultimately revolves around dwarves and elves. I think that is partly what made Starcraft such a great universe because it was so many layers of derivative from being derivative that origins became unrecognizable despite the fact the game itself is basically a toned down 40K.
@@feliks8388 You seem to not understand at all. Okay so lets speak about Mana, and how Mana upkeep was the Sorcerer's and Druid's main issue. Firstly, most of their actual combat units are Magical, meaning you have to Summon them. Which costs CP, which is not a big deal overall. But when you have a general lock on how much Mana and Mana income you can have, that means once you reach that simple income with max mana you can store, then you are out of units, and have to rely on the Race's basic units, which pale in comparison to that of any other class specific unit. The Druid gets a ranged unit, which is okay, but overall still will get one shot by a Dreadnaught's cannons. CP is literally not the problem, because a Sorcerer is not supposed to rely only on their spells, but if they only can have 1500 mana max, with summons that costs over 50 mana per turn, you won't have many armies with that. Where as a Dreadnaught can just pump out army after army, after army. Oh hint, a Dreadnaught can have 3 Cannons and 3 Engineers, and pretty much get to fire every turn. And if they can have over 50 of those armies without problems, because all they are limited by is Gold, as Resource that is not Limited. Oh yeah Succubi is annoying, but I never have too much of a problem with them. I do however have a problem with a unit that ignore walls, ignore damage, ignore magic, and ignore defenses on units, because roflmao they are designed as elite units. Which is equal to that of the Eldrich Horror, the Tree God, Juggernaut, and many more. But it is only Druid and Sorcerer that has literally limitations to their armies, a Warlord can pump out Max rank units, with specific uses every turn, sometimes multiple per turn. A Dreadnaught has range and huge Physical damage, with complementary skills that makes them work. The Bard has a lot of crowdcontrol to take control of the battlefield, with average to great damage output. Where the theocrat can make their alters of judgement which adds to themselves, so having 6 of them in one army, boosts themselves for fun. The Druid has summons and pretty decent spells, but Mana being limited causes you to have to focus on the gold units instead, which by base is not good. Sorcerer similar boat, have great spells, but limited on the mana again, which causes the problems. Specially with how Mana upkeep is generated. First like gold, it adds from your Gold and Mana generation/growth. Then the Upkeep comes, so if you have an income of 2500 mana per turn, doesn't matter, since if your Upkeep is of your Max Value of Mana you can store, you will have 0 Mana. This is barely noticable in Gold generation, since it goesn't have an limit to how much you can store.
@@DraconiusDragora no, your opinion is purely theories as in practice cp is the problem, you obviously haven't played that much or rather too very few, otherwise you should have known that sorcerer and druid can have many thousands max mana I never have any problems with mana and gold as sorcerer and druid as should everyone who actually main sorc and druid, both in single player and multi-player matches, that their units can utilize both mana and gold is actually an advantage, i always have many thousands of them both in stock by turn 100, and several thousands income of them per turn that i struggle to spend, yes it is in xl map with ug enabled, free for all max players which is 8 (me and 7 emperor AI, i left their race and class at random), every other settings are left at default. I don't rush either, even as sorcerer or druid, AI sending hundreds of T4 is never a problem for me, i don't beeline for their capital either after i defeat their leader, because at this setting and at v1. 8 the AI actually doesn't act suicidal with their leader. I don't do any exploit either. Note that druid and sorcerer have unique way to get more mana income compared to other classes , making them the classes with the highest mana income in the game If i can post my latest save game here, i definitely will do it if you really don't believe it For multi-player, sorc, druid along with classes who has method to convert (theocrat, necro) are the most overpowered
@@_arseniysmirnov Legends doesn't even have a combat system worth mentioning and only a handfull of units while the AoW series is all about tactical combat. If you are not into tactical combat then yes it's not your thing. Me I didn't like building units for 10 turns after reading 20 guides on how to perfectly build my empire and therefore didn't like Legends. Everybody to his own.
@@voldemortborbeli5839 huh, good point. But AoW tried to compete with 4x-y/civ-like games, and did it poorly. A decision I still don't quite understand. To the point I forgot the reason I liked the series in the first place :) Aye, combat's still there. Somewhere...
@@_arseniysmirnov I mean you are right ofc, but everybody competes with everybody I suppose. :) In the end it depends on your preferences. AoW certainly isn't great at economy but compared to AoW3 Planetfall is a huuuuge step and most people don't realize it. First off there wasn't even a society tree there only a couple of lazy economy upgrades. Second the main buff is on the military side again. The option to equip every single one of your units with a combination of about 100s mods is just amazing. Again, AoW isn't there to be played as a great empire build up, but in my opinion it rules on the tactical battle field with a depth that surpasses even xcom. Just my two cents. :)
A thorough review covering everything I wanted to know about. I'm also slightly disappointed about the lack of flavour regarding the society tech between races. It doesn't take much to implement and would aid immersion greatly(I'm all about the immersion). I think I'll be picking this puppy up, thanks for the great insight PE
Splendid work as always. That's what partying elite is about. As a little suggestion, maybe you want to throw in a word or two about how accessible these games are, as strategy games can have quite the steep learning curve. Like do you feel overwhelmed when you play a reviewed game? Does the game ease you in with easy to understand (and somewhat entertaining) tutorials, maybe having easier to play factions? Or are you sitting there, reading (written only) tutorials for two hours until your head hurts and you're none the wiser after the process?
Thank you! And that's an excellent point! I realize that I only mention the learning curve when it's challenging, and I don't mention it when it's smooth. Definitely something I should keep in mind for future reviews, because I totally agree with what you're saying. Fun fact - any time I make a note of a steep learning curve, people think I "just didn't bother to learn the game" it's hilarious. =D
I loved AoW3 at first,but then it fell flat,it lacked depth,every faction is just a reskin of the same,maps are fun at start but then it becomes grindy,even tho i was wining,the fun went right out if it and i quit half way.I feel this title has the same probles,just in a different package..
I'm not interested in sci-fi. But the writing and the lore plus the grounded military tactics and mechanics, particularly the vanguard faction too, have me gonna buy it.
unit move speed on the world map does matter when you play simultanious turns.. otherwise uisually you can speed up move speed for all units.. not the same fix i know, but it helps.. coming from a player who plays with fastest speed on everything tw warhammer :)
Honestly, I kinda expected an AOW3 re-skin, which would be fine by me. I am pleasantly surprised by most new mechanics, like two simultaneous tech trees, or (previously dreaded) sectors system. The music and sounds in general are the only disappointment so far, especially when you compare them to previous titles. Some sound samples seem disproportionately quiet (arc SMG) and lack certain...impact for me.
I bought it, I love it, I recommend it. The only downside: waifu police clearly 'woke' the female char design. I can't even make my leader look like Rep. Alexandra Ocasio, but I can certainly have a Margaret Thatcher look alike, so that's how they tackled my 'conservative' sensitivities... I guess. :(
You can skip move animations by double clicking an order. I'm kinda surprised you missed that, i saw many youtubers doing it in the previews 2 months ago :)
For the world map, there's also an option to skip movement animations altogether under the World UI sub-menu. Using it does mean that you might miss some movements of other factions, so you need to maintain a greater degree of situational awareness, but it can speed things up.
@@PartyElite Agreed. Cant wait to see what content you post up on AoW and to play some MP games on this! There is so much potential here for strategy and exciting tactical engagements, especially amongst live players.
Well written review and it doesn't hurt that you sound like Corey Feldman, I'll take Corey over the usual reviewers who seem to shout at people. Late to the party but you sold me on the game, thanks.
I never understood why if you get a different voice actor to record a sample. Why would you ever have them say the same line as another recording? Your going to all the trouble to get a dif voice actor and paying them for the lines so why repeat the same phrases ever?
Glad this game got reviewed by an actual Strategy game player. Some of the reviews seem like they are written by people who don't get what strategy games are about or who were punishing it for shortcomings all 4X strategy games have.
Thanks for the review, Party. I quite enjoyed AoW3 + it’s expansions, so this game has been on my radar for a while. I’ll definitely be watching your Let’s Play if you decide to do one.
Yep edited my pinned comment to correct my mistake! I had a feeling I was just missing it, but after trying all my usual guesses, thought it might not be in. My bad!
Doubleclicking speeds up movement on the strategic map. In TC you can speed up the combat animations through a menu setting. But also with the ffw button.
Why is it not on Switch? I have much deeper games on my PC that would outcompete this genera on pure entertainment value (personaly). And while I love RTS's and have for decades, I want this style when on the go. This would be amazing on switch!
awesome review, but i have a 2 question does your hero level up? Becuase i couldn't tell if they do or not, and can they be unstoppable mass engine of death like AOW 1? Would apperciate a responise thanks for the review.
You can speed up animations to the point of almost skipping them if you right click with your mouse during the animation (basically double right click gets the job done)
You could left click during the animations in the older games to speed them up substantially. That would be slightly annoying to not have that feature anymore.
Are you sure there's no option to speed up the unit movement somewhere in Options/Settings? I haven't played Planetfall, but I remember increasing unit movement speed in all 4 previous AoW games. :/ Still very informative, tho. Thanks for the vid.
There is! I missed it because nothing suggested it to me, and then I recieved comments in this video from series veterans. Double right clicking makes for sped up animations
Okay I love AoW3 but this is almost *too* similar, like its a dlc reskin or something. After all these years, I want something fresh, I want new mechanics to figure out, I want familiarity but balanced with innovation. From what I’ve seen, however... there just doesn’t seem to be much of anything new to learn for AoW players, and considering I prefer the fantasy aesthetic anyways, it’s a darn shame, cus for a long time this seemed like such an easy buy for me, but now I’m gonna sit out and observe for the foreseeable future.
Most of the basics are the same (it IS an AoW game after all), but just watching PE's video you can see a lot of extra mechanics and bits of content already, both on the overworld and combat layers. I would say, where Shadow Magic was AoW 2.5, Planetfall actually feels more like AoW 3.8 with a sci-fi theme.
Didn't get the usual "...of course this does not effect my impressions of the game, which should soon become apparent" at the start, so I'm thinking you liked it.
Hah I just realized that whenever I say that, I just get people saying that it's somehow impossible. This time it was just implied. (Also yes I loved it)
Interesting that you like the UI. Personally, it's one of my least favorite aspects of the game. There's a lot of open, blank, wasted space where there could be information displayed instead of making you cycle through a thousand different russian-nesting-doll menus and tabs to find what you need.
Interesting! Any specific examples? I find that many strategy games either have visually unappealing UI or overly dense UI. I'm a fan of some negative space, personally. Room to breathe and compartmentalize information.
I played a bit of Age of Wonders III and my problem with the game was... I just couldn't get interested. It works fine and all, but it never felt like a gripping experience. Based on that - and the fact this game doesn't seem to try too much to change the formula - that'll be a pass for me.
Playing the devil's advocate a bit: the overlaps between races is a staple of the series; this allows all factions use conquered cities in the same capacity (although AoW3 added some variation in it's two DLCs). Considering, that one could speed up animations in the previous games it would have been quite an oversight on the developer's part to not include them in this game ;) Anyway: see you soon in the let's plays, and multiplayer lobbies :)
Having played the series back to the original, you're correct. And yet I don't think PE is wrong in critiquing it either. Even if they just name changed them and left the mechanics the same it would help immersion.
Super excited about this game ever since it first showed up in one of your “future strategy games” videos. I’m glad you really enjoyed it because we tend to have similar feelings towards games I’ve found. Hopefully we will see some content related to this game but I understand these games are a little difficult to make into exciting videos. Thanks for the review!
It's kind of crazy you've never played Age of Wonders 3 actually, knowing how you love strategic games. It's one of the best, if not the best 4X ever made.
@@lightconstruct Not anymore than any other similar strategy/4x-ish kind of game. And Party Elite does play a lot of Total war, which doesn't exactly shine in the AI department either so it shouldn't be that big of a deal.
Important notice - when u make autocombat there is REALY happens combat where both sides are controlled by AI, not just some "calculations". You can even watch this combat by pressing the "play" button at battle result screen. Yea, and u can press RMB to skip curren animation (at least at AoW3).
@@PartyElite Endless legend is great! Its a bit less combat focused than the AoW games and has some of the most uniques factions I have ever seen in a fantasy game
@@FlySC19 The play styles are so different. For example: the Roving Clans, who are traders, cannot declare war. I also love that all "Endless"-games are connected and share the lore. So I can recommend Endless Space and Endless Space 2 too. Dungeons of the Endless is great too, but it's not a 4x-game.
I love Endless Space 1 and 2 but Endless Legends just drives me nuts with some of the weird decisions that they made about how combat works. I've tried to play it three or four times and just given up. Not saying its a bad game, just that it drove me away.
As far as memory serves, HoMM didn't have cover systems, overwatch, flanking, or other such mechanics that are a part of what's considered "XCOM style". Correct me if I'm wrong, though, I haven't played those games in a while!
@@PartyElite Of course is more involved and they added a simply cover system but the influences here are obviously HOMM and Alpha Centauri. I believe is wrong to say, this game is an Xcom style or an Xcom clone or whatever because they simple added an overwatch feature. Mechanics like those you've mentioned existed way before Firaxi's Xcom in many other games in the past.
"..before i dive in i like to thank the dev..." yep, did watch the vid but i bet you love all of the game without any neagtives. at least you only waste 14sec of my life
@@sabbirraiyan3396 bah this bait ..you got me 3 min from 24 minutes, "some minor issues.." - "easy patchable" . what about the performance problem and the absolut katastrophic efffects/animations ? other reviewer showed? and here is the funny part this game seems something for me ,even beside that. i was just trying to inform myself before i buy it. youtube send me here, after 14 sec i knew whats up and i was right. and i wanted to let him know i know whats up, so said something.
It's finally time to talk about Age of Wonders: Planetfall. This game has been on my 'most anticipated' lists for god knows how long - time to see if it lives up to the hype! If you'd like some multiplayer action with this game, consider joining our discord where MP games are already being organized - discord.gg/6Tq3ut5. And remember, you can pick the game up here to support charity and the channel - www.humblebundle.com/store/age-of-wonders-planetfall?partner=PartyElite ! Cheers!
*Note* - one of my issues (about animation speeds) is addressed with double clicks and right clicks. It was a minor issue, but also turns out it wasn't an issue to begin with.
They could make a damn near perfect 40K game with this empire/Xcom formula.
Agreed!
Yes please
Don't tease my fragile heart! this would be a dream come true
GET THE MOD COMMUNITY ON IT!!!
They did (similar). Warhammer 40K Gladius. Check it out.
I believe the reason for the similar civic upgrades is due to multiplayer balance. This serie's multiplayer is with the full gameplay, not just the battles(as it is in TW games) and I am guessing having to come up with 6 individual and deep technology trees for civics proved too exhausting(and somewhat redundant).
As for DLCs, based on the previous titles they usually provide a new faction, class and specialization(secret technology).
Anyway, this title looks very cool.
EXCELLENT review. Thorough, clear, and concise (considering the subject matter). Thanks!
Third!
Edit: Wow, I've never gotten a heart before, thanks PE!
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You should definitely try AOW3 - it's got just about everything you liked about this game but in a fantasy setting.
I do love me some fantasy!
And AoW II: Shadow Magic is even better!
AoW3 is worth checking out if only because it has the most unique fantasy human faction I’ve seen in a 4X; focusing them around aquatic shenanigans, priests, and cheap cavalry.
Something I will say to newbies, AoW is less “Total War on a hex grid” and is instead “Turn-based Starcraft”. Any turn you didn’t fight somebody is a wasted turn and all your empire building is geared toward getting you into fights.
Is this game timed like Xcom 2? Do I have space to play and build or am I forced to fight or do stuff I don’t want to do?
AoW3 is far superior than planetfall in everything except empire development and how flying units are handled
You will never come across fantasy 4x whose units have the most creative abilities if not in AoW3
Planetfall unit abilities are rather similar between races, far inferior im this case compared to 3.
Tactical and strategic spells in planetfall also feels slightly more generic than in 3
However, honestly from someone who plays AoW3 very extensively, like several years and several thousand hours of play time, planetfall is in my opinion actually a good game, it certainly far exceed my expectations.
Only problem with AoW3, is the inbalance between species, and classes. (Like the Magic limitation that cause the Sorcerer to not be able to make their armies in huge quantities. Or like how the Rogue, gets the strongest unit in the game, how Blight has been said by the developers to be the worst damage, yet refuse to buff the Goblins which rely mostly on Blight damage, or how Frost damage is basically the best damage in the game caused by that little to no one can resist frost damage and much, much, more.)
I wish they would also go and make it so the Sorcerer and Druid's summons can be Recruited instead of just summoned.
I'm really not into fantasy settings though. And I will also say that while I appreciate the spin on things yes I do realize how entirely transparent Planetfall is about having a dwarven, necromancer, elf, imperial knight, etc faction in fact the only not really derivative faction on here is Syndicate with the bug creatures being I guess how scifi typically reinvents the green tide of orks/goblins. I do like how 40k at least tried to add some flavor beyond elves in space and goblins in space but really I always fucking hated that fantasy setting. It's a huge shame to me how much of fiction ultimately revolves around dwarves and elves.
I think that is partly what made Starcraft such a great universe because it was so many layers of derivative from being derivative that origins became unrecognizable despite the fact the game itself is basically a toned down 40K.
@@feliks8388 You seem to not understand at all.
Okay so lets speak about Mana, and how Mana upkeep was the Sorcerer's and Druid's main issue.
Firstly, most of their actual combat units are Magical, meaning you have to Summon them. Which costs CP, which is not a big deal overall.
But when you have a general lock on how much Mana and Mana income you can have, that means once you reach that simple income with max mana you can store, then you are out of units, and have to rely on the Race's basic units, which pale in comparison to that of any other class specific unit.
The Druid gets a ranged unit, which is okay, but overall still will get one shot by a Dreadnaught's cannons.
CP is literally not the problem, because a Sorcerer is not supposed to rely only on their spells, but if they only can have 1500 mana max, with summons that costs over 50 mana per turn, you won't have many armies with that. Where as a Dreadnaught can just pump out army after army, after army. Oh hint, a Dreadnaught can have 3 Cannons and 3 Engineers, and pretty much get to fire every turn. And if they can have over 50 of those armies without problems, because all they are limited by is Gold, as Resource that is not Limited.
Oh yeah Succubi is annoying, but I never have too much of a problem with them. I do however have a problem with a unit that ignore walls, ignore damage, ignore magic, and ignore defenses on units, because roflmao they are designed as elite units. Which is equal to that of the Eldrich Horror, the Tree God, Juggernaut, and many more.
But it is only Druid and Sorcerer that has literally limitations to their armies, a Warlord can pump out Max rank units, with specific uses every turn, sometimes multiple per turn. A Dreadnaught has range and huge Physical damage, with complementary skills that makes them work. The Bard has a lot of crowdcontrol to take control of the battlefield, with average to great damage output. Where the theocrat can make their alters of judgement which adds to themselves, so having 6 of them in one army, boosts themselves for fun. The Druid has summons and pretty decent spells, but Mana being limited causes you to have to focus on the gold units instead, which by base is not good. Sorcerer similar boat, have great spells, but limited on the mana again, which causes the problems. Specially with how Mana upkeep is generated.
First like gold, it adds from your Gold and Mana generation/growth. Then the Upkeep comes, so if you have an income of 2500 mana per turn, doesn't matter, since if your Upkeep is of your Max Value of Mana you can store, you will have 0 Mana. This is barely noticable in Gold generation, since it goesn't have an limit to how much you can store.
@@DraconiusDragora no, your opinion is purely theories as in practice cp is the problem, you obviously haven't played that much or rather too very few, otherwise you should have known that sorcerer and druid can have many thousands max mana
I never have any problems with mana and gold as sorcerer and druid as should everyone who actually main sorc and druid, both in single player and multi-player matches, that their units can utilize both mana and gold is actually an advantage, i always have many thousands of them both in stock by turn 100, and several thousands income of them per turn that i struggle to spend, yes it is in xl map with ug enabled, free for all max players which is 8 (me and 7 emperor AI, i left their race and class at random), every other settings are left at default. I don't rush either, even as sorcerer or druid, AI sending hundreds of T4 is never a problem for me, i don't beeline for their capital either after i defeat their leader, because at this setting and at v1. 8 the AI actually doesn't act suicidal with their leader. I don't do any exploit either.
Note that druid and sorcerer have unique way to get more mana income compared to other classes , making them the classes with the highest mana income in the game
If i can post my latest save game here, i definitely will do it if you really don't believe it
For multi-player, sorc, druid along with classes who has method to convert (theocrat, necro) are the most overpowered
You can speed the movement animations up by double-clicking, just a heads up.
yeah, same as Age of Wonders 3, just saw this comment after posting...
Wow each and everyone of us? That positive reinforcement is what a great general is about!
Each and every one!
If you close your eyes and just listen, PE basically just reviewed AoW 3.
@@_arseniysmirnov you're wrong. Not to mention the AoW series was doing this over a decade ago. So if one is copying, you've got the wrong one.
@@_arseniysmirnov Legends doesn't even have a combat system worth mentioning and only a handfull of units while the AoW series is all about tactical combat.
If you are not into tactical combat then yes it's not your thing. Me I didn't like building units for 10 turns after reading 20 guides on how to perfectly build my empire and therefore didn't like Legends.
Everybody to his own.
@@voldemortborbeli5839 huh, good point. But AoW tried to compete with 4x-y/civ-like games, and did it poorly. A decision I still don't quite understand. To the point I forgot the reason I liked the series in the first place :) Aye, combat's still there. Somewhere...
@@_arseniysmirnov I mean you are right ofc, but everybody competes with everybody I suppose. :)
In the end it depends on your preferences. AoW certainly isn't great at economy but compared to AoW3 Planetfall is a huuuuge step and most people don't realize it.
First off there wasn't even a society tree there only a couple of lazy economy upgrades.
Second the main buff is on the military side again. The option to equip every single one of your units with a combination of about 100s mods is just amazing.
Again, AoW isn't there to be played as a great empire build up, but in my opinion it rules on the tactical battle field with a depth that surpasses even xcom.
Just my two cents. :)
A thorough review covering everything I wanted to know about. I'm also slightly disappointed about the lack of flavour regarding the society tech between races. It doesn't take much to implement and would aid immersion greatly(I'm all about the immersion). I think I'll be picking this puppy up, thanks for the great insight PE
Let's play required!
Oh yeah there's definitely one happening. It'll start tonight, I think!
@@PartyElite Great, I will have smth to watch on my vacation without my comp :)
Is it like civilization beyond earth but with heroes of might and magic combat?
Splendid work as always. That's what partying elite is about.
As a little suggestion, maybe you want to throw in a word or two about how accessible these games are, as strategy games can have quite the steep learning curve. Like do you feel overwhelmed when you play a reviewed game? Does the game ease you in with easy to understand (and somewhat entertaining) tutorials, maybe having easier to play factions? Or are you sitting there, reading (written only) tutorials for two hours until your head hurts and you're none the wiser after the process?
Thank you! And that's an excellent point! I realize that I only mention the learning curve when it's challenging, and I don't mention it when it's smooth. Definitely something I should keep in mind for future reviews, because I totally agree with what you're saying.
Fun fact - any time I make a note of a steep learning curve, people think I "just didn't bother to learn the game" it's hilarious. =D
Great point!
@@PartyElite These are only ppl who don't know what being a great general is about anyway!
double clicking should skip the animation when moving.
It does
I loved AoW3 at first,but then it fell flat,it lacked depth,every faction is just a reskin of the same,maps are fun at start but then it becomes grindy,even tho i was wining,the fun went right out if it and i quit half way.I feel this title has the same probles,just in a different package..
I'm not interested in sci-fi. But the writing and the lore plus the grounded military tactics and mechanics, particularly the vanguard faction too, have me gonna buy it.
if you played age of wonders 3 its 90% the same deal.
unit move speed on the world map does matter when you play simultanious turns.. otherwise uisually you can speed up move speed for all units.. not the same fix i know, but it helps.. coming from a player who plays with fastest speed on everything tw warhammer :)
Honestly, I kinda expected an AOW3 re-skin, which would be fine by me. I am pleasantly surprised by most new mechanics, like two simultaneous tech trees, or (previously dreaded) sectors system. The music and sounds in general are the only disappointment so far, especially when you compare them to previous titles. Some sound samples seem disproportionately quiet (arc SMG) and lack certain...impact for me.
You know Party has a good opinion when he doesn't make a disclosure about how his opinion will be pretty clear about the game.
I bought it, I love it, I recommend it. The only downside: waifu police clearly 'woke' the female char design. I can't even make my leader look like Rep. Alexandra Ocasio, but I can certainly have a Margaret Thatcher look alike, so that's how they tackled my 'conservative' sensitivities... I guess. :(
Its basically a reskin of the older games
You can skip move animations by double clicking an order. I'm kinda surprised you missed that, i saw many youtubers doing it in the previews 2 months ago :)
Goddamn I guess I did! I did all the staples I'm used to - hit spacebar, hit enter, hit r, hit escape... now I know!
It's ok, just thought i'd point it out. The review was great, thanks :)
For the world map, there's also an option to skip movement animations altogether under the World UI sub-menu. Using it does mean that you might miss some movements of other factions, so you need to maintain a greater degree of situational awareness, but it can speed things up.
In a battle you can right-click to speed up animations. Discovered that by accident. Great review btw! - PrimusPilus
Gah! Such things should not be left to accident =D.
Thanks!
@@PartyElite Agreed. Cant wait to see what content you post up on AoW and to play some MP games on this! There is so much potential here for strategy and exciting tactical engagements, especially amongst live players.
Well written review and it doesn't hurt that you sound like Corey Feldman, I'll take Corey over the usual reviewers who seem to shout at people. Late to the party but you sold me on the game, thanks.
Double right click on tactical or strategic map makes the unit move fast - very fast
I never understood why if you get a different voice actor to record a sample. Why would you ever have them say the same line as another recording? Your going to all the trouble to get a dif voice actor and paying them for the lines so why repeat the same phrases ever?
Double right-click makes you move instantly.
I'm here for the puns, the games are secondary.
Glad this game got reviewed by an actual Strategy game player. Some of the reviews seem like they are written by people who don't get what strategy games are about or who were punishing it for shortcomings all 4X strategy games have.
Yeah it's always bothered me to see reviews from people who either don't know or care for a specific genre. Especially the latter
Agree. Often you also see reviews about games which are not mainly mainstream, and it gets criticized for it not beeing more like other games.
Thanks for the review, Party. I quite enjoyed AoW3 + it’s expansions, so this game has been on my radar for a while. I’ll definitely be watching your Let’s Play if you decide to do one.
You can right-click after a move to have it instantly move.
Double clicking does helps with killing the animation.
The woke didn’t go ape at the term “colonizer” being used in a game?
btw it's 50 dollar on steam, but only 50 euro on gog. Steam is bullshit.
and party is wrong on that there is a way to speed up animations, that option existed in age of wonders 3 and definitely exists in planetfall.
Yep edited my pinned comment to correct my mistake! I had a feeling I was just missing it, but after trying all my usual guesses, thought it might not be in. My bad!
Doubleclicking speeds up movement on the strategic map. In TC you can speed up the combat animations through a menu setting. But also with the ffw button.
Ah ok, somebody else pointed this out already. :) Very good review BTW!
This is a very well written review. Hoping there will be a playthrough of this on your channel!
Any suggestions for game like age of empires for ps4?
If you like this one than def get the AOW3 which is superior to this one.Also the new expansion usually make this game lot better
Why is it not on Switch?
I have much deeper games on my PC that would outcompete this genera on pure entertainment value (personaly). And while I love RTS's and have for decades, I want this style when on the go. This would be amazing on switch!
awesome review, but i have a 2 question does your hero level up? Becuase i couldn't tell if they do or not, and can they be unstoppable mass engine of death like AOW 1? Would apperciate a responise thanks for the review.
An Orc race is missing. Then they would have covered all 40k races :)
Lmao I thought the same thing. DLC!
@@PartyElite It´s published by Paradox so DLC are incoming as we speak I guess.
You can speed up animations to the point of almost skipping them if you right click with your mouse during the animation (basically double right click gets the job done)
i would like to say that you can double click (this also works in age of wonders 3 dont know about the rest) and it hyper speeds the unit movement
in Age of Wonders 3, you could double click for movement or attack and it would occur much faster...
You could left click during the animations in the older games to speed them up substantially. That would be slightly annoying to not have that feature anymore.
my only major issue with this game is that unit preservation in nigh impossible without a massive numbers advantage
def play AoW 3
thx was waiting for that as I have no clue if I should by or not, but I trust you so I really needed your review. Thx sir!
Are you sure there's no option to speed up the unit movement somewhere in Options/Settings? I haven't played Planetfall, but I remember increasing unit movement speed in all 4 previous AoW games. :/ Still very informative, tho. Thanks for the vid.
There is! I missed it because nothing suggested it to me, and then I recieved comments in this video from series veterans. Double right clicking makes for sped up animations
First ever AoW for me...fucking love it lmao
Okay I love AoW3 but this is almost *too* similar, like its a dlc reskin or something. After all these years, I want something fresh, I want new mechanics to figure out, I want familiarity but balanced with innovation. From what I’ve seen, however... there just doesn’t seem to be much of anything new to learn for AoW players, and considering I prefer the fantasy aesthetic anyways, it’s a darn shame, cus for a long time this seemed like such an easy buy for me, but now I’m gonna sit out and observe for the foreseeable future.
Most of the basics are the same (it IS an AoW game after all), but just watching PE's video you can see a lot of extra mechanics and bits of content already, both on the overworld and combat layers. I would say, where Shadow Magic was AoW 2.5, Planetfall actually feels more like AoW 3.8 with a sci-fi theme.
Didn't get the usual "...of course this does not effect my impressions of the game, which should soon become apparent" at the start, so I'm thinking you liked it.
Hah I just realized that whenever I say that, I just get people saying that it's somehow impossible. This time it was just implied.
(Also yes I loved it)
Interesting that you like the UI. Personally, it's one of my least favorite aspects of the game. There's a lot of open, blank, wasted space where there could be information displayed instead of making you cycle through a thousand different russian-nesting-doll menus and tabs to find what you need.
Interesting! Any specific examples? I find that many strategy games either have visually unappealing UI or overly dense UI. I'm a fan of some negative space, personally. Room to breathe and compartmentalize information.
I don't want to watch a tutorial.. I want to know what you think of it.
I played a bit of Age of Wonders III and my problem with the game was... I just couldn't get interested. It works fine and all, but it never felt like a gripping experience. Based on that - and the fact this game doesn't seem to try too much to change the formula - that'll be a pass for me.
Playing the devil's advocate a bit: the overlaps between races is a staple of the series; this allows all factions use conquered cities in the same capacity (although AoW3 added some variation in it's two DLCs).
Considering, that one could speed up animations in the previous games it would have been quite an oversight on the developer's part to not include them in this game ;)
Anyway: see you soon in the let's plays, and multiplayer lobbies :)
Having played the series back to the original, you're correct. And yet I don't think PE is wrong in critiquing it either. Even if they just name changed them and left the mechanics the same it would help immersion.
You should try Age of Wonders III, and recruit some Dire Penguins.
Super excited about this game ever since it first showed up in one of your “future strategy games” videos. I’m glad you really enjoyed it because we tend to have similar feelings towards games I’ve found. Hopefully we will see some content related to this game but I understand these games are a little difficult to make into exciting videos. Thanks for the review!
This is the best video for Planetfall BY FAR! Great work as always!
Very fun.i suck and cant win but very fun
Great review, informative and comprehensive. Liked and subbed, thanks.
Very Interesting. I'm definitely going to try this game.
Thanks my friend. Looks like a purchase for me
Great review you are becoming one of my favorite TH-camrs. Keep up the good work and stay honest.
This is nice, that KS for the review. I had been keeping an eye on this game.
It's kind of crazy you've never played Age of Wonders 3 actually, knowing how you love strategic games. It's one of the best, if not the best 4X ever made.
Multiplayer is impractical for most players and the AI isn't good enough to keep it interesting.
AoW3 AI is so dull...
@@lightconstruct Not anymore than any other similar strategy/4x-ish kind of game. And Party Elite does play a lot of Total war, which doesn't exactly shine in the AI department either so it shouldn't be that big of a deal.
Is the AI on the same lame level as in AoW3?
great review thanks, i will get this game for sure looks fun
In AoW3 you can double right-click to skip battle animation.
In Planetfall too
The animations and sound needs some work.
Pretty accurate. I really liked the critique with the uniqueness on the campaign map mentioned
@maciejl20 I know what you mean, but just because someone else does it badly as well, doesn't mean that you should do it badly as well.
I love next turn syndrome
Yes, get AOW3 and play it
Very much appreciated PE - thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Always happy to!
Important notice - when u make autocombat there is REALY happens combat where both sides are controlled by AI, not just some "calculations". You can even watch this combat by pressing the "play" button at battle result screen.
Yea, and u can press RMB to skip curren animation (at least at AoW3).
Outstanding review!!
awesome game
Easier than Stellaris?
I would say yes - Stellaris has fare more moving parts!
This games looks like Endless Legend
Pixelfolie Age of wonders predate endless space and endless legends
You might like Endless Legend.
I've been told! I should really check it out =D
@@PartyElite Endless legend is great! Its a bit less combat focused than the AoW games and has some of the most uniques factions I have ever seen in a fantasy game
@@FlySC19 The play styles are so different. For example: the Roving Clans, who are traders, cannot declare war.
I also love that all "Endless"-games are connected and share the lore. So I can recommend Endless Space and Endless Space 2 too. Dungeons of the Endless is great too, but it's not a 4x-game.
I love Endless Space 1 and 2 but Endless Legends just drives me nuts with some of the weird decisions that they made about how combat works. I've tried to play it three or four times and just given up. Not saying its a bad game, just that it drove me away.
Heroes of M&M formula not Xcom...Millennials, everything turned based is Xcom to them...
As far as memory serves, HoMM didn't have cover systems, overwatch, flanking, or other such mechanics that are a part of what's considered "XCOM style". Correct me if I'm wrong, though, I haven't played those games in a while!
@@PartyElite You're right, beside even the first AoW used a much more involved combat system than HOMM.
@@PartyElite Of course is more involved and they added a simply cover system but the influences here are obviously HOMM and Alpha Centauri. I believe is wrong to say, this game is an Xcom style or an Xcom clone or whatever because they simple added an overwatch feature. Mechanics like those you've mentioned existed way before Firaxi's Xcom in many other games in the past.
Remember Master of Magic? That's the inspiration for AoW in the first place.
looks pretty good
It's great fun!
@@PartyElite downloading currently ..
Turn based, yuck!
to long, polite and detailed. Comes off more as a infomercial than a review
"..before i dive in i like to thank the dev..." yep, did watch the vid but i bet you love all of the game without any neagtives. at least you only waste 14sec of my life
No , he did talk about some issues . Just watch the video .
Watch from 17:25 . He talks about the issues there .
@@sabbirraiyan3396 bah this bait ..you got me
3 min from 24 minutes, "some minor issues.." - "easy patchable" . what about the performance problem and the absolut katastrophic efffects/animations ? other reviewer showed?
and here is the funny part this game seems something for me ,even beside that. i was just trying to inform myself before i buy it. youtube send me here, after 14 sec i knew whats up and i was right. and i wanted to let him know i know whats up, so said something.
@@maikbaumann1250 ok , fair enough .
Gushing masked as a review, no ty.
So he should lie if he likes it?
i do not support charities, dislike.