Iron Harvest

Iron Harvest is set in an alternate history version of WWI Earth. The countries have slightly different names however, their history is mostly similar to real-world World War 1, with the main difference being Nikola Tesla’s role in the development of the world. It is implied that Nikola Tesla was the main driving force for most of the innovations in the world, along with inventing mechs and advanced power sources. The game is split into campaigns following each of the major players in the conflict between countries while also connecting all of them through an overarching narrative. 

The first campaign follows the Polania Republic rebellion against its Rusviet oppressors. This campaign follows Anna Kos on her journey and fight to help the people of the republic. These missions are often based around being an underdog fighting force, as the government of Polania has conceded to the Rusviet forces. The second campaign in Rusviet follows Janek Kos, the older brother of Anna Kos and Olga Morozova, who are caught up in a revolution as the Rusviet and Polana countries are working on a ceasefire. The third campaign is focused on Germany, aka Saxony, in the world of Iron Harvest and has the player controlling both the prince, who is next in line as ruler, and an old tactician who is helping during the fighting. Each campaign not only has unique narratives but also allows for experiencing the various countries’ different units and mechs that are exclusive to them.

The gameplay of Iron Harvest is fairly similar to that of other RTS games. There is often base construction to build up units and mechs, and the ability to claim resource points to gain more resources. The combat of the units is fairly well done, with the ability to seek cover and raise their efficiency as they level up. The mech units add unique twists to the standard combat, such as having one that operates as both a mortar system and a moving troop transport. The gameplay has good variety, with most campaigns focusing on different aspects. The Rusviet campaign, in particular, focuses more on stealth than the direct approach of the Saxony campaign. Stealth in Iron Harvest is a mixed bag, as it has some unique ideas, such as the ability to be perceived as invisible, but ultimately feels tedious. There is also a multiplayer mode for those who wish to fight against other players.

Iron Harvest’s graphics are decent, especially for an indie title. There are some areas where the graphics leave much to be desired, such as zooming in on the human models. While they have decent-looking models, they are not great. The mechs have good designs and models with clear and detailed texturing. The terrain is well crafted, along with building textures, and the destructability of each element is detailed and believable. There were some graphical issues, however, in the overall game. One of the biggest was the cutscenes, which were incredibly buggy. The review was done on a PC above the required specs and still had freezes and stuttering that made it seem as though the game was going to crash, but they worked themselves out.

The audio of the game was decent. The voice acting was well done and never felt overdone or lacking in direction. The game was played with the recommended regional voice acting, which was in the native language of the game. The soundtrack was lacking, however not terrible, it could be repetitive at times. The tracks all suit the campaigns and matched the music that is associated with the various cultures.

Overall, Iron Harvest was a decent RTS game. The gameplay was engaging, with the only real frustrations stemming from the stealth segments, which could be somewhat finicky. The graphics, while not spectacular, did their job and added depth to the game. Iron Harvest’s audio design was a mixed bag, but the strong voice acting made up for the lackluster soundtrack.

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This is My Land

I was drawn into playing This Land is My Land after seeing the trailer. The graphics looked great and the concept of a strategy/survival game based on Native Indians intrigued me. If you love a good survival, let us know in the comments your favorites.

From the off, in the main menu, the game gives you the option to start a resistance rather than start a new game. This gives you a feel of what’s to come as you fight for land in the frontier. As you progress and get started with the game you are offered up three game difficulties. Classic, giving an easier gameplay experience with less focus on survival and more on action and stealth. Immersive, “This is how This Land Is My Land is meant to be played!” exclaims the description. This is full of survival mechanics darker nights, hunger, warmth, and more. Finally, there is Custom, which allows you to tweak settings if you want to have some elements from each of the two difficulties. I chose Classic as admittingly I am really bad at survival games. I was relieved to see the game gave you the option to tone that side of it down slightly.

As you enter the game you are given the option to build up your character, giving them life so to speak. Interestingly, the stat buffs you receive here depend on the name you give your character and dialogue choices. I found this a random but fun idea as I hadn’t come across this before. You also get given options throughout this period to define how difficult the start is for you. I found this a striking change from normal character builders and entirely random, but maybe there’s some hidden game mechanic at work here.

As you start in the wilderness you are given small missions/quests to get you started such as harvesting flax and wood. You are also given multiplayer missions where you raid camps to rescue other players or take down settlers in retaliation. Ultimately, you are given the goal of expanding and forming alliances with other tribes dotted throughout the land. At first, I found it all too easy to lose track of the smaller objectives. This was due to other more enticing and harder missions being available from the start. Being a novice survivalist, I struggled and think it’s a game aimed at more veteran gamers of this genre.

Horse riding in the game was a bit janky at times. This may need improving for it to be rated higher among reviewers. When riding, the camera is often hard to focus on the direction you are riding in. This made those ever-dangerous obstacles even more of a threat. The horse also seems to have only two speeds. The horse can either trot along or go full sprint. I found myself, thanks to these two issues, running full speed into trees and rocks. This either meant getting injured or nothing at all as the collision mechanics seemed unreliable at times. The horses also seemed part mountain goats often capable of climbing steep rockfaces.

Venturing into the game I was impressed at the quality of the graphics. An effort has been made to resemble that of Red Dead Redemption 2, which it will no doubt get compared to. The foliage is deep, varies in colour, and is abundant. When the sunlight shines through the trees it can create a great photo-worthy spectacle.

The wildlife isn’t as abundant in this game as say Red Dead, but you do notice the odd deer which will wander across your path enticing you to hunt them. The sounds of the world around you make for a real immersion into the game. The rain plays a big part in this too, masking out any noise around. It will obscure the camera somewhat with droplets which I thought was clever.

There is no in-action musical score when entering battles, which meant the real tension was lost. Some may prefer it this way instead of the over-encompassing music scores however. The voice acting and sound effects are great and just listening to them in battle was immersive to help put you in the moment.

Not being a survival gamer, I lost interest quickly. For those who enjoy these kinds of games, there are plenty of objectives and goals to tackle.  I gave it a fair shot though. I felt that if I put more time into it, it may give me more content and entertainment. I may try and revisit for a cosy rainy day worth of gaming.

I had fun getting to grips with This Land is My Land. The spin on the western adventure game with Native Indians interested me and I wasn’t disappointed with the theme or the feel. There were certain areas I felt the game could have improved on to make it a fully enjoyable game. While playing, I felt that the game developers were aiming for a bigger game generally. I understand the developers were caught up in issues beyond their control when creating this game which may have hindered them somewhat.  For those who love survival games, I’d say it’s definitely worth having a go as there are many elements in the game you will enjoy.

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Legend of Khiimori

Most horse games are boring, and once you’ve played one, you’ve essentially seen them all. Whether you’re saving grandpa’s ranch, taming that one untameable horse, or winning that unwinnable competition, it usually boils down to the same repetitive gameplay loop. Buy or breed a horse, train that horse, care for that horse, win that competition, repeat. And this is where Khiimori breaks the mould. The game throws you into the Mongolian wilderness, where you take on the role of a horse courier. As a result, the core gameplay loop is going to consist of you traversing treacherous terrain to master challenging deliveries. And while fetch quests may not sound exciting on paper, Khiimori really delivers here. Based on my short time playing the game, I can tell you that Khiimori really immerses you in its world. While riding, you encounter challenging obstacles, gather forage, and aren’t bound by preset paths. So while that muddy patch down by the river may seem like a great shortcut at first, it can quickly turn into a draining detour without the right horse. 

I’ve been following the development of Khiimori for some time now. And rather early on, I began to have some doubts about the feasibility of the game’s concept. By design, the game relies on a vast, open world, which is a challenging feat to accomplish, especially without a massive team. While it’s fairly easy to construct enormous open worlds, making them feel alive quickly becomes challenging. Oftentimes, small studios fall into the trap of creating giant worlds that look great but feel cold to the touch from the start. But so far, it seems like Khiimori is successfully striking a delicate balance here. Throughout my time playing, no area felt the same, and the world design was not just interesting but felt organic and dynamic. And this is not just due to the game world’s design. It also comes down to the horse, which quickly becomes the glue that holds this entire game together. 

I know, I know. I said that The Legend of Khiimori wasn’t your typical horse game, and doesn’t really fit that description. However, that doesn’t mean the horses don’t play a central role in the game. And if you’ve ever watched a documentary about rural Mongolia, you know that it only makes sense. It’s not Khiimori that revolves around horses; it’s life in Mongolia at that time, and even into the present day.And the horses in this game are beautiful. And if you say otherwise, you’re objectively wrong. The Mongolian pony is iconic, and I love that they chose to give this tough, stumpy pony the recognition that it deserves. But the horse design is not even the game’s greatest strength. Khiimori manages to make its horses feel alive on the inside, not just beautiful on the outside. As soon as you dismount, your horse wanders off, and you’ll find it grazing in the nearest patch of grass. Horses wandering off on you isn’t a new mechanic by any means, but a horse wandering off into the direction of food? That one detail makes it much more meaningful. If your horse is unhappy with your chosen route, it will subtly let you know. And even the NPC horses populating the small pens throughout the village seem to have a mind of their own. When it comes to animations, the game excels in this area as well. In other games, I tend to gallop everywhere because trotting just feels… off. Yes, I am looking at you, Red Dead Redemption. But that’s not the case here. Some animations still need to be refined, but that’s to be expected at this stage. 

Khiimori is the kind of game that simply wouldn’t work without beautiful visuals. And luckily, the game can deliver on those. While riding, I found myself pausing to take in the beautiful landscape more than once. In general, the style suits the game well, which is always lovely to see. However, beautiful graphics come with one significant drawback: system requirements. And especially for a game like Khiimori, that can quickly become an issue since the game’s target audience isn’t likely to have expensive high-end gaming rigs at home. I was, however, assured that optimization is a priority for the developers, and there will even be a sort of potato mode for those struggling on their systems. 

If you’ve read this far, you may get the impression that The Legend of Khiimori is guaranteed to be the next big thing, rivaled and beaten by none. And don’t get me wrong, I see tons of potential in this game. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t things that I am a bit worried about. One of those things remains the world design. I have only played for 45 minutes, so it’s only natural that everything felt fresh and new to me. But will that still be true after 20 hours? The game currently stands at a crossroads. It can either turn its world into its biggest strength or make it its biggest weakness.Another significant factor in the game’s eventual success is its story. Throughout my short time playing, I was not able to experience much in terms of story and character design. And without a solid story, the fetch-quest style of the game could quickly start feeling empty and emotionless, which would be a damn shame because the setting of Khiimori holds so much potential. One often overlooked risk that many games fall victim to is feature overload. Khiimori has much to offer, which is great, until it becomes too much for the developers to handle. Many features are great, but only if they are refined and don’t feel like points on a checklist. I’d rather see fewer but solid features than many that end up feeling rushed and incomplete. 

Those of you who’ve read this far are likely interested in the game. And for good reason. Khiimori delivers on a great setting, has good ideas for an engaging story, and stands out among the crowd. From what I have seen so far, the game has the potential to deliver on close to all of its promises. I will certainly keep an eye on the future of Khiimori and update you as soon as I can obtain an early access version of the game. Right now, early access is scheduled to go live on November 4th. The game will be available on Steam, where you can wishlist it right now to stay up to date. review from Nextpit.com

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