Our opinion on Stormfall: Age of War and its gameplay
Stormfall: Age of War is a management/strategy MMO published and developed by Plarium. The player evolves in a medieval fantasy universe, where the goal is to conquer new territories, develop his domain and protect it against invaders. It is a free-to-play game available via web browser.
From the start of your adventure, there will be a lot to do. Managing your domain is not easy, especially since an attack can happen at any time. You will need three main resources to develop your castle. Iron is needed to build solid buildings or to arm your soldiers. Food is essential to feed your army. Finally, gold allows you to obtain more resources without using dedicated structures, such as farms or iron mines. There is a fourth resource, sapphires, which can be obtained by paying for them and which bring various advantages.
Without production buildings, resources will be difficult to obtain in Stormfall: Age of War. Each day, a few may appear randomly around the domain, but the quantities are negligible. Otherwise, it is possible to hunt boars for their meat, pick up abandoned weapons on a battlefield or kill goblins for gold.
These resources will allow you to improve your buildings. There are 7 categories with distinct roles, dedicated to the defense of the domain or to the yield. All upgrades are unlocked as you progress through a technology tree that includes “Lost Art”, blueprints of sorts.
The making of Stormfall: Age of War
Plarium’s software has rather neat isometric 3D graphics. Stormfall: Age of War is fluid, and above all, lively: you can see your units moving all over the domain, and the buildings running at full speed. You will have to navigate frequently between the world map and your own domain, everything is done quickly. The game’s interface is both simple and clear, but there is one drawback: you must play in full screen mode, as some menus are not visible in windowed mode. This is a pity when you know that you will sometimes have to wait a long time before being able to improve a building…
The tutorial is well done, supported by the pleasant voice of a soldier who explains the ropes. The game’s soundtrack is more than honest, with music that is pleasant to the ear without reaching the heights of originality.
As for the PvP mechanics, they are quite limited. You will quickly realize that the strategic aspect of the fights is only a façade. In reality, you never directly control your units, you simply choose which ones to send to the front. And most of the time, it is simply the one with the largest army that wins. Your involvement will be limited to the choice to attack or defend.
Finally, we should note the appreciable and logical possibility of haggling with your neighbours. This is just another way to get to know your neighbours through a friendly exchange.
Our conclusion on Stormfall: Age of War
Plarium can be happy with Stormfall: Age of War. A neat realization, a simple but functional resource system and an attractive universe allow it to get an honorable mention. But the gameplay is very basic as far as combat is concerned, and the risk-taking is almost non-existent. A good little game, without more.