Kingdom (2015)

 PC
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 90 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 54 out of 90
  2. Mixed: 30 out of 90
  3. Negative: 6 out of 90

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  1. rd1349
    Dec 2, 2015
    7
    I'll admit I had fun with this game but it was suficiently dense that I can't rate it very high.

    The art style is good the pixelated graphics still manage to hold an air of quality and animation is equally good. I'll admit that since I've started writing these reviews I've taken sound into account a lot more than I used to. This games soundtrack is great. While it's not something you    I'll admit I had fun with this game but it was suficiently dense that I can't rate it very high.

    The art style is good the pixelated graphics still manage to hold an air of quality and animation is equally good.

    I'll admit that since I've started writing these reviews I've taken sound into account a lot more than I used to. This games soundtrack is great. While it's not something you can listen to on its' own it follows suit of the games graphics and asthetic. It manages to maintain that retro feel without compromising itself.

    Gameplay is simple with the entire game revolving around two actions, moving left and right and dropping coins. Everything you do in this game will probably be the result of that last simple action but while it sound simple on paper the game complicates it to a ridiculous level. There are no tool tips and while the tutorial is quite well done it doesn't extend nearly long enough to explain anything other than the basics. If you plan to play the game without first reading your way through the entire wiki then you probably won't get far.

    Subjectively this game has a much lower rating than you expect : 5 it's painfully average in comparison to its peers in the genre. While the whole games execution is quite good the lack of enough explanation to how the game works drags it down quite a few points.

    Objectively it scores a 7. It's an enjoyable game that is above average in comparison most other games in the market but doesn't strive to deliver a deep enough gameplay to warrent any higher. The bad explanation of game mechanics drag it down from what could have been an 8.

    In the end this game serves as a harsh reminder that in an Indie game one bad feature can spoil everything because there just isn't that much content than in a larger game.

    Final verdict: 7    … Expand
  2. andrewbrown
    Jun 1, 2016
    5
    The game is hard in late game, but due to bad game mechanics.
    It undos all the fun you have up to the end point.
    1. Half your army will become useless There are 4 portals you need to destroy with 2 on each side. Once a side is clear no more enemies will spawn leaving you to focus on one side. However your army will not move to the other side but will sit useless. And new recruits    The game is hard in late game, but due to bad game mechanics.
    It undos all the fun you have up to the end point.

    1. Half your army will become useless
    There are 4 portals you need to destroy with 2 on each side. Once a side is clear no more enemies will spawn leaving you to focus on one side.

    However your army will not move to the other side but will sit useless. And new recruits will always be spilt on both sides so every 2 people you will recruit one will go to the useless side. It makes matters worst if you have two shield men on the useless side as they will keep your archers together, when they could be used to make you income on your safe side.

    2. Portals will become useless if you build too many
    When you destroy a portal you can build your own portal which lets you transverse large distances. When you clear more brush you'll be able to build portals beside shrines. Your portal will no longer let you pick where and how far but instantly transported to nearest shrine which could spawn very close to your portal, and once a portal is used you can't use it till next day, so then you are running around back on your horse late game.

    Can't stop building production
    Lets say you want to extend your portal, so you build a wall, but you find out you simply can't get builders there in time. If you could cancel the building everything will fall back to your previous line, but you can't so if you overreach its game over.

    How can this game be fixed?
    1. be able to unassigned shields (knight) units to avoid clumping.
    2. don't bother with secondary portals to shrines
    3. should move unused armies to other side to double forces
    4. be able to cancel a building construction
    5. be able to unassign any job    … Expand
  3. Sjalka
    Nov 7, 2015
    5
    What i liked:

    The presentation is well done. The art-style fits and looks good. The animation and colours are gorgeous. What i did not like: The game is too punishing in its ways. The player must not make even smaller mistakes or he risks to loose to the next red moon - which leads to certain steps required to be taken - leaving little to nothing to creative design. So each    What i liked:

    The presentation is well done. The art-style fits and looks good. The animation and colours are gorgeous.

    What i did not like:

    The game is too punishing in its ways. The player must not make even smaller mistakes or he risks to loose to the next red moon - which leads to certain steps required to be taken - leaving little to nothing to creative design. So each play-through kind of follows the same pattern - making it only different in a slightly different random seed level layout.

    Too often it felt like i was loosing to chance rather than my poor decisions.

    So i would only rate this game a 5/10 - its simplicity is its charm but also its limitation.    … Expand
  4. Thilus
    Jan 9, 2016
    7
    Pretty fun game with one big con - most of the time it feels like we're doing chores for no sensible purpose. The problem lies at its very foundation and the fact that the player is left with very little to no info on what to do and why. At the very end of an incredibly scant tutorial you are left with three words "Explore,build, expand". So you do explore, build and expand to the pointPretty fun game with one big con - most of the time it feels like we're doing chores for no sensible purpose. The problem lies at its very foundation and the fact that the player is left with very little to no info on what to do and why. At the very end of an incredibly scant tutorial you are left with three words "Explore,build, expand". So you do explore, build and expand to the point where no wave of monsters can destroy your fortifications. Soon you discover a demon portal, but your archers are too weak and too few to destroy it so you look for something to help you in the woods. There you are ambushed by a horde of demons, because apparently you didn't notice it's getting dark. You die. Again. You have to start from scratch. Another three to five hours of your life wasted and you're not really any closer to solving, how to beat the game. That's when I decided that enough is enough and removed the game from my hard drive. Don't get me wrong, the game itself is fun, but with no clear purpose to aim for it gets boring after several tries. If you got a lot of free time on your hands, have fun. I know I had some for a time.… Expand
  5. Claytality
    Jan 16, 2020
    7
    Decent tower defense/management game. Nice pixel graphics, good music, and good management/strategy make it fun.

    As a rogue-like you have to be patient and willing to restart. This can be frustrating because some games can take 2-3 hours, and starting from scratch feels like a waste of time. It's trial and error. AI is stupid, but it just takes some getting used to. A big part    Decent tower defense/management game. Nice pixel graphics, good music, and good management/strategy make it fun.

    As a rogue-like you have to be patient and willing to restart. This can be frustrating because some games can take 2-3 hours, and starting from scratch feels like a waste of time. It's trial and error.

    AI is stupid, but it just takes some getting used to.

    A big part of game is running from one side of the map to the other and checking your walls, archers, and farmers. Your character can't fight. There are only 3 keys to use -- left, right, and down.

    Received for free, played 21 hours, getting most achievements. Estimated value of $2.50. Recommended.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 16, 2016
    80
    The game works surprisingly well despite its simple system. Unfortunately, it has a very short life span - but before it gets tedious, it´s great. [Issue#260]
  2. Eurogamer Italy
    Jan 27, 2016
    70
    Charming and fascinating, Kingdom ultimately lacks depth. With more variables to tinker with, the replayability would simply skyrocket.
    Read full review
  3. CD-Action
    Jan 12, 2016
    75
    An RTS disguised as a 2D platformer. Sounds weird but works surprisingly well. [13/2015, p.65]
See all critic reviews »