Strongholds Review
Getting the right sort of Turn Based Card Game into the App Store has been very frustrating. I’m not a big Magic: The Gathering fan, but I’ve actually been waiting for a game like that to come out. And it seems like with so many card games out there, someone should have found a way to do it by now – but so far, everyone has just “come close”.
The latest entry into the ring is Strongholds by Digital Worlds. I was intrigued with the game the very first time I saw it. Here was a card game that didn’t involve creatures and magic (not that there’s anything wrong with that… I’m just looking for something else). Instead you are in the future and corporations settle things in the business world by going to war wit each other. Gotta admit… I love that idea.
Strongholds also has a really nice graphical look. A few peeks at the screen shots will show you what I mean. Add to that the idea that you battle things out with cards and you have a game that made me stand up and take notice. I even bought it, not waiting to see if I would review it or not.
So now it comes down to game play. That’s where we see if all the mental hype my brain put me through was worth it.
I’d have to say that my first impression on the game wasn’t as strong as I hoped. I jumped into the “Help” section and found myself scratching my head. The information was there, but didn’t quite give me the feel for the game. I then played a game (which I won) and wasn’t really sure what was going on. I just played the cards I was allowed to play and things just sort of happened.
While everything looked good it and I had actually won the game, the whole thing felt hollow.
I went back to the game a little later and decided to give it another shot. This time I took the time to pay attention to everything and try to do my own sort of “help teaching”. After a few games I really got the hang of the strategy and found myself really enjoying the game.
You command a company that is in the middle of a fight with another company. The war is on and you have to win it. You have a hand of six cards to choose from and can play the cards that you have the resources to use. The resources come from your factories, armories, and barracks. The more buildings you have in those three categories, the more resources you can create and the stronger cards you will be able to play.
The cards can either help you build up your side or knock down the other. Your goal is to either get your Stronghold up to 60 points or your opponents down to zero. If you get your Stronghold to 60 you launch a nuke at your opponent and you win. If you end up losing you get the great phrase “All Your Base Belong To Us” to make you at least get a smile at the lose.
The game play is nice but there are a few things that hold it back from being a great game. For one; the cards don’t have much of a graphical look to them. I’d love to see them upgraded a bit. And when the cards are played it seems that the same animations take place. It would be nice to see different things happen with each card.
One of the other things I’d really like to see is more use of the storyline. Other than just a quick sentence or two, there’s not much about the plot. It would be great to name your own company (including what they do) and pick who you want to fight. And with that… this game (and any game like this) really needs to be played against someone – not just the computer.
Digital Worlds has promised to update the game with multiple levels of difficulty, an online scoreboard, and some other surprises so here’s hoping that things like Multi-Player will be coming down the line.
In the end, I really liked Strongholds and have played several games, really getting the strategy down. I’m looking forward to more from this game and hope that the addictive nature of the game play catches on so they’ll do the updates that are really needed.
The Good
Good Card Based Play
Visuals Of The Battle Are Nice
Global Scoreboard Is ComingThe Bad
Game Is A Little Confusing At First
Could Use More Animation
Improve The Storyline
No Custom Deck Building or Multi-Player
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Category: Games
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seems very interesting
never saw such a gameplay before
This looks like an interesting strategy game. I’d like to see what updates bring about how they are received by the community.
it looks like it is alot of fun.
like this kind of game
This thing looks pretty cool and unique. The App Store needs more stuff like this. Everything is just another version of some other app (or it’s junk *ahem* fart apps *cough*).
The game’s graphics look fantastic but I’ve been a little reluctant to purchase this title because: a) no multiplayer and b) a steep learning curve in the beginning.
The iDevice needs more games like this, good review.
I’m a big Risk fan so this appeals to me.
Looks decent. I do like my strategy games
Turn based strategy games are great to play.
its on sale for 99 cents right now. i don’t think i want it though
awesome graphics and cool idea.
This was a by topic a couple of days ago and it caught my eye as well. I will hold out on buyin it because I just bought some rather long games but I put it in my watch list.
cool card game, love the way you battle
Thanks for review! )
Looks pretty good and its a turn base strategy game. It should and probably be good.
I’m a fan of Turn Based Card Games (like Orions) but this unfortunately seems a little weak on content at the moment.
But…it does look pretty and definitely is still intriguing all the same…
The other day I was browsing the app store and this game caught my attention. I wasn’t so sure what it offered so I’m very glad you wrote this review!
Nice review Bob. This is an app that I’ve been watching since it came out due the graphics.
I’ve held off from buying it mostly due to the reviews and comments on forums and such which are very similar to what you said.
The largest thing that surprised me reading about this is that there’s no multiplayer. It seems a fantastic candidate for a multiplayer mode.
I’m also surprised they don’t have a better help with better explanations of the rules and strategy of the game.
Seeing as your review echoed my concerns I think I’ll wait for an update at least. Thanks Bob!