Neue Rezensionen von BenniArt

After some 50-ish hours with this game in its early access, a couple hundred hours in various Civ games and probably a couple thousand cumulative hours in HoMM 1-5, I'm by no means an expert, but certainly an avid enjoyer of the genre in general and this particular niche within it.
Songs of Conquest is not without annoyances, but, let's be honest, none of these games are. The main difference here is that you probably already love HoMM if you're considering this game, despite its flaws, while SoC has yet to prove itself to you.
Well, let me tell you, it's much more than a bland imitation banking on HoMM's pitiful current state and its beggars-can't-be-choosers-fans; rather, it is a daring reimagining of the genre with its unique takes on mechanics, balancing, and priorities.
First things first: the game looks absolutely stunning, and plays smoothly and intuitively. The factions – while limited – have a nice selection of units and are defined and explored in depth in their respective campaigns. The soundtrack is gorgeous, too, and the inability to pause the game before taking 'just one more turn' is as present as ever. Now for the rest. With a set of decently written and well designed campaigns – personally, I'd argue that they are more entertaining than HoMMIII's –, a nice selection of skirmish maps, and a lively (albeit modest) community playing and designing their own maps, the promised future updates and continued work on the game are more of a bonus. Ultimately, it feels as if the team has decided to depart from the HoMM formula a little, because if they tried to copy it, they'd never come out on top. Instead, they've created an alternative.
As it is, Songs of Conquest is a wonderful breath of fresh air for anyone who loves Heroes but feels like in just a little bit of a rut, or, contrary, never liked Heroes but always wanted to. Give it a go and support a small game studio working on learning from our collective gaming past to write a love letter to the genre in the present.