Fantasy Conflict Review

Arrrggghhh! I hate wizards. We buccaneers find sorcery a crock of leviathan crap. So, ye can bet that any game with spells and all that be a bane of me existence. Nah, but seriously, this new app called Fantasy Conflict looks to be a wee bit interesting even if I be seeing a lot of mages slinging spells here and there. I love apps about war and strategy. This one has got me stomach churnin’ in a good way so far.

Gaijin Entertainment, one of the premier names in RTS (Real Time Strategy) games for smartphones and tablets, is back with another homerun – Fantasy Conflict. Alright, the name is somewhat generic and actually makes you reminisce of those old and flimsy PC games back in the day. However, once you take a crack at what it has to offer, you will find that the name doesn’t really represent what the app aims to be – an RTS favorite.

The Story

The background story of Fantasy Conflict is also a bit generic, like the name. Basically, a magnificent time-stopping crystal has been stolen by the greedy dwarves. Your mission is to get that crystal back. Unfortunately, such a goal will be fraught with all kinds of hurdles as you will be tasked to conquer a huge number of castles while defending yours on each level.

The game is a standard RTS much like its predecessor, Modern Conflict, which is a critically acclaimed RTS from Gaijin. So, it is really all about the action and strategy as opposed to the story. Hence, skip the text and go on to the meat of the game – WAR! By the way, this is one thing you landlubbers don’t seem to grasp aye? We Buccaneers don’t believe much in spoken words, rather, i let me fist and sword to the talking. Garrr, and me Parrot Squiffy, he’s got quite the tongue this wretched creature.

The Gameplay

Everything you have experienced in Modern Conflict or most RTS apps in the market can be experienced in Fantasy Conflict. You take hold of a castle, churn out troops, and strategize in order to capture the enemies’ castles until they have none left. Now, the enemy is doing the same, which means you will have to also pay attention to your defensive positions. Troops and defense can be upgraded to higher levels to give you an advantage over your enemies… unfortunately, they have those too. So, the game really boils down to strategy. Typically, users who bulk up their defenses before making a push after each capture are the ones that prevail the most. Now, it is important to note that Fantasy Conflict is one of the few RTS that puts a premium on air-based troops.

Yes, Fantasy Conflict allows players to build air forces that can literally wipe out land-based units and provide tremendous air-support for offensive campaigns. In fact, the game actually has a number of levels or maps where these kinds of troops are supremely critical, much like in every Pirate engagement, so think like a true captain aye?

The Interface

No complications whatsoever. The game’s interface just requires taps from you whenever you want your troops in a certain castle to attack a location. One tap if you plan to send 50% of your garrison to battle and two taps if you want to empty the entire castle. That and the upgrading of your castles are what you will need to do manually. All the other aspects such as defending or troop generation are done automatically. A castle will defend itself when an attack comes. You may reinforce the castle being attacked by sending troops from another castle via tapping. And troops, well, they will automatically be produced depending on the upgrades completed in the castle.

The Role-Playing Element

Every fantasy-based RTS is incomplete without a few role-playing elements. Troops leveling up and the use of spells for buffing your troops and magical trinkets before an impending battle are those elements that lend greatly to this game, making it much more than just a lowly follow up to the great Modern Conflict.

The Verdict

Fantasy Conflict is a good app from a great developer. It has solid graphics, a simple story, a great interface, coupled with fantastic gameplay. Best of all, it is free. So, if you are into RTS apps, this one is an amusing and entertaining one to have. It isn’t the best, but it has the capability to eat a lot of your time should you get hooked on it. Fantasy Conflict is available on all iOS devices but, like all RTS games, it is better played on the iPad due to the bigger screen. Seriously, my entire crew of seadogs are hooked!