Conquest of Elysium 5 (Turn-based 4x like you've never seen it before!)

[TheFjordFox]

Conquest of Elysium 5!

Have you heard about it? I wouldn't blame you if you haven't, I learned about this game's existence myself only a few months back. It's unfortunately quite niche, as this game has wowed me with it's depth, complexity, diversity and re-playability. Among other things. I've put several hundred hours into it over the past few months - the 5th iteration of it released back in August this year.

Do you like 4X games? Fantasy/history based settings? Turn-based action? Well, this game has that, and more! It's got several thousand units you can equip your armies with, in addition to countless items and about a couple dozen classes to play with. All feeling quite distinct and unique from one and other. I would argue there is at least one class for every person's likings available in this game.

It's also quite affordable! The developers of the game, Illwinter Games, from Sweden - a TWO MAN team(!!!) has been at this game and another called Dominions for a very very long time. They started making games back in the SEGA days. And I gotta say, personally I am extremely impressed what only two people have been able to create!

This game is a masterpiece! I only wish I knew it existed sooner! It's even quite affordable on steam, and so far I've gotten veeeeeeery much value for my money. And I intend to get more. It's also got some great humour in it, if you're the kind of guy that can bother reading descriptions of units. One example that had me giggle is the Giant Ant Queen - apparently it is the law of the land to immediately attack these on sight, before they can settle down and make an ant hill. If you can not attack them immediately, you must gather a force that can at the very latest one hour after it's been spotted! (and trust me, you really want to do this, or it will make babies that you'll have to deal with) - this is just one of the thousands of colourful units you can encounter in this game.

You can play as, for instance, Senator (A faction based on the Roman Empire.), Dryad Queen (a faction that summons animals of the forest, and protectors of nature to fight alongside it's minotaurs, dryads, centaurs and satyr, among other powerful beings of the wilds.) - you also have everything from goblins and dwarves, to a vast array of caster-focused classes - and an un-believable amount of spells and spell trees to delve into!

Heck, I'm just scratching the surface here! You can play as factions based on the Aztecs, feudal lords of Europe, Japanese samurais and so much more!

(My favourite class in the game is the Dryad Queen - I love charming my opponents over to fight for my side, and capturing the animals of the forest with my spells and rituals to bolster my armies with moose, bears, boars, elephants, spider, snakes and a whoooole lot more.)

The game is massive! There is a lot to learn, so it can be daunting for new players to take on, but once you've played it for a little while, you will start getting the hang of it! And if it at all looks like a game that you would be even slightly interested in - I can damn near guarantee you that you will not regret picking it up! (until you watch the hours you've played it rack up into the hundreds and thousands, and start wondering what the heck you are actually doing with your life.)

All that being said - I from time to time play through this game and put out the playthrough on youtube, although mostly I just chill and play for solo enjoyment. That being said - you can also play with your friends in multiplayer!

Either way, let me present to you a few playthroughs that I have out of this game on youtube, so you can have a look for yourself and see if you might want to get it! (which if you're anywhere near answering that with "maybe", I'd say do not hesitate, and just get it already!)

The first playthrough I want to show you, is with my favourite class, the Dryad Queen. I just vibe so well with this class, it's such an enjoyable gaming experience for me. Below is the first episode in the playlist;

Secondly, I want to show you another class I really enjoy - the Necromancer! Raise the dead, summon demons from hades, kill your enemies only to raise them back from the dead and have them fight their previous masters! ...what's not to like about that??

Sincerely - if this at all looks anywhere near your alley - you owe it to yourself to try it out! And to the game developers for making such a masterpiece! Too bad they're not better known than they are. They really have done people who like games like this a great service!

Edited November 9, 2021 by TheFjordFox
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