MORDHEIM: CITY OF THE DAMNED review
Axes, swords and virtual dice at the ready… Focus Interactive’s Warhammer strategy slice-‘em-up makes its way onto the PS4.
The world of Warhammer is a dark, unforgiving place, so it is appropriate that Mordien: City of the Damned is as tough as they come. It is a turn based RTS based upon the original tabletop game published by Games Workshop, and is set in the titular city, whose streets are populated by hordes of skaven, chaos demons and bloodthirsty rogues.
It is fair to say, if you are looking for a relaxing city break, this wouldn’t exactly be in the top ten of places to visit.
But venture out onto Mordheim you must, equipping your party of adventures with enough armor and weapons as you prepare to explore the mean streets ahead of you.
Presented from a third-person perspective, the action takes place in a turn by turn basis, allowing you to move your party around the environment, attack enemies and prepare to defend yourself by setting the correct stance.
Good luck with doing this with any degree of success though, as the controls are hard to master, and when you do become involved in battles, the odds are inevitably stacked against you. It is ridiculously hard game to play, by all accounts.
Even preparing your party for combat is messy and confusing, let alone the arduous task of battle itself. It’s almost stupidly challenging, and borderline unfair. I would like to say there is a good game buried deep in here when you get to grips with it, but after hours of play, it is more of a chore and a tedious experience. A waste of a promising liscence.
Sorry to say, but Mordheim really is damned in more ways than one…
Mark Pilkington
Before you create your party and step into the ruined Mordheim, it is highly recommended that you partake in at least two of the tutorials offered. For the record, there are about 12 of them, and I needed every single one because this game is so complex, you almost need a character sheet to write everything down. The combat is relatively complex on its own, but the combat is only half of your worries with exploring Mordheim. You have a warband you must effectively manage and keep healthy and happy.