This is the Game of Thrones game that actually looks… decent-to-good. Unlike the RPG.
“A Game of Thrones – Genesis” is the video game adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s best-seller series of novels A Song of Ice and Fire. In this strategy game developed by Cyanide Studio, your political prowess will be as important as your strategic and military skills!
Thanks to a well-developed single player campaign written under supervision of the author, “A Game of Thrones – Genesis” immerses you into the heart of the battles and intrigues between the Houses that shaped the Kingdom of Westeros.
From Nymeria’s arrival in the Kingdom of Dorne to the awakening of the “Others” beyond the Wall, you’ll live the origins of the A Song of Ice and Fire saga through more than 1000 years of history. From year -750 to year 299, you will take part in Westeros’ founding events and largest battles, such as Aegon the Conqueror’s invasion of the continent or the War of the Usurper.
“A Game of Thrones – Genesis” is also a great multiplayer game. Up to 8 players confront each others to claim the Iron Throne in intense games where alliances, betrayals, cheap shots, and pitched battles take place!
It’s an interesting approach, setting the game in the past to allow gamers to witness some of Westeros’ most iconic moments, but you have to wonder how involved George R.R. Martin was in the whole process. Are the developers just making shit up and filling in the blanks, or was Martin providing them with actual canon, revealing parts of the series that have been clouded for readers. Likely the former.
The notion of peace and war is very important in A Game of Thrones and, in part, fixes your strategy and how you will gain control of territories.
At the start of each game, harmony usually reigns. However, every action taken by the players has an effect, be it positive or negative, on the apparent peace. Every killing, assassination, imprisonment and other treachery actions will lead toward War. To the contrary, sending messages of peace to enemy castles (if the envoy manages to reach his destination alive!), freeing captured enemy units, and other actions, will maintain peace. Depending on your strategy and plans, you may want to maintain peace, or to precipitate war.
PEACE
Setting alliances with townships, castles and other control points is only possible during peace, by sending either an envoy to agree on a wealthy, open alliance, or a spy to build up a less profitable, but secret alliance. You may also marry your Great Lord in a town or castle to set an unbreakable blood alliance. Be wary though, if your Great Lord is assassinated and did not have any heir… the game is lost!
WAR
When war breaks out, there is no turning back. The lords in their towns and castles become Loyal, and show their true allegiance if a secret alliance was in place. The more alliances you have when War comes, the better. Spies and envoys may not set alliances any longer, so the only way to capture towns and castles is to lay siege to them.
Sounds like a solid mix of a Warcraft 3-style RTS (hero-based, real-time, tactical combat with units) and a Civilization-style strategy game (building up your kingdom/army, alliances, assasination, marriage), which is certainly something to look forward to.
The game even looks fairly decent:
More screenshots can be found HERE and more info can be found on the newly launched website, and the game can now be pre-ordered on Steam and (I assume) other digital download platforms.
What do you think? Excited. Couldn’t care less? Want the RPG instead?
To celebrate today’s release of Spellbound by Blake Charlton (a very generous and kindly friend-of-the-blog), I’ve got two chapters from the novel, ripe for the reading. If you’re curious about my affection for the series, my review of Spellwright should shed some light on that:
