Rising Lords

These faults, combined with imprecise touchscreen input and frustratingly implemented cursor controls for the Switch port, undo any goodwill the charming, medieval-manuscript-inspired visuals or Renaissance faire-esque music might have imparted. The map editor offers some fun tweaks to the core gameplay but can't save the game from its design flaws and interminable lag. It's a shame, but in its launch state, Rising Lords simply isn't worth picking up.

Rising Lords is a hexagon-grid-based tactics game that introduces elements from Battle Brothers, Civilization, and chess to create a game that is rich in mechanics, but lacking in depth. Its medieval presentation and art style are a highlight, and there's a decent variety in the content offered. While it's fun for a couple of hours and up to a couple of days, the lack of a multiplayer scene or mod support seriously harms the longevity of the game.

I generally like deck-building, turn-based strategy games, but I had a hard time really getting into Rising Lords. It isn't bad-with special nods to the visuals and overall playing time-but the clunky controls and overly busy mechanics prevent it from being all it could be.

The core of Rising Lords shows huge potential. With a better campaign, fewer technical hitches, and deeper combat options, it could be something special.

Medieval Mediocrity

Rising Lords is a standout strategy game that effortlessly captures the essence of medieval feudalism. Though some first-timers may find it a bit too hard as it doesn’t hand hold the tutorial alone may not be enough for some. The captivating visuals, intricate gameplay mechanics, and compelling political diplomacy make for a rich and immersive experience. They say fortune favours the bold, and in Rising Lords, your fate as a feudal lord lies in your hands. Will you rise to the challenge and conquer this medieval world?

Rising Lords has an interesting world to explore, but it is for the most part locked behind a highly difficult campaign. With the struggles that come from just putting the game in sleep mode, the mediocre tutorial, and the overall poor performance, there's a feeling of an early access game given a full release too early. The bones of Rising Lord's are strong enough; with some effort and improvements, there's potential for new additions to the genre; however, the switch port just doesn’t hold up.

Though its board game-esque aesthetic has some appeal, interface issues and uninspired play make it struggle

Rising Lords is dedicated to fans of turn-based strategy with a historical element who don’t want to deal with unnecessary complexity. The game’s focus is on the economy and, specifically, the peasant-powered food supply. Small events can have big consequences and it is never easy to always give people full rations.

Overall, I believe that Rising Lords has potential with some creative features. But the poor execution of these features makes the game a chore to play. Hopefully, Argonwood can fix a large amount of the issues this game faces to create a much more user-friendly game by the time of its release.