Conan Unconquered explains what is best in a siege
Remember to tidy your battlefield
We're just five weeks from the launch of Conan Unconquered, Petroglyph's 'survival strategy' game based on the famous barbarian fantasy setting. Up until now we've only had brief glimpses at how it actually works, though. We know it's a traditional RTS (albeit single-player/co-op focused) by an experienced studio, but we haven't seen much of what sets it apart. Today's video breaks down its systems, including its escalating enemy waves, corpse-piles spreading disease outside your walls, and temples out in the wild to be raided for treasure. Take a look at it in motion below.
Petroglyph have been open that They Are Billions is a key inspiration, although they seem to be beating it on unit variety, especially on the enemy side. It sounds like the game will demand that players keep a lot of plates spinning in-between defensive combat waves. Resources are limited, so expansion is required to fuel defences, and some of the best goodies are guarded by mini-boss monsters or stationary swarms living at hidden locations around the map. Petroglyph recommend that players send hero characters (plus a few grunts) to pick up those goodies whenever possible.
As you'll be defending your walls for much of the game, corpses will begin to pile up around your base, eventually becoming diseased and becoming a hazard to any living troops that have to wade through the corpse-pile. They also mention necromancer enemies that can raise corpses into fresh undead troops, which I'm guessing makes every mountain of gore, while satisfying to look at as proof of your hard work, a liability. Those worried about keeping up with micromanagement shouldn't worry either, as there's the option to pause and issue orders at your leisure.
Maps will be procedurally generated (although They Are Billions is moving away from that for its story campaign), hopefully making for good replayability. There's also some reason to keep hammering away at the game, beyond personal satisfaction and/or the lamentation of your foe's significant others. There's some persistent unlockable options, like endless mode, bonus perks for heroes and such. A little bit of long-term profession goes a long way. The big question now is how well Conan will stack up against the upcoming story-focused version of They Are Billions.
Conan Unconquered launches May 30th, published by Funcom. You can find it on Steam and Humble, and will cost £25/€30/$30.