Age of Wonders 4 (Steam) is a 4X strategy game in the tradition of Civilization 6, Endless Legends, or Heroes of Might and Magic. It impresses especially with its endless possibilities to create and continually refine a fantasy people according to one’s desires. On Steam, it has 82% positive reviews – even MeinMMO author Schuhmann is impressed.
What kind of game is Age of Wonders 4? Age of Wonders is one of those games that are hardly made today. Strictly speaking, it is a 4X game. It is about:
- Explore – Explore the fantasy world
- Expand – Establish outposts that can grow into cities and claim more and more areas with various resources of an upper and a lower world
- Exploit – Exploit nature by developing each zone with a mine, farm, or other buildings. Take advantage of the opponent’s weaknesses and defeat enemy armies with 3 converging armies, each consisting of 6 units or heroes
- Exterminate – Take the last city of the opponents and wipe it off the map or fulfill other victory conditions. Complete quests that help you with that.
However, Age of Wonders 4 takes place in the historical real world (Civilization) or in outer space (Stellaris) in a fantasy world.
In addition, the game has a pronounced role-playing aspect, as each army can be led by a hero who can be equipped with numerous items, mounts, and skills.
Which games are similar to Age of Wonders 4? Age of Wonders is rooted in the tradition of games like King’s Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic.
Perhaps it is most comparable to the relatively unknown genre gem “Endless Legends” from 2014, which some considered the “better” Civilization back then.
At the same time, Age of Wonders also comes from its own game series, which has existed since 1999. Over the years, there haven’t been any real blockbusters. The best game in the series was probably the sci-fi offshoot Planetfall, which was released in 2019.
So many possibilities
What makes Age of Wonders 4 special? The game lets you play a variety of pre-made heroes and races, from a red-haired barbarian warrior to a spider demon to a noble paladin frog, everything is included.
But Age of Wonders 4 gives you total freedom in creating your own fantasy race:
- You choose from 10 different races – from tiger people to molefolk to frogs. This is purely an aesthetic choice.
- The races have 14 different physical and 14 mental abilities that you can freely choose from.
- Now there are 6 different cultural traits – you can play “evil,” “feudal,” or “industrial.” These also determine which units and buildings you can build.
- Finally, you can choose 2 of over 20 different social traits that further refine your race.
- When that is done, you choose your starting spells from 12 different spellbooks. Some of them even grant new units and buildings.
And you do all of this before the actual game begins.
While you play, you can unlock further spells through research, of which “Race Transformation” spells give you the chance to significantly change individual units or your entire race.
The freedoms here are truly massive:
- You can play combat-strong orcs that are clearly feudal in organization and swear by order. You can even take it so far that they become “angel-like,” meaning they can fly and rise for order.
- But you can also play corrupted dark elves who have dedicated themselves so much to materialism that they consist of gold, and every inhabitant pours gold into your coffers.
This diversity in how you want to fulfill your goals makes Age of Wonders 4 unique and a game that every strategy player should try.
A nice detail: If you win a map with a race, you can include that race and its ruler in your “pantheon” and refer back to it later. The races created this way even encounter you later as enemies, and heroes can sometimes be recruited and used as commanders for other races.
However, the game does not seem to be finished with the release yet. For an additional €50, there is an expansion pass that promises an expansion every quarter.
What do the reviews on Steam say? Currently, about 2 weeks after release, Age of Wonders stands at “Very Positive” after 5,666 reviews – 82% positive reviews:
- The game is described as “the Civilization but with magic”; the one you always wanted.
- Age of Wonders 4 is attributed a significant addictive factor.
- A German user calls the game after 40 hours an “excellent mix of Civ 6 and Heroes of Might and Magic.”
Are there any negative points? Crashes and bugs are particularly criticized. However, Triumph Studios is already patching vigorously. The German translation is still somewhat lacking.
Furthermore, like practically every strategy game, the game has its lengths in the endgame. At some point, the games are decided, and it is only a matter of finishing them. When you control 9 cities and manage 9 armies, that can feel more like a tedious obligation than a wonderful experience.
The strengths of the game lie in the initial hours of each match. This seems to be a trend in strategy games currently, especially in those distributed by Paradox Interactive:
In Victoria 3, you can conquer the world as Germany – But even on a PC costing 3,800 € it is not fun
