Review | Warhammer: Chaosbane

Review | Warhammer: Chaosbane

Descend into dungeons, defeat monsters, collect loot. Yes, we have seen this before. But now it all takes place in the great Warhammer universe.

In Warhammer: Chaosbane you follow a story like many others: the world is once again threatened by chaos creatures and it needs you to save it. Nothing is more fun than hacking through hordes of enemies with skills that constantly grow in strength. Warhammer: Chaosbane knows how to evoke that feeling. Each of the four characters feels good to control and has skills that can be used in various tactical ways. Eko Software immediately  wants to make it clear that the role-playing side of the game is important. You choose from the Empire Soldier, High Elf Mage, Dwarf Slayer and Wood elf Scout classes.

The first thing you notice is that your character cannot move during his or her attacks. There is also no specific action to dodge attacks. Instead, plant your feet on the ground and fire your skills at the enemies. 

This may sound drowsy, but luckily it is not so bad when you unlock more skills. You receive skill points per level with which you can buy skills. The basic set is automatically unlocked, but you can gradually invest points to upgrade skills. And fortunately, those skills play very well. The Slayer has a fair amount of cool tricks in store, with some attacks costing rage points, while others feed his rage. This prevents you from constantly pressing the same button. More important are the cooldown times on special attacks, which you can only fire once in a while.

Then there’s the loot that you gradually collect. It is the standard procedure of picking up what enemies are dropping in the hope that it will yield better stats for your character. There is a shared treasure chest, so you can share your loot with other characters, you can sell them, craft them, and so on. What especially should make Chaosbane fun is the ability to play with others. There is a drop-in system where friends or strangers can accompany you in the search for better loot. 

If you still want more after the story, you can dive into Expeditions, Boss Rushes and Treasure Maps. The first and the last of these, place you in a randomly generated area to perform a certain mission, often with custom elements to increase the challenge. The Boss Rushes appealed to me the most, and need you to kill a certain boss again, but this time the boss will be stronger so it also drop better loot.

My first impression of Warhammer: Chaosbane is very positive. It is very easy to get into a flow of fighting, collecting and exploring. The Warhammer license mainly feels like a new package and does not change the experience.

Score:

8,0

Interface may be too small at several occasions
Not enough interaction with the environment

+ Good voice acting
Visual stunning environments
+ Addictive gameplay
More than enough content