Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin review

The Warhammer series is brimming with iconic titles, but Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin takes players back to its roots. The franchise has provided something for everyone, from co-op shooters and RTS to card games. That said, I have always found comfort with titles that rely heavily on strategy.

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin, in many ways, is a tribute to the older entries in the RTS genre. The latest release from Frontier Developments does a decent job of being accessible, even for beginners. However, poor development decisions have let down some of those intentions, and for many, it could ultimately boil down to the amount of micromanagement required.

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin should have made better decisions with the basics

An RTS title has to ensure that players remain engaged throughout a given mission or campaign. After all, a strategy game isn't fun if players are not made to think through the hard way. Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin does that, but it also prompted me to work harder than required.

Story and presentation

When I said that Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin is a good tribute to traditional games, the story and presentation rose in my mind. The world design reflects the original lore, and it truly demonstrates the destruction that has been spread all around. Your task of leading the regiment is not devoid of challenges, as enemies and natural danger lie in all corners.

Here's where the campaign helps you get used to all the core mechanics. While the world design does a good job, it's not as pleasing as the 40K series. This could ultimately boil down to your preferences for troops having smaller sizes. The general gameplay resembles something you might find in a MOBA like DOTA 2 or League of Legends.

The problem here lies in that the Warhammer series has different games representing distinct genres. I still feel that the Total War series is perhaps the best in terms of looks, with Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin appearing duller in comparison.

Gameplay and game modes

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin's biggest strength is the diverse game modes at your disposal. As a newcomer to the series, my favorite is the campaign. Allowed to choose any difficulty, I decided to go with Lorekeeper. Aside from making the fights easy, it's also great for finding your feet.

There's a wide variety of different modes to choose from (Image via Frontier Developments)

If you want a greater challenge, plenty of options are available. When it comes to single-player, there's also a Challenge Mode to dive into, which presents procedurally generated missions that will truly test your wits. Those seeking a harder test can go for online Conquests.

The diversity Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin shows with the game modes could also be reflected in the overall gameplay. The game does what you'd expect from an RTS in many ways. There's a good variety among the troops you control, and there are strengths and weaknesses that demand your attention.

Constant micromanagement can become an issue in more complex battles (Image via Frontier Developments)

My biggest issue with the overall gameplay concerns some cases that I consider fundamentally wrong. If your troop engages with one from your opponent, they will fight until death. I have been told this is true for the tabletop games from the Warhammer series, but it wasn't required in a 21st-century video game.

Your troops also require plenty of marshaling, which was especially evident when a ranged unit threatened any of the melee troops. Unless I manually command them to take down an enemy, my troops will stand and keep absorbing damage. The learning system can also be quite confusing, which isn't ideal for executing strategies.

The poor laning causes even bigger problems as you often divide troops into separate segments. As you try to bring back some of them for healing, others can perish and end your mission prematurely. Healing, in general, requires far more flexibility, and more units with such abilities should be there.

The troops can be customized to change their visual appearances (Image via Frontier Developments)

To a large extent, the only consistent healing comes from the centers you capture, but this hinders your troops' movability. This is a shame, as the troop designs are worth admiring visually. The same can also be said about the animations, and Frontier has ensured that the troops feel different. But you'll rarely get to admire them while managing the clunky pathing and bizarre fights.

In conclusion

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin is a classic case of good potential let down by core issues. For a Warhammer game, the world design and the troops' esthetics feel top-notch and well worth your time. However, micromanagement not only feels unnecessary, it doesn't always allow you to execute strategies to perfection.

The lack of a proper landing is a major flaw in a game where this mechanism plays a key role. It led to some of my troops dying periodically, leaving me befuddled. The top-down camera makes it tough to catch what's happening on the screen.

For RTS veterans, some of the deficiencies of Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin might appear trivial. However, it's a major letdown in the grand scheme of things. Features like the map creator get overshadowed by the overall poor mechanics.

At its core, Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin is fun to play. The overall gameplay loop does justice to the original lore. At times, you'll truly get the rich feeling of conspiring against difficult enemies and outsmarting them. If only the fundamentals were done better.