You Can Count On Me!
I'll give you a dollar if you can tell me how that title relates to Hoard, Big Sandwich Games latest creation.
Published: November 10, 2010
Hoard is something of a strange beast. Ostensibly, you can call it a twin-stick shooter with a (very) light RPG upgrade system. Look a little closer though, and you'll find the trappings of an RTS game, with resource management a key focus. Pry a little deeper, and you will realize a lot of Hoard has its roots in traditional board games… there is a little Settlers of Catan disguised in some of the mechanics. While it might be hard to pin down just what type of game Hoard is, one fact is undeniable. This game was meant to played with your friends, either on-line, or, preferably, in your living room.
Hoard features four game types (all available for single or multiplayer), with the primary focus of the game being the "Treasure" mode. In this mode, one to four dragons (human or AI) each have their own "hoard" of gold, and you all have 10 minutes to gather as much treasure as possible, with the greediest dragon declared the victor. Each top-down map (there are a dozen or so for each mode) has a unique layout of towns, castles, and mills (and possibly a wizard tower or two) that grow up and create their own little economies. Gold is generally acquired by burning up the wagons and caravans that ply between between these structures, and as more gold flows, these structures grow and produce still more gold. This simple system sets up the flow of a typical round of Hoard. Do you burn up those early carts full of just a few hundred gold to get a jump on your competition? Or do you let those ones pass, in the hopes that the economy will grow and soon carts with triple the gold will fill the roadways? Both are valid tactics with their own set of risks and rewards. You can also opt for the more direct route, burning down the farms and cities themselves, which will generally give you a bit more gold, but with the cost of a long slow rebuilding time where no gold is flowing at all.
Which ever tack you take, eventually some part of the map will prosper, and as cities get bigger they produce more and more archers, who, while easily dispatched with your fiery breath, can also take you down pretty quick with a volley of arrows. The eight squares around each town center also grow with time, adding marketplaces (good for more gold!) or taverns (which generate annoying thieves) that you can choose to let live or also fall under your baleful exhalations. Castles grow as well, and while they release knights to combat you early on, eventually they will generate more powerful heroes (and a knight that attacks enough dragons successfully will also graduate to hero status) who can withstand much more of your attacks. Castles will also on occasion release a Royal Transport containing a princess, and these can be attacked and the princess captured. Captured princesses can be returned to the hoard where if you can hold them long enough without a knight rescuing them, they will fetch a handsome ransom. Wizard Towers fire powerful bolts of arcane energy all over the map that can quickly douse your flames, and these towers are quite hardy and pose your biggest threat. If you manage to destroy one, they will leave behind a very valuable wizard gem.
Hoard features four game types (all available for single or multiplayer), with the primary focus of the game being the "Treasure" mode. In this mode, one to four dragons (human or AI) each have their own "hoard" of gold, and you all have 10 minutes to gather as much treasure as possible, with the greediest dragon declared the victor. Each top-down map (there are a dozen or so for each mode) has a unique layout of towns, castles, and mills (and possibly a wizard tower or two) that grow up and create their own little economies. Gold is generally acquired by burning up the wagons and caravans that ply between between these structures, and as more gold flows, these structures grow and produce still more gold. This simple system sets up the flow of a typical round of Hoard. Do you burn up those early carts full of just a few hundred gold to get a jump on your competition? Or do you let those ones pass, in the hopes that the economy will grow and soon carts with triple the gold will fill the roadways? Both are valid tactics with their own set of risks and rewards. You can also opt for the more direct route, burning down the farms and cities themselves, which will generally give you a bit more gold, but with the cost of a long slow rebuilding time where no gold is flowing at all.
Which ever tack you take, eventually some part of the map will prosper, and as cities get bigger they produce more and more archers, who, while easily dispatched with your fiery breath, can also take you down pretty quick with a volley of arrows. The eight squares around each town center also grow with time, adding marketplaces (good for more gold!) or taverns (which generate annoying thieves) that you can choose to let live or also fall under your baleful exhalations. Castles grow as well, and while they release knights to combat you early on, eventually they will generate more powerful heroes (and a knight that attacks enough dragons successfully will also graduate to hero status) who can withstand much more of your attacks. Castles will also on occasion release a Royal Transport containing a princess, and these can be attacked and the princess captured. Captured princesses can be returned to the hoard where if you can hold them long enough without a knight rescuing them, they will fetch a handsome ransom. Wizard Towers fire powerful bolts of arcane energy all over the map that can quickly douse your flames, and these towers are quite hardy and pose your biggest threat. If you manage to destroy one, they will leave behind a very valuable wizard gem.
