Tooth and Tail

The game itself is amazing, and very well polished in my opinion, however I cannot run it on the majority of my machines due to the fact that it requires the Windows Media Feature Pack.

This game had caught my attention a little while ago, the feel looked quite interesting and the fact I could possibly play it with my wife made it all the more interesting, but with not enough time to play the games I already have, I passed until it was on (a big) discount. Unfortunately, my wifes first foray into RTS has been a bit of a failure (playing a RTS for the first time must be pretty overwhelming when your used to turn-based strategy) BUT...this game is the real deal. 'Course I'm a sucker for the russian revolution period, loved the redwall animated series as a kid and have always appreciated the short story "the lottery" and the whole atmosphere of Tooth and Tails feels like a big melting pot of those 3 influences...still, the fact is this is a deliciously concocted melting pot with just the right blend of spices... soundtrack is awesome and very fitting to boot. The action is frantic, very fast paced, can be a bit frustrating at times but it offers a light-hearted challenge every time. Losing a battle after 5 minutes is less of a kick in the parts then realising your front is collapsing after playing for 5 hours. Ain't finished the story mode yet but I disagree with the negative reviews, the "old 16bit rpg style" interactions with characters between missions is a very good way of exposing the world and reasons your waging war and while the writing and exposure isn't up to the standards of great classics, this simply ain't that kind of game...for an "indie" game, the quality is quite good. The graphics are cute and fit like a glove with the rest of the atmosphere this game offers...but it feels clunky at times, as any "pixel soup" should. 'Suppose that's part of the charm. And of course...a PC RTS with the option to play with friends on the same computer in split-screen mode? BRILLIANT! Just for this, I'd give it a half star more, but I can't. So yeah, this game has its limits, but its the best 6 bucks or so I've spent this christmas.

tld;r - Fun gameplay. Great art. Meh campaign. Sparse servers. I'd buy this game for ~$15, but I recommend you buy (or share >.>) another copy and play it with a friend. The rest of the review - Girlfriend and I picked this up a year or so ago for casual game nights, and it's been a blast! The actual game is easy to pick up but offers enough control to keep things interesting as you learn more. The units are all unique, both in terms of gameplay and artistic style, and the inclusion of non-mobile combat fixtures (ie, turrets, mortars, landmines) can really spice up your games! There are no war-crimes in Tooth and Tail; you either win, or you're lunch. And my favorite part: matches are generally ~5 minutes, give or take a few minutes depending how things go. Even my worst games only lasted about 3 minutes before I got pulverized; short enough I can't really get angry about it. Even the long, drawn out, down to the wire matches only last upwards to 8. The sound is great too. The music is on point, the sfx are well done, and everything just flows well together. It's a tiny, fuzzy, experience, and it's hard not to grab a thimble of gristmill liquor and sing along with your fellow country-mice! That being said, balance is a bit harsh. Some picks have hard, hard counters. I don't mean "this will be an uphill battle" hard. I mean "this matchup will lose 9/10 times" hard. So, if you make a bad pick and have no plan b, then you're done. Some of the hero's are also a bit of a miss. Not bad, exactly, but I guess not everyone can be a racoon with a minigun or a flamethrowing boar. Also, as I mentioned, I play this with someone I know. I can't comment on the online community, and the server list looked pretty empty last time I checked. But all that being said, the game is fun and I think that counts for a lot. I'd pay $15 for it hands down because I've enjoyed it. If you're wary, I'd say lower that to ~$10.

More difficult than it should be. Often had to exit the game to restart...Quite a lot of annoying things. But could have been nice.

Tooth and Tail drawed my attention because of stellar soundtrack that fits world perfectly, great modernised pixel art and original Redwall meets Russian Revolution setting. The gameplay itself is fun and dynamic and skirmish mode is source of fun for long time, however considering the game have unusual and suprisingly good setting, art, music, cast of characters and factions, the story mode is rather disappointing. Both gameplay and storywise. Random campaign maps can ruin entire mission, the story is linear, writing isn't the best and game lacks real dialogue. Hubs are interesting idea but are done rather poorly and feels pointless. My biggest disappointment was lack of at least ok story experience, considering how good was artistic presentation of the setting.