If you have 2 or more computers in your house and you want to play the game with multiple people on those computers, there is a LAN mode. However, this LAN mode requires an online connection & a Triumph Account that the game is registered to. Why does it require an online connection & Triumph Account? To verify all players own a purchased copy of the game.

- The LAN mode is not available offline (when that's the entire purpose of a LAN mode).

- The LAN mode is not available without creating a User Account on the Triumph website.

- The LAN mode is not available without logging in to a Triumph Account on the Triumph website and associating a valid Age of Wonders 3 product key with the account.

- The LAN mode is not available without opening the Game Client and logging in to it with a Triumph Account that has a valid Age of Wonders 3 product key associated with it.

- LAN mode can be rendered inaccessible if Triumph revokes your game product key/account.

This is DRM, a system that serves to artificially limit your use of a product under various circumstances. I can kinda understand needing an account system to meaningfully manage/moderate online gameplay modes, but NOT for an offline game mode (LAN).

If the game wasn't advertised on the Store Page as being 100% DRM Free than this wouldn't be an issue. As it stands though that is false advertising.

There is a possible workaround for multiplayer. Start a hotseat game under the guest account, save at the end of a turn and email out the save file.

If that works, then the next step is to build a simple tool to automate emailing to make the process seamless. It is possible that AoW3 could be played DRM-free, but someone still has to test this.