Great Potential, but not ready yet
For short moments the game feels like an worthy successor of the HoMM series, but then you are back in reality and there is really much to do.
Overall the game has good quality in graphics, sound, map, heroes (wielders), battles all together in fine turn-based gameplay. So far sounds good, but then it begins to feel uncomfortable and immature.
They have tried to force doing things other then HoMM, but that not always works so good.
The magic does not feel so significant, which in my opinion is also due to the fact that most spells always last only 1 round and now seldom do have strong or lasting effects. Sure from time to time they are useful to be able to attack faster or to lever out an enemy distance unit, but that feels all in all not yet fully developed.
Also, in the more advanced game, the battles basically always come down to using your strong rifle units as wisely and safely as possible, flanked by 1 or 2 melee squads, which is usually the guarantee for getting out of the battles with as few losses as possible.
Also the hero leveling is kind of uninspiring because honestly, the first 7 level ups you only increase your commander level so you can field 9 troops.
Sure, theoretically you don't have to, but practically it's probably the best to do.
So the real level fun starts at level 8, it seems.
Then this whole thing with the artifacts and stats, that strangely doesn't feel as weighty as in Heroes either. Whether I have 30 defense or 60 you can hardly feel it in SoC. In Heroes, a difference of 10 points was a world away, and you could feel it clearly.
Even if the maps are quite nice, there is a lot to discover and collect, but many artifacts are more or less just lying around, you could also include side quests or plot, otherwise it all seems too terse.
All in all, of course, it's still fun and especially the castle expansion and rebuilding has its appeal in a way...and yes more marketplaces means better course.
Let's hope the dev. will do all to success.
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