It's a harsh survival civ sim. I played a demo, had my socks well and truly blown off, and immediately pre-ordered the full game I think a full year in advance of release (on Steam, pre-orders don't come out so far in advance here unfortunately). I wasn't disappointed. Absolutely amazing. Release day (and the next few days) I barely slept. I shirked responsibilities because time disappeared while playing. Things go wrong, that's kind of the whole point. It IS punishing. Apparently the latest update gives more difficulty options, but honestly I don't think it needs them. For most game genres, I hate a slog, but for some reason games like these just aren't the same without being terribly punishing. Play from save to save or take each blow on the chin, your choice. The story isn't exactly deep. It's not shallow either, mind you. It's precisely what's needed to push you through and encourage you to try new things while weighing up the cost/benefit of every metaphorical roll of the dice. I'm pretty sure I haven't found every secret nook or cranny, and it's been top of my playlist for a year and a half plus change.
I've been a longtime fan of the genre and series. W2 is the only crowdfunding project I've supported with actual donations. Got my copy, realised I'd made a mistake getting it on PS4, almost gave up on the series. Eventually I was convinced to give W3 a try, and instantly I fell in love with it. So much so I bought the whole series each on three separate platforms! It's a bit of a tone shift from W2. I wouldn't say it's more humourous, but they lean into the humour a bit more. If you like Fallout, especially Tactics (I know it wasn't rated, but it was the funniest and it did squad combat wonderfully), you'll love this!
I had a vanilla PS4 copy on pre-order. From launch it was amazing. I had one single big bug/glitch that was fixed two days later. Now the updates are here, the animé brought a lot of people in, and the expansions are coming, everyone else is seeing what I saw from the very beginning. I know I couldn't get the expansion on vanilla PS4, and the experience is a little different on console, so I made a little investment. I have it on three platforms now. :-D
