Game of Thrones Reviews and Editorial

We have rounded up a few new reviews for Cyanide’s Game of Thrones RPG and unfortunately almost all of them are negative, and we also have an editorial on the title’s beginning.

First, the reviews: Planet Xbox 360, 5.0/10.

There’s quite a bit of awesome story within Game of Thrones, but the real question is if you can take whatever else is provided to get to it. It’s like you’re playing in a Game of itself, wondering how much misery you can take to be rewarded. If you’re a dedicated fan, you already know the answer. If not, just stick with watching the TV show. With Cyanide’s rough treatment of such quality content, it’s Game over for this adventure.

Kotaku thinks you shouldn’t play this game:

It would be easy to dismiss Game of Thrones as nothing but a cash-in, a tie-in game rushed out the door to coincide with the second season of the TV show.

But that’s not really the case. There is a kernel just a kernel of a great Song of Ice and Fire game here. It was created by people who know and care about Martin’s world. But it just wasn’t enough, not nearly. Game of Thrones is a disappointment, a joyless slog through a dull and ugly world. Take this one out into the woods and leave it for the White Walkers.

Complex Gaming sticks out, as their review is positively glowing, 9/10.

Some technical issues aside (especially toward the end), it’s a solid experience. It’s just not for everyone. But if you revel in the brutality, self-deprecation and masochism of the series, then you will positively love this game. If you can get past the archaic mechanics, GoT can provide yet another way to steep yourself in the wonderful, dark world of A Song of Ice and Fire.

No doubt Maester Martin approves.

Finally, Forbes‘ Erik Kain wonders if he should press on with the title to review it, despite the game’s weak beginning:

Game of Thrones does not shine. It does not inspire me to learn more about its gameplay. I have no desire to talk with the NPCs or, for that matter, to play as the characters you’re stuck with.

Part of this, I suspect, is that the game doesn’t know what it wants to be. Is the combat real-time or turn-based? What sounds clever on paper the merging of these two systems vis-a-vis a slowdown mode falls flat in practice. After a dozen or so fights, I don’t want to fight anymore. I want to retire.

Part of it also is that Cyanide bit off much more than it could properly chew. How many times now have I read that the game needed more time, that it felt rushed? Cyanide spent seven years cobbling this game together. The last thing they needed was more time.

Part of it is simply the pervasive ugliness of the game both graphically and thematically, which Kirk Hamilton, in his excellent review of the game (he’s played 12 hours) lays out in stark detail.