Warhammer: In the Shadow of the Horned Rat
| Warhammer: In the Shadow of the Horned Rat | |||
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| Original title | Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat | ||
| Studio | Mindscape | ||
| Publisher |
Mindscape SSI (PlayStation) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Windows November 11, 1995 PlayStation  November 1, 1996 December 1996 |
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| platform | Windows , PlayStation | ||
| genre | Real time strategy game | ||
| Subject | Warhammer Fantasy | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Mouse & keyboard , game controller | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | CD-ROM | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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Warhammer: In the shadow of the horned rat (Original title: Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat ) is a real-time strategy game by Mindscape for Windows and PlayStation from 1995. It is based on the license of the tabletop game Warhammer Fantasy from Games Workshop . The title received a sequel in 1998 with Warhammer: Dark Omen .
action
The action takes place in the border counties of the Old World . The player takes on the role of Morgan Bernhardt, leader of the resentful mercenaries from the city of Wissenheim. Bernhardt is initially given the task of protecting a nearby town from attacks and escorting a caravan of dealers. This triggers a series of follow-up missions , which ultimately turn out to be the threat to the Empire from the rat-like Skaven race . They have taken control of a powerful elven magical artifact called Warpstone. Bernhardt's job is to avert the threat posed by the Skaven.
Gameplay
Warhammer: In the Shadow of the Horned Rat is not a direct implementation of the rules of the tabletop game, but otherwise sticks closely to its template. It has a single player campaign with over 40 missions. These can be selected in the course of the game on a strategic map, but are not based on one another in a strictly linear manner, but are in some cases optional or sometimes mutually exclusive. The assignments range from patrols and defense missions to hostage liberation and cutting off an escape route. In a playful way, however, the task can usually be reduced to completely destroying the opposing army.
If the player has selected a mission, the deployment to the target area begins, for which the player selects the troop contingents and defines a marching order for these units. This is important because some missions determined by the developers can lead to raids on the column. In these cases the marching order determines the position of the troops at the start of the fight. In all other cases the player can position his units freely within a given zone at the beginning of a mission, although the positions of the opposing regiments are not yet known. The battlefield is presented from an isometric overview perspective , the camera can be continuously rotated and zoomed. The units can only be given contingent command, ie the soldiers of a troop cannot be selected individually and cannot be divided or combined with other troops.
Various factors influence the course of the battle. Trees and buildings provide cover and privacy, higher positions increase the range and visibility, attacks on the flank or rear of a troop are more effective. There are also psychological factors: if a troop loses too many soldiers, it may turn to flee. In addition, there are opponents of fear and hate for the various types of troops, who either lead to escape or to a mad, uncontrollable attack. The player himself has a similar possibility to intervene, he can give one of his battalions additional motivation via a corresponding button, but also gives up control of the remaining units. Other possibilities are the use of magic or magical objects.
After the fighting, the gold received for the mission can be used to replace the fallen soldiers with new recruits on overview screens, but only as long as the unit has not been wiped out. If all soldiers have been killed, this squad is no longer available. There are also wounded soldiers who are unavailable for the next mission, but are available again for the next one. The number of available troops increases in the course of the game as several mercenaries join Bernhardt's army. Close and long-range fighters, cavalry and artillery are represented, mixed with fantasy elements such as magic and steampunk weapons and composed of various fantasy peoples ( dwarves , elves, etc.). The troops also gain experience through the battles, which makes them stronger. In addition, better equipment and magical items can be purchased from a dealer.
development
Mindscape relied primarily on workstations from Silicon Graphics in combination with software tools from Softimage for the development of the game . For the game, over 70 characters were pre-rendered and converted into sprites . The game's soundtrack, described by US magazine Computer Gaming World as a cross between John Williams and Tchaikovsky , was created by Mark Knight.
Shortly after publication, Mindscape announced work on a sequel. This was published in 1998 under the title Warhammer: Dark Omen for Windows and PlayStation.
reception
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Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat received mixed reviews. While many testers generally rated the game positively and praised the combat system, the role-playing game elements and the narration and staging, there was detailed criticism, for example of the interface and the high degree of difficulty or its consequences for the style of play. So criticized Joerg Langer in the PC Player rejuvenate the few ways to keep your own troops, or in the words of the US magazine Computer Gaming World : " It's possible to win battles but lose the War by taking unacceptably high casualties " (German: "It it is possible to win battles, but to lose the war through unacceptably high casualties. ”According to Langer, this leads to missions having to be repeated until the losses remain within an acceptable range. Ultimately, that has less to do with strategy than with annoying memorization. The influence of coincidences is also too great, Langer's conclusion is therefore:
“The approaches are there, in contrast to many other board game implementations, the computer medium is fully exploited. Patient professionals and connoisseurs are well entertained, but casual strategists are hopelessly overwhelmed. "
The test of the PlayStation version on Gamespot was devastating . While tester Trent C. Ward rated the Windows version similar to Langer, Hugh Sterbakov described the console version as an " amalgam " from the Warcraft combat system and the character development of Final Fantasy , that none of the strengths of the two titles capture and only for especially passionate fans of the license are interesting. The criticism in the German-language games magazine Video Games was much less harsh . Tetsuhiko Hara mainly criticized the inadequate controls on the game console, as there is no support for the PlayStation mouse:
"Oh dear! Again, this is one of those games that makes you wonder if the developers have ever held a joypad in their hands. Although all combat commands [...] can be called up directly at the push of a button, fiddling with the control pad over terrain that can hold several screen sizes usually turns into chaos. [...] Without the shortcoming it would have deserved a Classic [note: magazine award]. "
Web links
- Warhammer: In the Shadow of the Horned Rat at MobyGames (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Johnny L. Wilson: Skaven Images . (Article scan) In: Computer Gaming World . 11/1995, No. 136, November 1995, pp. 334-346.
- ↑ a b c d e Jörg Langer : Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat . (Article scan) In: PC Player . 03/1996, No. 140, March 1996, pp. 122-124.
- ↑ a b c Peter Olafson: Storybook Wargames . (Article scan) In: Computer Gaming World . 03/1996, No. 140, March 1996, pp. 218-220.
- ↑ a b http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/warhammer-shadow-of-the-horned-rat-review/1900-2531824/
- ↑ a b http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/warhammer-shadow-of-the-horned-rat-review/1900-2550155/
- ↑ a b http://www.ninretro.de/game-10-1400.html
- ↑ Olivier "Iansolo" Aubin: Yo! Hammer . (Article scan) In: Joystick . 02/1996, No. 68, February 1996, pp. 84-86.