Expeditions: Conquistador Review - Page 4
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On the other hand, the game's classes aren't created equal. Scouts are so much better than just about any other class that you will always want to have as many of them as possible. Their supposed drawback is their lack of ranged weapons. But it just so happens that ranged weapons in Conquistador are borderline useless.
Even your best sharpshooters will have around 80% hit chance on a target in a clear open field, with your other classes scoring as low as base 30%. And if you know anything about probability when it comes to turn-based games, this translates into you never being able to actually hit anything. But when a miracle happens and you land a shot, it will generally do less damage than a melee attack that always hits.
The game's passive abilities are also very much uneven, with some of them being barely usable, while others are an absolute must. And since you only get a few of them, you don't get a lot of room for experimentation. This lack of viable options then makes the game's battles feel a bit samey after a while.
Still, overall, the game's combat system, while not overly varied, is more than solid. Plus, it doesn't exist in a vacuum. The injuries you receive during battles take at least a few days to heal, incentivizing you to be cautious and strive for flawless victories.
Another curious thing about Conquistador's combat and character development systems is that both experience and equipment go into a general pool, with you being free to choose which of your followers to promote. Equipment takes things even further and instead of actual items exists as an abstract resource you can use to upgrade the gear of your followers. And while spending experience is a permanent action, you can freely redistribute equipment depending on who you want to take into battle.
One last thing to mention here is the game's difficulty settings. There are four default presets you can then further customize by adjusting how deadly the AI is going to be or how many resources you're going to find during your travels. There's also an optional Ironman mode if that's your thing.
Technical Information
Unfortunately, Conquistador was one of the early adopters of the Unity engine. Which means the game utilizes way more resources than it has any right to and is prone to occasional stutters even on modern machines. Things aren't too bad, honestly, but you’d expect a game from 2013 to run silky smooth, and that's not exactly the case here.
Other than that, the game isn't prone to crashing and doesn't have any glaring bugs other than an occasional visual glitch.
Speaking of visuals, they're not exactly high-end, but they're aesthetically pleasing, especially when it comes to character portraits and loading screens. Still, with the graphics being fairly basic, it's the game's music that does a lot of heavy lifting to sell the setting to you. And it really gets the job done. The tracks are both memorable and appropriate.
Unlike some other early Unity games that outright claimed it was impossible to implement a proper save system (only to then add it in a post-release patch), Conquistador offers both manual and autosaves that work without any noticeable issues.
The game also has a multiplayer mode that allows you to fight duels with your friends by first putting together two teams and then throwing them into your arena of choice.
Conclusion
Expeditions: Conquistador is a game that despite its budget-related limitations manages to fill you with the spirit of adventure. It is easily one of my favorite games of the whole Kickstarter gold rush era, and I can't recommend it enough to anyone looking for a unique experience. And if you so happen to find the conquistador aesthetic really cool, you'll enjoy it all the more.
