Overview
Warhammer: Age of Sigmar – Tempestfall has all the great sequencing and linear story, combined with the narroration that immerses you as the Lord Arcaneum that you are. This casual yet adventurous virtual reality game filled the gap in Virtual Reality storytelling!
Commanding lightning as a mortal would draw breath, you are able to shoot lighting from your finger tips. Upgrade your mighty weapons, and unleash devastating combos while duel wielding your sword, a staff or a more or less…wand.
Virtual Reality Implementation
Affordances (or things that you are able to touch, grip and grab) are done well enough in Warhammer, however the items you come across are few and far between to play with.
You can hold a lantern from its handle but it has no benefit, but its good to see the studio working on playing with items in the space around us. You are not able to pick up much else around your environment, but the immersion is there and the weapons you play with feel polished and not clunky at all.
The menu feels really smooth when pulling up your weapons, you simply press a button and hover over the desired item from a wheel near your hand. However I found that it was too easy to select another item from the wheel, but it is easy enough to forgive.
Comfort and Controls
Comfort is right where it needs to be, and you do not find yourself in fatigue or tiring out from swinging your weapons. Pacing throughout the level is well paced. You do not find yourself being dragged though the levels, and the chapters are short enough to play longer sessions if that is your cup of tea.
Controls are very intuitive, simple and elegant. Each hand can summon either the torch or your weapon, making the controls well implemented and very intuitive for those that are left handed instead, or prefer to be ambidextrous.
Level Design
Carbon Studios has done an excellent job at pipelining you into a story, as single player story should be.
Beginning levels drive you strait into the action and allow you to explore a little bit without being lost. As the game progresses, you are allowed a bit more freedom as you are allowed to enter areas that are side quests. This is a good use of space and time in virtual reality, as you are rewarded for time spent and energy spent for stronger weapons later in the game.
Side Missions are very fast and either full of combat, or challenge you to climb the walls to get to some neat upgrades to sink into your items. The reward for spending some time in the quests are well rewarded with upgrades to easily slay mobs of Nighthaunts in the later levels.
Later Missions introduce you to newer, faster, and stronger enemies, but to give critique, it would be welcomed to fight more than just Nighthaunts for more than half the game before they toss something different at you, And even then, it is only for this part of the level that you encounter these enemies. Otherwise its back to the same old fighting ghosts and skeletons.
Game mechanics like faster recharge for your spells feel great and feels rewarding to upgrade weapons.
Some short coming of this game is that it needs more polish. Audio queues seem to repeat when going back to a spot you have already played though, breaking your story immersion. Some audio sequences play though different people even when you are far away from the original conversation, making the Anvils standing around sound like a moving speaker box.
Gregs Gavel
From start to finish, this game is polished, well written, and a great story to play in Virtual Reality at any price, but finding it on sale would be worth it the most. The game is comfortable to play, the missions are not long, and there has been updates and support since launch!
There is also a new Hardcore mode for those that want a tough experience right out of the gate, or if you are a die-hard Warhammer fan, and you want more out of this game, then that game mode is for you!
All in all, this game is defiantly something you will want to pick up if you enjoy any kind of story or you are suffering from the lack of content on the Steam Marketplace.
