Fantasy General II Review Summary

A polished tactical RPG with branching narratives and rich replay value, though the steep base price and required DLC limit overall value.

Great overall game quality: Overall impressions are very positive, citing a beautiful game that is both enjoyable and fun. The graphics, story, and gameplay combine for a satisfying experience.

Branching narrative with replay value: The story is well-written and features branching paths based on player choices. This design encourages multiple playthroughs and meaningful narrative agency.

Deep tactical turn-based combat: The core gameplay revolves around deep turn-based tactical hex strategy. Mechanics like terrain, morale, and unit interactions provide significant strategic depth.

Hero skill trees add depth: Heroes feature unique skill trees that allow for meaningful customization and impact gameplay. This adds another layer of strategy to unit management.

Bug-free experience reported: The game is reported to be very stable with few to no bugs, providing a smooth and polished experience. This enhances overall satisfaction.

DLC needed for value: The game's replay value and full experience rely on expensive DLC that many feel is essential but overpriced. Seven reviewers agree that the base game feels incomplete without paid content.

Mediocre story quality: Six reviewers found the story boring, cliche, and unengaging. The narrative fails to captivate players, detracting from the overall experience.

Too expensive base price: Multiple reviewers criticize the $40 price tag as too high even on sale. The cost is considered unreasonable for the content offered.

Base game feels incomplete: Four reviewers describe the base game as a $40 demo with an $80 total cost including DLC. They suggest pricing should be $20 for base and $10 for DLC.

Poor value for money: Three users state the game is worth at most €10, not the €39 or €80 price tags. The value proposition is strongly negative.

Turn-based tactical core: The game is fundamentally a turn-based tactical strategy game with unit management on campaign maps, similar to classics like Panzer General or Fantasy General.

Hex-grid combat system: Combat is played on a hex grid, emphasizing positioning and tactical unit maneuvers, comparable to Heroes of Might and Magic.

Unit upgrade system: Units can be upgraded through classes, experience, and equipment, allowing specialization and progression.

Branching campaign narrative: The campaign offers branching missions with moral choices that affect story outcomes, providing replayability and player-driven narrative.

Civilization-style strategic layer: The game's strategic overview and troop movement resemble the Civilization series, with empire management and war focus.

Performance praised by many: Multiple users report smooth and stable performance, with no crashes or bugs, even on older or low-end hardware. This suggests the game runs well for a wide range of systems.

Optimization issues flagged: Some users report poor optimization, including GPU overload on minimum settings and lag during army changes. This indicates performance problems on certain hardware configurations.

Frame drops during gameplay: Users note occasional frame drops during spell casting and on some maps, with suggestions to lower cosmetic environment settings. These performance dips can affect gameplay experience.

Corrupted save files reported: Two users experienced corrupted save files in the Malrics Valley scenario, making it unplayable. This is a critical bug that needs immediate attention.

GPU demanding on high settings: The game requires a strong GPU like a 1660 Super for minimum settings in large battles, and is generally very GPU demanding. This may limit accessibility for lower-end systems.

Strong recommendation for genre fans: The strongest consensus is that the game is a must-play for fans of turn-based strategy, hex-grid tactics, and fantasy settings. Players frequently compare it to classics like Panzer General, Battle Brothers, and Heroes of Might & Magic.

Recommended for hex and fantasy fans: The game is recommended for fans of fantasy strategy, hex-grid games, and the Panzer General/Corps series. Players who enjoy calculated tactical moves will find it appealing.

Do not recommend buying: A vocal minority strongly advises against buying the game at any price, even for free. They feel the game is fundamentally not worth playing or purchasing.

Not worth full price: A significant number of reviewers advise against buying the game at full price, citing the $39 price tag as too high. They recommend waiting for a deep sale or discount before purchasing.

Mixed feedback on DLC value: Opinions are mixed on the DLC: some consider it indispensable for the full experience, while others caution against buying it at full price. The DLC is seen as expensive relative to its value.

Community fair range: $10.00 - $25.00.

Game completion: 49.0h.

Story completion: 50.0h.

Session length: 2.5h.

The game has mixed reception: some players find initial enjoyment that fades due to repetitiveness and difficulty walls, while others struggle from the start with a steep learning curve and lack of guidance.

Friction: Steep learning curve; Repetitive missions; Difficulty walls; Tedious movement; Limited resources; Lack of guidance.

Tactical Strategist: Careful, methodical, and adaptive; uses save-scumming as a learning tool, prioritizes positioning and counter-play over raw power. Motivation: Mastery of challenging, fair tactical combat and meaningful unit progression. Stance: buy.

Intimidated Newcomer: Prefers lower difficulty settings, wants to explore story and unit upgrades without stress, and struggles with dense interface and steep learning curve. Motivation: Enjoying a tactical fantasy game without punishing difficulty or opaque systems. Stance: deep sale.

Value-conscious Veteran: Enjoys tactical depth and long campaigns but is patient and waits for discounts to purchase. Motivation: Getting good value for money; enjoys the gameplay but feels the base price and DLCs are too high. Stance: sale.

Steam Deck: The game exhibits frequent crashes that severely disrupt gameplay, occasional frame drops, and a user interface that may be hard to read on small screens like the Steam Deck. While performance is generally acceptable, the stability issues make the experience unreliable.

Monetization: The reviews primarily criticize the base game for having limited content and requiring DLC to access full factions, which some players view as a form of day-1 DLC. However, there is no evidence of microtransactions, pay-to-win, gacha, or in-game currency. Pricing complaints about DLC and base game are common, but the free giveaway and discounted bundles offset some negativity. Overall, the monetization model is traditional DLC expansions, not predatory.