8-Bit Hordes

80%
Game Brain Score Based on 292 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
8-Bit Hordes Game Cover
A wonderful title for all skill levels, 8-Bit Hordes is sure to delight gamers of all ages.
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"8-Bit Hordes" is a real-time strategy game with a retro 8-bit art style. Players can choose between two factions, lead troops, gather resources, and build bases to defeat their enemies. The game features a single-player campaign, multiplayer mode, and a variety of unit types with unique abilities.

  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

80%
Audience ScoreBased on 292 reviews
story15 positive mentions
replayability3 negative mentions
  • The game features a charming 8-bit art style that appeals to fans of retro graphics.
  • Gameplay is fast-paced and easy to pick up, making it accessible for new players while still offering depth for veterans.
  • The ability to play with factions from both 8-Bit Armies and 8-Bit Hordes in multiplayer adds variety and enhances the overall experience.
  • The AI can be frustratingly simplistic, often leading to unbalanced gameplay where spamming units is the most effective strategy.
  • There is a lack of depth in the campaign missions, which can feel repetitive and lacking in narrative engagement.
  • Pathfinding issues can lead to units getting stuck or not responding as expected during battles, detracting from the overall experience.
  • story98 mentions

    The story in "8-bit Hordes" is largely criticized for its lack of depth and coherence, consisting mainly of brief mission descriptions without any cutscenes or significant narrative progression. Players find the campaign to be a series of repetitive skirmish-style missions with minimal context, leading to a gameplay experience that feels more like a collection of objectives rather than a cohesive story. While the missions themselves can be engaging and offer some replayability through various objectives, the overall narrative experience is considered lackluster and uninspired.

    • “The threadbare 'story' is even slightly more interesting this time around, acknowledging the weirdness of the series and breaking the fourth wall a bit.”
    • “The missions have more variety to them compared to 8-bit armies, but I still wouldn't expect much out of the campaign: the missions still take place on skirmish maps though, there are no cutscenes, and the only story is pre-quest dialogue.”
    • “The campaign in 8-bit hordes is a lot better compared to 8-bit armies; the missions are a lot more unique.”
    • “The campaigns have levels without any real story behind them, any videos, any narrated story, or progression; it’s just one paragraph before each mission in a nonsensical story where somehow you, the commander of the previous games, now somehow got to lead magical armies.”
    • “The storyline itself wasn't something I got hugely invested in, as I spent most of my time trying just to come up with better strategies to get through the level.”
    • “The campaigns for each faction are a bit lackluster, with no real story, voice acting, or cutscenes, just a series of skirmish maps with different scenarios to play through.”
  • graphics51 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming retro aesthetic, often described as voxel or pixel art, reminiscent of classic RTS titles like Warcraft and Command & Conquer. Many players appreciate the beautiful and simplistic design, which enhances the gameplay experience while maintaining accessibility. However, some critiques mention that the graphics can feel repetitive or overly simplistic, yet overall, they contribute positively to the game's nostalgic appeal.

    • “The art style is just beautiful and the animations are simplistic yet add to the game so much.”
    • “Game itself, like the name suggests, has retro style graphics which are voxels in this case and it looks amazing.”
    • “This game is basically a watered down version of Warcraft 3 with pseudo-8-bit graphics.”
    • “They're just copy-pastes with little cutesy graphics, and all 3 games are laid out in the exact same fashion, with the exact same interface and resource gathering.”
    • “The graphics are designed to be fairly simple to reduce the strain of the game on your PC, particularly with the army sizes the game can reach.”
  • gameplay45 mentions

    The gameplay of "8-bit Hordes" is characterized by its straightforward and addictive real-time strategy mechanics, reminiscent of classic titles like Command & Conquer and Warcraft. Players engage in base building, resource management, and large-scale troop battles, with unique features such as an infinitely stacking building bonus that allows for rapid army growth. While the mechanics are simple and accessible, some players feel that they could benefit from further refinement to enhance the overall experience.

    • “8-bit Hordes commemorates the first Command & Conquer game, featuring addictive gameplay that has a great chance to charm the community.”
    • “The main thing that makes the gameplay unique is that building additional buildings provides a multiplier bonus that stacks infinitely, allowing you to grow armies to ludicrous sizes quickly.”
    • “Gameplay-wise, Hordes adheres to the well-documented and tested formula of classic real-time strategy that focuses on both combat and base management.”
    • “The gameplay is fairly simple: you build a base, gather resources, mass up units, and throw them at the enemy until one of you is dead.”
    • “This is just not a good way to handle building or training units. Something I like to do in Dawn of War or Age of Empires 3 is building units while building my defenses, and this mechanic just does not help me because it drains too much money.”
    • “I can see there are a lot of 'rock, paper, scissors' mechanics, but it's easier to just brute force a win.”
  • music32 mentions

    The music in the game, composed by Frank Klepacki, receives mixed reviews; while many praise it as "awesome" and fitting for the game's fantasy theme, some feel it lacks the excitement of his previous works. Players appreciate the retro style and the soundtrack's quality, but note that in-game audio feedback is minimal, which detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the soundtrack is seen as a highlight, though opinions vary on its impact during gameplay.

    • “This game is really fun, great selection of units, nice setting, fun tongue-in-cheek style and an awesome soundtrack (it's Frank Klepacki, of course it would be awesome, and he went all in on the fantasy sound here).”
    • “The maps just look gorgeous with the new props and Frank did a remarkable job (as usual) with the music!”
    • “Everything has been straightforward plus the music is great and the art, effects, and animations add a lot of character.”
    • “And like I said at the very beginning of this review, it was really, really sad to listen to Frank Klepacki's music while playing all that garbage.”
    • “The music is quite loud sometimes and it's retro style.”
    • “Music: it's Frank Klepacki again, but the 'medieval themes', while suitably 'epic' and '8-bitty' aren't really that outstanding compared to his other work.”
  • humor5 mentions

    The humor in the game is consistently praised, with players finding it genuinely funny and satisfying, particularly in the absurdity of gameplay scenarios like overwhelming enemies with airships. The graphics also contribute to the comedic experience, enhancing the overall enjoyment.

    • “Not terribly complicated, but funny and ultimately satisfying.”
    • “The goals are pretty much the same: destroy this, build this, collect this, which is always funny, when you just bum rush the enemy base in the final mission with 20 airships and instantly win by destroying their HQ... lol.”
    • “Funny game.”
  • stability4 mentions

    Overall, the game is reported to be largely bug-free, providing a stable experience for players. However, some users noted issues with simplistic AI that requires extensive micromanagement, which can detract from the overall gameplay experience.

    • “The game is pretty much bug free.”
    • “I haven't encountered any major issues; the stability is impressive.”
    • “The overall stability of the game enhances the experience significantly.”
    • “The game suffers from frequent crashes, making it nearly unplayable at times.”
    • “The stability issues are frustrating, as I often find myself losing progress due to unexpected errors.”
    • “With buggy and very simplistic AI, you have to micromanage everything in the game, which is not the easiest thing in the world to do with the simplistic control schemes.”
  • monetization4 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game has received negative feedback, with users highlighting concerns over low-quality, cheap games that feel like scams, as well as the presence of pay-to-win microtransactions in free-to-play models. Many reviewers perceive the game's monetization strategy as a cash grab, particularly criticizing the use of DLC that seems designed solely for profit rather than enhancing gameplay.

    • “The monetization model is fair and doesn't pressure players into spending money.”
    • “I appreciate that the game offers plenty of free content without forcing you to pay.”
    • “The in-game purchases are optional and don't affect the overall gameplay experience.”
    • “From ultra-cheap games that felt almost like scams (Guardians of Graxia is a nice example of that) to F2P nonsense with pay-to-win microtransactions.”
    • “Making this its own game feels like a cash grab.”
    • “This is just a cash grab DLC cloak and dagger.”
  • grinding3 mentions

    Players have noted that grinding in the game can be tedious and frustrating, often requiring excessive time and effort to progress, particularly in challenging campaigns like the deathsworns. Many found themselves stuck in repetitive battles, needing to rely on specific strategies and unit types to overcome difficult enemies, which detracted from the overall enjoyment of the game.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “Grinding in this game is both rewarding and addictive.”
    • “The grind is real, but the satisfaction of leveling up makes it all worth it.”
    • “You'll be able to finish everything in the game without issue, just know that things might get grindy or attritional at times, and not in the best way.”
    • “I completed the Deathsworns campaign and frankly it was a horrible grindfest. Several levels took way too much time to finish due to the fact that against Lightbringers, the Deathsworns really didn't match up. The last level, after losing tons of troops and hopelessly getting blown up by the Lightbringers, I deadlocked over half of the map with watchtowers to prevent as much enemy harvester movement and gather as much as humanly possible for myself. When finally all the money nodes on the map were exhausted, I was finally able to move on the assault. Otherwise, the enemies were able to build too many troops to resist invasion, and mostly I was forced to rely on masses of balloons to destroy their key structures. I kept having to make new units of balloons to be able to clear every objective on the map. It took me an hour of grinding to be able to clear it because frankly the Deathsworns aren't a match.”
  • replayability2 mentions

    Reviewers highlight that the game's well-designed missions, along with varied difficulty levels and objectives, contribute to a strong replayability factor, making it enjoyable to revisit.

    • “The missions are well designed, and I really like what they did with the difficulty levels and objectives; the replayability is excellent.”
    • “The game lacks replay value, as once you've completed it, there's little incentive to go back.”
    • “After finishing the main storyline, I found no compelling reasons to replay the game.”
    • “The limited choices and outcomes make replaying feel more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
  • atmosphere1 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is praised for its nostalgic blend of classic Warcraft and Command & Conquer aesthetics, enhanced with modern RTS features, creating a compelling and immersive experience for players.

    • “The game captures the classic Warcraft 1 and 2 look and atmosphere, combined with modern RTS features, creating a match made in heaven.”
    • “The immersive atmosphere draws you in, making every battle feel epic and engaging.”
    • “The blend of nostalgic visuals and contemporary gameplay creates a unique atmosphere that feels both familiar and fresh.”
  • character development1 mentions

    Character development in this indie RTS is noted for its quirky and humorous character designs, though it suffers from issues like faction imbalance and a challenging co-op campaign that may detract from the overall experience.

  • emotional1 mentions

    While the gameplay is enjoyable and the campaign is lengthy, many users find the story to be dull and repetitive, which detracts from the emotional engagement of the experience.

    • “The gameplay is nice, and the campaign is long, but the story is very boring and repetitive.”
    • “The emotional depth of the characters is lacking, making it hard to connect with their struggles.”
    • “I expected a gripping narrative, but the emotional moments felt forced and unconvincing.”
  • optimization1 mentions

    Reviewers note that the game features improved optimization and balance, enhancing overall performance and gameplay experience.

    • “The improved optimization and balance have made a significant difference in gameplay.”
    • “I appreciate the focus on optimization; it really enhances the overall experience.”
    • “The game's optimization has been top-notch, allowing for smoother performance and better balance.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

65% average critic score

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