"Bulwark Evolution: Falconeer Chronicles" is a strategy game that allows you to build and customize your own bulwark, a mobile fortress used for defense and offense. As the Falconeer, you will command a squadron of falcons, utilizing their aerial abilities to explore, scout, and battle in a vast, open world. Upgrade your bulwark, train your falcons, and conquer territories to lead your faction to victory in this immersive and dynamic gaming experience.
The game features stunning visuals and a unique art style that enhances the overall experience.
It offers a relaxing and creative gameplay experience, allowing players to build sprawling cities without the pressure of complex resource management.
The developer is highly responsive to community feedback and actively works on updates, which adds to the game's potential for growth.
The controls can be clunky and unintuitive, especially for mouse and keyboard users, making gameplay frustrating at times.
There is a lack of clear direction and explanation of game mechanics, which can leave players feeling lost and unsure of how to progress.
The game can feel shallow and repetitive after a few hours, with limited content and no clear end goals or challenges.
gameplay
442 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
71%
5%
The gameplay of Bulwark is characterized by its relaxing and creative city-building mechanics, allowing players to construct visually stunning settlements with a high degree of customization. While the game offers a unique blend of light strategy and exploration, many players find the mechanics to be shallow and poorly explained, leading to a lack of depth and engagement over time. Overall, it serves as a casual experience that prioritizes aesthetics and creativity over complex gameplay, making it suitable for those seeking a laid-back gaming session.
“It is rare to encounter a city-builder that is able to strike a good balance between creative freedom of building and gameplay mechanics like this one.”
“The gameplay is a whole new concept and I love it.”
“Once you get all the mechanics and features (which aren't too complicated), the game becomes one of those 'one more turn' type of games; it's just so satisfying to build, upgrade, and expand and to explore and find new captains and crew to join you so you can set up new trade routes and ports.”
“Great game, relaxing and therapeutic but gets boring after a couple of hours as you're able to explore the mechanics within a short time frame.”
“Although the main focus of the game is to continue building no matter what, the content falls short and mechanics are not deep enough to challenge the brain in any form.”
“I want to like Bulwark, but I find myself frustrated and bored by the gameplay, and unfortunately I don't think it'd get any better.”
graphics
238 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
42%
2%
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning visuals and unique art style, which blend beautifully with the gameplay to create an inviting and relaxing atmosphere. Players appreciate the detailed environments, charming aesthetics, and the ease of building visually appealing cities, making it a standout feature of the experience. While some critiques mention a lack of visual variety, the overall consensus is that the graphics significantly enhance the game's appeal and enjoyment.
“From the moment you dive into its meticulously crafted world from lush landscapes to intricately built fortresses, you're greeted with stunning visuals that showcase detailed environments in a beautifully designed art style with a novel UI paradigm.”
“The game has beautiful art style, nice music and seems reasonably bug free.”
“Stunning visuals, lots of secrets to discover, and a charmingly simple UI that lets you bask in the beauty of your growing island empire rather than getting bogged down in the details.”
“The atmosphere of the game is great, the visuals stunning... but damn it, it's so clunky to play!”
“Lack of visual variety: I quite like this game's visuals, I just wish that there was a bit more variety. When I first saw this game, I thought there was going to be a lot more visual variety, for example, I thought every faction would have a different design for the surveyor (the player airship), which is not the case.”
“As someone who values gameplay and mechanics over atmosphere and graphics, I personally don't enjoy it much.”
music
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
44%
3%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its exceptional quality, with many reviewers highlighting the epic soundtrack that complements the game's atmosphere and enhances the overall experience. The blend of orchestral and folk elements, along with immersive sound design, creates a captivating ambiance that keeps players engaged for hours. Overall, the music is considered a major selling point, contributing significantly to the game's charm and emotional depth.
“The soundtrack is epic, perfectly complementing the gloomy grandeur of the game's world and its battles.”
“There’s no lyrics but the vocals and just general feel of the soundtrack makes it seem like it’s a part of the world, like those singing it are the sailors on my surveyor as we sail through the skies.”
“The music and the gameplay are both very compelling and fun.”
“While it lacks meaningful endgame, the novelty and music alone make it worthwhile.”
“The atmosphere is really inspired, as I said, and so is the music; I just wish there were even more tracks with throat singing.”
“The game is gorgeous; the art style is really unique, and the soundtrack is a major selling point.”
atmosphere
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
73%
23%
4%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its stunning visuals, meticulous design, and immersive soundscapes, creating a relaxing and engaging environment that players enjoy returning to. Many reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke a strong sense of place, with atmospheric weather effects and diverse architecture enhancing the overall experience. Overall, it is described as a chill and captivating city-building game that successfully combines aesthetic appeal with thematic depth.
“The meticulous design is impressive and blends seamlessly with the game's relaxed yet engaging atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere is bewitching; so often I have dropped in to try a feature and found myself still playing hours later.”
“If you enjoy games with a heavy emphasis on atmosphere and theme, this is the game for you.”
“As someone who values gameplay and mechanics over atmosphere and graphics, I personally don't enjoy it much.”
“The rest is mainly there to provide atmosphere, lore, and a bit of meaning.”
“If you played Falconeer, then you will be somewhat familiar with the aesthetic - but the whole art direction, sound design, and overall atmosphere is very emotive, all accompanied by a fantastic soundtrack that perfectly fits the style and taps into the game world.”
story
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
55%
13%
The game's story is a mix of engaging world-building and character-driven narratives, with players unlocking new units and lore as they progress through missions. While some reviews praise the immersive universe and the organic flow of gameplay, others criticize the lack of a cohesive storyline and the need for clearer objectives. Overall, the narrative experience is seen as enjoyable but could benefit from more depth and structure.
“The setting and story of the world got me intrigued, and it's a huge plus that all characters you meet are fully voiced with their own little stories to share.”
“Awesome immersive universe and story.”
“A beautiful and simple game that unfolds like a story.”
“Tedious, crappy controls and just plain boring - no real story, bad voice acting.”
“Otherwise the story is about as bare bones as it gets and the tutorial has way too much hand holding.”
“Unfortunately due to the small number of captains, and the lack of a story or what could be considered legitimate progress after the initial setup of any map, the magic wears off pretty fast.”
optimization
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
68%
14%
Overall, the game's optimization is praised for its stability and smooth performance, even when handling complex constructions, with minimal bugs or glitches reported. However, some players express disappointment over the lack of optimization for mouse and keyboard controls, suggesting that the game feels more suited for gamepad use. While the performance is generally solid, there are calls for further enhancements, particularly in structured gameplay elements.
“Clearly, significant effort has been put into optimization, especially considering the complexity of some of the constructions I managed to build without encountering significant performance issues.”
“In terms of performance, Bulwark impressed me with its stability.”
“With an almost constant stable performance with only the rare stutter, it's surprisingly well optimized for its scope even with more complex and large constructs, something even other games in the genre struggle with.”
“A word to those who prefer a more structured approach: be warned this game is more open-ended sandbox than optimized RTS.”
“I must say: I am entirely unaware of what plans the devs have or whether or not content will follow or be optimized, but as of now, there is very little reason to buy the game.”
“Why even release this for PC with the complete lack of any optimization for mouse and keyboard?”
grinding
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and poorly balanced, particularly with the new splinter currency and navigation mechanics. While some appreciate the lack of excessive resource grinding for endgame buildings, many express frustration with controls and interactions that detract from the overall experience. Despite these issues, some reviewers still find the game enjoyable and worth the investment.
“The new splinter currency is a grindy mess and feels poorly balanced.”
“Tedious, crappy controls and just plain boring - no real story, bad voice acting.”
“There's only so much pretty you can build before it becomes either tedious or inconsequential or both.”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
50%
30%
Bulwark offers a solid level of replayability, with unique buildings and airships for its four factions, allowing for varied gameplay experiences. While some players note that it may feel similar across playthroughs and could be relatively short, the ongoing development and promise of additional content enhance its replay value significantly. Overall, it strikes a balance between aesthetic city-building and engaging gameplay, making it a compelling choice for players seeking replayable content.
“The game is still being actively developed, bugs are being fixed and lots of content will be added, but it's already a very replayable piece of art.”
“I suspect it would be quite short, and replayability-wise maybe a bit too similar to previous playthroughs.”
“Almost endless replayability.”
“There are several ways you can play the game and it has a lot of replay value as well.”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
Overall, the game's stability is mixed; while some players report a flawless experience with no bugs or performance issues, others encounter significant bugs that detract from the gameplay. It runs well on platforms like the Steam Deck, but there are notable concerns about unfinished elements and inconsistent performance, particularly with mouse and keyboard controls.
“Also runs great on Steam Deck, so perfect for some laid-back couch gaming.”
“The game has a beautiful art style, nice music, and seems reasonably bug-free; a reinstall fixed the achievement issue.”
“The game has a beautiful art style, nice music, and seems reasonably bug-free; a reinstall fixed the achievement issue.”
“The game as it stands right now is rather buggy and doesn’t feel finished.”
“Just not a lot of fun and it is quite buggy with mouse and keyboard.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization model is praised for being fairly priced and offering great DLC, reflecting a developer's commitment to creating a beloved game experience for players.
“Fairly priced, great DLC and monetization model, and a developer who truly cares about creating a game for people to love.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the engaging personality of the developer, who is described as a "funny good man" with a "crazy beard," adding a lighthearted and entertaining touch to the overall experience. Players appreciate the comedic elements found in community interactions and developer insights.
“I read a few notes on a forum, YouTube, and even the dev himself with his beautiful crazy beard, lol! A funny good man!”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game to be visually stunning and emotionally impactful, often reflecting on their experiences with a sense of beauty and depth. The emotional resonance of the gameplay leaves a lasting impression, enhancing the overall experience.
“And boy is it pretty... just looking at what I'd done at the end of this session, beautiful and emotional.”