Six Ages: Ride like the Wind
- October 17, 2019
- A Sharp
- 20h median play time
This charming sequel doesn't need flashy new innovations to craft an engrossing adventure.
Get on Steam
Get on Apple Store"Six Ages: Ride like the Wind" is a storybook strategy game, set in the ancient world of Glorantha. As the leader of a clan, players will navigate hundreds of small encounters and make decisions that drive the story forward, building a legacy for their clan over multiple generations. With deep simulation systems, multiple difficulty levels, and a limit on reloading for Iron Willed players, this game offers a challenging and immersive experience.
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Reviews
- Interesting lore and world-building that immerses players in a unique bronze-age setting.
- Engaging gameplay that combines narrative choices with resource management, allowing for varied playthroughs.
- Beautiful artwork and a compelling soundtrack enhance the overall experience.
- The game can feel overly linear, with limited choices leading to a predetermined ending.
- Heavy reliance on RNG can lead to frustrating outcomes, making it difficult to strategize effectively.
- The user interface is clunky and can be confusing, detracting from the overall gameplay experience.
- story166 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The game's story is rich and immersive, featuring compelling world-building and character development, but it is often criticized for being overly linear and railroaded, limiting player agency in decision-making. While many players appreciate the depth and integration of lore into gameplay, some feel that the mechanics detract from the narrative experience, leading to a lack of meaningful choices and replayability. Overall, it offers a unique blend of storytelling and strategy, appealing to fans of narrative-driven games, but may frustrate those seeking more freedom in their gameplay.
“With a beautiful blend of original music, hand-drawn artwork, great storytelling and world-building, and intense turn-based combat, I could not recommend this game more for anyone wanting to try their hand at a narrative-driven choices-matter experience managing a Bronze Age barbarian clan.”
“The lore and story in this game are amazing, providing a rich and immersive experience that keeps players engaged.”
“This game combines choose your own adventure, a simulated village management game, great visuals, and compelling mythic storytelling.”
“And despite being billed as a 'play your own way' kind of game, you find out quickly that you are railroaded to the plot because there are only a very few select choices that continue the game to the end, and many that will end the game without warning or context.”
“The main quest is quite anticlimactic, and the game ends too abruptly.”
“I just cannot shake the feeling that my choices have very little effect on the underlying story.”
- gameplay91 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a mix of engaging narrative and complex mechanics, but it suffers from a lack of clarity and intuitive design, leading to frustration for players. While the game offers depth and interesting world-building, many mechanics are hidden or poorly explained, resulting in a gameplay experience that can feel repetitive and overly reliant on chance. Overall, it presents a unique blend of RPG and strategy elements, but the execution leaves players feeling disconnected from the narrative due to its cumbersome interface and ambiguous mechanics.
“What I can say for now with only an evening's worth of playtime is that this game has just the right amount of depth to keep a player engaged in the story, just the right amount of mechanics to make it easy to learn but hard to master, and the right amount of time to allow you to comfortably settle in and enjoy the view.”
“The art is amazing, the story is fun, and the gameplay is challenging.”
“The gameplay is streamlined; for example, farming is more abstracted ('how long will our food supply hold out?' rather than 'how many bushels of food do we have?'), but the threat of starvation is much more real and present than in King of Dragon Pass.”
“Considering that these choices are 80% of the gameplay loop, it feels way too underdeveloped.”
“The only cons I could find were the gameplay loop being too repetitive and ambiguous, and that the end game quests were not that clear to identify, so you don't know exactly how to win the game.”
“Everything about the game entices you to immerse yourself in the narrative and explore the in-game world... and everything about the actual gameplay then commonly punishes you for doing so.”
- graphics39 mentions
- 51 % positive mentions
- 41 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by beautiful, hand-drawn artwork that enhances its narrative-driven experience, though they may not appeal to players seeking modern 3D visuals. While the aesthetic is praised for its thematic consistency and stunning illustrations, some players note that the static images and lack of animation can detract from the sense of agency in gameplay. Overall, the artwork is a highlight, contributing significantly to the game's atmosphere and storytelling, despite some criticisms regarding its dated technology and user interface.
“The game shines in its artwork and its lore.”
“The art style and design, particularly of the different peoples and cultures you encounter in your valley, are beautiful.”
“This game, its theme, its graphics, its design, its world is so beautifully crafted - it is a shame that most people do not know about it!”
“First of all, this title is a no-go for any gamers who insist on eye-popping graphics or just decent 3D graphics for that matter.”
“The graphics are static images and there is no speech or animation.”
“There's some posts about it in the game's Steam forum and no real solution provided besides 'update Windows,' which really shouldn't be an issue in the first place since the entire aesthetic and technology behind this game is circa 2003.”
- music28 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 32 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance the narrative experience, with many reviewers noting its beautiful and immersive nature. While some find the soundtrack to be repetitive or less impactful compared to previous titles, it is still considered fitting for the game's themes and scenes. Overall, the combination of music and stunning artwork contributes significantly to the game's appeal, though opinions vary on its memorability and effectiveness.
“The music sets the mood perfectly.”
“For me the musical ambiance is of prime importance, and they succeeded in creating a magical one.”
“The soundtrack is nice and immersive, truly making you feel like you're experiencing the story of a Bronze Age tribe.”
“Also the music was pretty annoying coming in short tracks, all the time changing, not underlining to gameplay, even in its core it fits good to the atmosphere.”
“The background music is a clear, clear downgrade from kodp.”
“I'd like to give this more of a chance, but the music is really a big let down, and the choices of sitting through the awful background music or playing the game in silence like a psychopath are not appealing.”
- replayability11 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
Overall, the game boasts high replayability due to its engaging story, immersive experience, and varied gameplay elements, encouraging multiple playthroughs to explore different outcomes. While some players noted a decline in replay value due to repetitive events and aimlessness in the late game, many appreciated the complexity and depth that keep the experience fresh. The combination of solid challenge and unique content ensures that no two playthroughs feel the same, making it a standout in terms of replayability.
“The replayability factor of this game alone is off the charts!”
“I'm really amazed at the complexity of what is under the hood in Six Ages and the replayability that comes with it.”
“The art is excellent, the UI is solid, the story is engaging, and there's a surprising amount of replayability; if you want to see all of the content, you're probably going to want to play through it multiple times, and even then there's enough variance that no two playthroughs are going to be the same.”
“Six Ages, on the other hand, lasts a couple of decades and even then the repetition of events undermines replayability.”
“Exploration and some of the story choices are fun but quickly fall off with little to no replay value or have extreme and unpredictable consequences on the resource management, usually to your detriment.”
“The art is excellent, the UI is solid, the story is engaging, and there's a surprising amount of replayability. If you want to see all of the content, you're probably going to want to play through it multiple times, and even then there's enough variance that no two playthroughs are going to be the same.”
- atmosphere11 mentions
- 73 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its superbly crafted, warm, and rustic setting, enhanced by beautiful artwork and compelling writing. While some players find the music distracting, many agree that it contributes to the overall immersive experience. Overall, the atmosphere effectively captures the unique and strange essence of its world, making it a standout feature of the game.
“The setting is superbly atmospheric and strange yet familiar.”
“This game is a neat concept and does very well at creating a warm, rustic atmosphere.”
“This game is a neat concept and does very well at creating a certain warm, rustic atmosphere.”
“It turns out it's a pretty compelling menu-driven management sim, with a lot of good writing, gorgeous artwork, and a really effective sense of atmosphere and place.”
“This is a spiritual prequel to the cult classic King of Dragon Pass, a narrative strategy game deep in lore, atmosphere, and role-playing, and light on micro-management.”
- grinding9 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that while the grinding aspect of the game can become tedious due to unpredictable outcomes, the streamlined gameplay and reduced tedium compared to its predecessor, "KODP," provide a more engaging experience. Players appreciate the balance of managing various tasks without feeling overwhelmed by grinding, although opinions vary on the changes made to farming mechanics. Overall, the game successfully maintains depth while minimizing grind-related frustrations.
“However, the unpredictability of outcomes is a little too random most of the time and becomes quite tedious.”
“The game, however, rapidly becomes tedious.”
“Cons: from what I've seen so far (could be mistaken), it seems they have removed some older features of kodp such as options regarding how the farming works and other minor options like speed of scouting parties.”
- humor3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is woven into its decision-making dilemmas, balancing between funny and morally challenging scenarios. Players appreciate the witty dialogue and quirky behaviors of characters, which add a light-hearted touch to the otherwise serious themes, enhancing the overall experience.
“The decisions of the tribes make the game: the dilemmas can be funny or morally horrific but always interesting.”
“Still stellar, with gorgeous pieces of art and writing that do exactly what they need to do, but still remember to throw in humor every once in a while.”
“I found the dialogue and many of the events, as well as the strange behaviors your people recommend, to be funny and sometimes heartwarming.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization of the game has been criticized for not aligning with its advertising, leading to disappointment among users.
“The monetization system feels overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
“I feel pressured to spend money to enjoy the game fully, which is frustrating.”
“The in-game purchases are way too expensive for what they offer, making it hard to justify spending.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the emotional depth of the game, highlighting that the dialogue and various events evoke both humor and warmth, creating a memorable and engaging experience.
“I found the dialogue and many of the events (and the kinds of strange behaviors your people recommend) funny and sometimes heartwarming.”
- stability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is generally regarded as stable and mostly bug-free, with users reporting minimal issues and no significant crashes during gameplay. Any encountered bugs were minor and easily overlooked.
“The game is mostly bug-free and quite stable; I don't personally remember having it crash on me at all. Any bugs I encountered were minor enough that I don't recall them.”
