Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire Edition
- April 21, 2020
- Tin Man Games
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Warhammer Underworlds – Shadespire Edition" is a digital adaptation of the turn-based strategy tabletop game from Games Workshop. The game includes all warbands and cosmetic DLC, with unique abilities and distinct combat styles for each. Play online matches, bot matches, or single-player challenges with fourteen warbands, such as Steelheart’s Champions, Magore's Fiends, and Garrek’s Reavers. Note: The character count is based on the summary text only, excluding the quotation marks, steam ID, and developer/publisher information.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Faithful adaptation of the tabletop game with solid mechanics and strategic depth.
- Great way to learn the game and practice without needing to gather physical components.
- Active developer support with regular updates and community engagement.
- Limited content with only two base factions available, requiring additional purchases for more options.
- Clunky user interface that can be confusing and lacks intuitive navigation.
- Low player base leading to long matchmaking times and difficulty finding opponents.
- gameplay125 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this game is a mixed bag, with many players appreciating its strategic depth and faithful adaptation of the tabletop mechanics, while others criticize its slow pace, clunky interface, and steep learning curve for newcomers. While the core mechanics are engaging and offer a variety of playstyles, the execution suffers from performance issues and a lack of polish, leading to a frustrating experience for some. Overall, it serves as a decent introduction to the tabletop game but may not satisfy those seeking a more streamlined and dynamic gameplay experience.
“The game is mechanically fun and this version of it seems to do a very good job of translating those mechanisms to a digital medium.”
“The gameplay itself is incredibly fun for what it is; I've never played the tabletop, so I don't have the nostalgia factor, but I do enjoy the game for what it is.”
“Awesome gameplay, a faithful recreation of one of the deepest tabletop strategy games ever created.”
“I love playing tactical turn-based strategies, but this game feels too slow and the mechanics feel clunky for me to enjoy.”
“The gameplay is slow, boring, and very random.”
“Clunky gameplay and awful UI is a very big reason for that.”
- graphics102 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 52 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the solid visuals and faithful adaptation of the tabletop aesthetic, while others criticize the poor optimization, clunky interface, and busy design that can hinder gameplay. Many users express a desire for more graphical options and improvements, noting that despite decent art style and animations, the overall presentation feels lacking and sometimes painful to look at. Overall, while the graphics have potential, they require significant refinement to enhance the gaming experience.
“The graphics are sharp and enjoyable.”
“They've captured the spirit of the game with solid graphics that won't tax old machines too much, but are still fun to look at.”
“The graphics are fantastic, the tutorial explains the game clearly and concisely, and the gameplay is super fun.”
“The downsides to the video game conversion are that the graphics are too busy (much like modern GW models) and things are automated that perhaps shouldn't be.”
“I played this for 5 minutes but the visuals, UI, and sound effects were so bad that I quit the game instantly.”
“The graphics could also do with a bit of an upgrade; even playing with them on the highest setting, they look a bit off.”
- stability35 mentions
- 9 % positive mentions
- -6 % neutral mentions
- 97 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a significant concern among users, with many reporting frequent bugs, crashes, and matchmaking issues that hinder gameplay. While some players note improvements over time and a commitment from developers to address these problems, the overall experience remains marred by glitches and performance issues. Many users describe the game as "buggy" and "clunky," indicating that it feels unfinished and frustrating to play.
“It looks and runs great for me.”
“The game has been incredibly stable, with no crashes or major bugs.”
“I've experienced smooth gameplay throughout, which really enhances the overall experience.”
“Buggy game, lags and crashes with no opportunity to reconnect.”
“However, it is so buggy that I have been unable to complete half my games.”
“The game has great potential, but at this state it is unfinished, buggy and not too pretty to look at.”
- music20 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The music in the game is largely criticized for its minimal presence, with many reviewers noting that it consists mainly of ambient sounds and lacks engaging tracks during gameplay, particularly in battles. This absence of a dynamic soundtrack contributes to a feeling of emptiness and can detract from the overall immersive experience. While some appreciate the ambient music, the consensus is that a more varied and impactful musical score would enhance the game's atmosphere significantly.
“I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
“But the graphics are good, and the animation of units is good enough (but you can improve it still)... music is nice.”
“As the game is pretty slow-paced, I think more heroic and interesting sounds and music would make up for it.”
“For one, the music is pretty much non-existent, with only ambient music filling the silence between actions, and the animations are okay but nothing special.”
“There is no music to speak of, no character voiceovers, and it is also really difficult to keep on top of what different ploy cards your opponents play.”
“No background music really feels empty.”
- optimization20 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many players reporting poor performance, low framerates, and technical issues such as crashes and screen tearing. Despite some acknowledging the game's potential, the consensus is that it requires substantial improvements in optimization and polish to meet player expectations, especially given the hardware capabilities of many users. The interface and graphics also contribute to the perception of the game being unoptimized and clunky.
“Good performance is rewarded with cosmetic skins.”
“The game has potential but it needs more polish and also some improvements on the system optimization side.”
“The interface is a tad clunky, and the game could use some optimization, but other than that it looks great.”
“I'm afraid the game isn't free of technical problems either; performance is below what you would expect from a title that looks like this, and it's prone to crashing.”
“The optimization is awful, low framerate and enormous screen tearing - which should be impossible with a simple game like this.”
“The game is also a resource hog and the graphics aren't optimized very well.”
- story18 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight a significant lack of a cohesive story or single-player campaign in the game, with many players expressing disappointment over the absence of narrative elements and progression systems. Users suggest that the introduction of a story mode, missions, or background lore would enhance the experience, particularly for those unfamiliar with the game's universe. Overall, the consensus is that the game feels incomplete without a structured narrative to engage players.
“Moral of the story: you never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
“It would be great to introduce some story mode missions where you move through the plot of the game and it has to have a co-op option at least for 2 players; otherwise, if story mode does not support co-op multiplayer, it is not interesting for me personally (I have played too many single-player games in my life).”
“We really need a background story/introduction so that players not familiar with Age of Sigmar will realize from the get-go what this is all about.”
“There is no single player campaign/story etc of any kind.”
“No single player campaign, no story, no progression of your warband or heroes.”
“I was a little disappointed this title doesn't include any campaign or story mode, the only real single player is bot matches, but if you’re after a high quality PvP tactical combat game it should be right up your alley.”
- monetization12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 42 % negative mentions
The monetization model of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users appreciating the inclusion of cosmetic DLCs while others criticize it as a cash grab, particularly regarding the warband DLCs. While in-app purchases are functioning well, many feel that the skins offered are often underwhelming and not worth the investment. Overall, there is a call for a shift towards a free-to-play model with microtransactions to enhance accessibility and attract a larger player base.
“I think with some additional cash pumped into development and a complete restructuring of their monetization to make it line up with the established norm of paid DLCs being cosmetic only, Underworlds: Online could find a small, but dedicated and competitive following.”
“I'm glad to see the in-app purchases functioning just fine; it shows where their priorities are.”
“The warband DLC monetization is warranted for revenue generation.”
“Feels like an absolute cash grab.”
“It's a standard cash grab Warhammer game and it's ugly!”
“Well get past our ads and sales promos to your game that GW obviously cares less about than sales.”
- atmosphere10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the spooky environments, moody lighting, and captivating graphics that enhance immersion, others find it lacking due to minimal sound effects and a bare-bones design. Overall, the game captures the essence of the tabletop experience but could benefit from improved audio and more engaging single-player options to enhance the overall atmosphere.
“Fluff-wise the game is bare-bones, but it has spooky environments, moody lighting, and cool models that look like animated versions of the minis they represent, so overall, very cool and atmospheric.”
“The interface is smooth, the graphics and atmosphere are captivating, and you can really tell that the development team listens to feedback from the community.”
“It pretty faithfully recreates the tabletop experience, with some atmospheric sounds and effects for good measure.”
“The atmosphere is completely lacking.”
“The atmosphere is pretty lackluster with just spooky sounds playing in the background.”
“Also when the characters on the board hit, it often makes no sound at all, which ruins the whole atmosphere for me. Combat sound is really important if you let the characters fight in front of you; very sad.”
- replayability7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The game boasts excellent replayability due to its small hex grid design, which encourages strategic maneuvers and decisions, and the inclusion of all cards at no extra cost allows for extensive customization of warbands. As new content and warbands are periodically released, players can continually explore different strategies, enhancing the game's longevity. However, maintaining balance among warbands is crucial to keep the player base engaged and prevent stagnation.
“The small board game style hex grid enables some interesting maneuvers and decisions, meaning it has fantastic replayability, and with more warbands being released periodically, this will only grow in time.”
“With more playable content, I would imagine you would see old players come back to try the things they couldn't and new players hop in excited by all the possibilities.”
“All cards are included for no extra cost. I understand in the tabletop game these come in various places like with boxed warbands or bought separately (a 32-card deck costs £12 from Games Workshop!). This adds a lot of replayability since this allows you to customize the warbands to win through various means such as capturing objectives and board positioning or making a full-out aggressive deck that focuses on taking out the enemy.”
“Underworlds is a great multi-layered strategy game that provides hours of replayability and is only getting better as more content becomes available.”
- humor6 mentions
- 83 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as both unintentional and intentional, with players finding the game's broken mechanics and absurdities amusing, such as the €3.30 card back DLC and quirky animations. However, some aspects, like opponents quitting after losing, detract from the overall comedic experience. Overall, the game offers a mix of laughable moments and frustrating gameplay, creating a unique but inconsistent humorous atmosphere.
“Even more hilarious is the €3.30 card back DLC.”
“That's so scummy it's hilarious.”
“Mechanics-wise, the game has the polish of standard underworlds: a vibrant mixture of mechanics that are easy to learn but will offer a hilarious amount of mileage in order to master.”
“It's fine enough, but it's not funny to have an enemy lose one hero and quit a few times in a row.”
“The jokes feel forced and often fall flat, making the humor feel more like a chore than a delight.”
“I expected a lot more laughs, but the humor is stale and lacks creativity.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and uninspired, often describing it as boring and frustrating due to its reliance on RNG mechanics. While some appreciate the convenience of the digital format over physical games, the grinding experience remains a significant drawback for many.
“Boring, tedious, uninspired, ugly RNG garbage.”
“Got bored of it; the tutorial is way too tedious.”
“Tedious.”
