Warlord: Britannia

About

Warlord: Britannia is a single player open world management game with a historical theme. It was developed by Darkmatter Games and was released on May 24, 2022. It received positive reviews from players.

Warlord: Britannia is the first entry in a new series of immersive strategy games created by solo developer Darkmatter Games. Step into the shoes of a Roman General given direct command of a Legion with orders from the Emperor to conquer an entire island.Immersive-StrategyA unique combination of first-person strategy elements places Warlord: Britannia in a genre of its own. Immersive strategy fixe…

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Play Modes

Single-Player

+41

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88%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,505 reviews

gameplay61 positive mentions

story5 negative mentions

Immersive Roman legion command experience with managing troops, promotions, and equipment upgrades.
Open-world sandbox gameplay including building and relocating camps, conquering settlements, and dealing with unrest mechanics.
Active and passionate solo developer providing frequent updates and a promising roadmap for the game's future.

Late-game performance issues and lag when commanding large armies, even on high-end PCs.
Repetitive gameplay loop with limited unit types and combat tactics, leading to diminished challenge and boredom after extended play.
Presence of bugs and AI pathfinding issues causing troop and builder units to get stuck, along with a lack of a comprehensive tutorial and quality-of-life improvements.

gameplay
156 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
39%
55%
6%
The gameplay offers a solid, historically inspired strategy experience focused on building and managing Roman legions with enjoyable tactical combat and base-building mechanics. While it is praised for its core mechanics and engaging progression, many reviewers note repetitive loops, occasional bugs, limited depth, and a lack of polish or advanced features like scouting, morale, or logistics. Overall, it provides fun and immersive gameplay especially for fans of strategic, minimalist war sims, though it could benefit from more content, quality-of-life improvements, and complexity in future updates.
- “One of the best war sims I've played, haha. Sure the graphics aren't super wow, but I don't think it matters. What matters is pure gameplay and this has it all. You generally feel like a legate. 10/10 great game.”
- “The gameplay loop is very engaging but then extremely repetitive once you've fully assembled your legion.”
- “The game mechanics are amazing and very simple. The game itself isn't too gory despite being a war game (very good balance with the blood and mutilations), the ranking system is strikingly realistic along with the armor, tools, weapons, and even camp equipment and names.”
- “In a supposedly fully released game that's all about forming and leading a Roman legion, it would be nice if the basic mechanics actually functioned.”
- “The bugs aren't worthy enough to ruin the game but they will frustrate you, the mechanics are not nice or intuitive and the game itself is just meh, that's about it, you might like it if you're ten years old but generally speaking, it's boring, unimaginative and pointless.”
- “The core gameplay loop is, march troops to town, attack town (really RNG with attacks and nobles who tank like five legionaries), get gold/silver from town, head back to camp, get more troops, repeat.”
graphics
101 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
57%
5%
The graphics in the game are generally simplistic, stylized, and sometimes described as minimalistic or "Playmobil"-like, with some users finding them charming and fitting the historical theme despite lacking realism. While visuals can feel dated, stiff, or cause performance issues such as frame drops and lag, the art style is appreciated for its clarity and detailed armor design, and does not detract from the deep, immersive gameplay experience. Overall, the game prioritizes strong mechanics and historical accuracy over polished or advanced graphics, appealing to players who value gameplay over visual fidelity.
- “The art style and equipment design are nice to look at and capture a lot of detail.”
- “Though simplistic, the graphics work surprisingly well and I’ve not experienced any performance issues with it so far.”
- “The simple art style is easy on the eyes but the clothing, weaponry, clouds, lighting etc look phenomenal.”
- “The frame rate drops significantly even if you drop the graphics down to minimum.”
- “The graphics options barely do anything as well, going from maxed out settings to the bare minimum (including field of view) got me like 5-10 fps.”
- “Graphically very minimalistic, which otherwise wouldn't bother me, but the game world looks lifeless, downright like a graveyard.”
optimization
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
71%
12%
The game suffers from significant optimization and performance issues, especially in late-game scenarios with large armies, causing severe lag, freezes, and unplayable moments even on low settings. While the ambition and concept are praised, many players report persistent bugs, poor pathfinding, and a general lack of polish, with hopes that future updates or sequels will address these problems to improve smoothness and stability.
- “Game issues with optimization seem fixed for me; no recent crashes. The game has come far from its release date fixing most issues.”
- “Admittedly, the game could do with some performance updates, especially late game as you get more troops following you; however, I can tell the developer has a passion for Roman warfare, as everything is well researched and includes some very interesting facts and descriptions.”
- “Though simplistic, the graphics work surprisingly well and I've not experienced any performance issues with it so far.”
- “There are still tons of game-breaking bugs (not being able to control troops, unit commands like hold fire not working, major pathfinding issues, ranged units sitting idle, the list goes on) and it still needs a ton of optimization, but those will never be addressed since the dev is moving on to the next game.”
- “Sadly I cannot suggest it mainly because of optimization. After you have conquered around 1/4 of the island (even running it on the lowest quality possible) the performance becomes awful.”
- “Once your legion is assembled performance drops, no matter how you try to optimize it. You can mitigate by assigning centuries far away but it will still affect performance.”
story
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
77%
14%
The game's story is minimal and mostly consists of basic, repetitive quests without a strong narrative or progression, leading some players to create their own role-play experiences. Several users noted bugs and lack of meaningful quest tracking, while others suggested that expanded campaigns, deeper story arcs, and more varied mission structures could greatly enhance engagement. Overall, the story aspect feels underdeveloped, limiting the game's long-term appeal.
- “This game has awesome graphics, good story, and provides a decent challenge (I haven't beaten it yet).”
- “The graphics are basic, the storyline is basic but it's still a satisfying experience.”
- “2nd day and I think this game was pretty good; it has a long story and there's lots to learn.”
- “But if there was more content and some kind of storyline or siege weapons to break walls or just something else to make the game keep you going then I would thumbs up but right now I feel I wasted $20 on one day worth of playing with no sense of accomplishment.”
- “The quest screen is hard to navigate and prioritize, and it doesn't show progress towards the goals.”
- “Such a cool concept but the fact that I can't save my game and come back to it without it breaking the quest system is pretty terrible.”
stability
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
93%
The game suffers from frequent bugs and glitches, including crashes that can erase saves, unreliable pathfinding, and buggy end-game mechanics, which significantly impact stability. While some users find it playable with minor issues, many highlight the need for substantial improvements and bug fixes to achieve a more stable and polished experience.
- “Runs great so far.”
- “There are a few things that need to be fixed, but overall it is not really buggy!”
- “But that all goes down the drain when you constantly have to worry about crashes and freezes that completely erase your saves. This isn't uncommon either; at this point I've lost count of how many saves I lost, all of which I had sunk countless hours into.”
- “Keeping in mind that I love the concept of the game and the campaign I did get to play, the game is just too buggy and unpolished currently.”
- “I've tried and tried again to take it slower and more carefully but I keep losing to what feels like unfair or frustrating ways and finally I think it's time to uninstall until a few updates come out because right now it just feels like a high school project going through troubleshooting.”
grinding
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
Grinding in the game is repeatedly described as tedious and time-consuming, requiring repetitive tasks like managing soldiers and resources manually, which can hinder pacing and immersion. Despite this, some players find a rhythm and enjoy the process, though the UI and lack of quality-of-life features like fast travel contribute to the grind. Overall, grinding is a significant but manageable aspect that may deter some but doesn't overshadow the game's value.
- “The game has been built on a foundation of being tedious in order to drag you in for as many hours as possible.”
- “Upgrading troops is extremely tedious, due to having to find individual soldiers of a specific rank among the whole army.”
- “The UI needs a major overhaul as it is incredibly tedious to find a specific soldier in a camp of 100+ just to upgrade their armor or promote.”
humor
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game incorporates a blend of dark, gore-filled humor with cartoony and exaggerated visuals, making comedic moments out of violent combat and ragdoll physics. Players often find the over-the-top blood effects and quirky animations, like self-driving scorpions or funny character references, both hilarious and entertaining. While some find the humor adds charm, others feel it’s not strong enough to be a major selling point.
- “This game is great and I think it is one of the best games for epic, funny, and crazy battle entertainment!”
- “Frankly, I found the graphics hilarious and awesome at the same time, for example when you hack away at a guy and lop his head off to the sound and sight of blood squirting out of his neck whilst his head rolls down the hill, which is genuinely hilarious but also a nice amount of gore too!”
- “Graphics are cartoony and the legionaries look funny but once you enter combat things get messy with heads flying around and blood everywhere.”
music
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
31%
23%
The music in the game is generally praised for being immersive, atmospheric, and fitting the historical and battle themes, especially during nighttime camp scenes and combat. However, some users note a limited variety of action tracks and suggest it can feel repetitive or mismatched at times, with a few recommending alternative music choices. Overall, the soundtrack effectively enhances the mood and replayability despite some repetitiveness.
- “The soundtrack is very immersive, especially in camp at night.”
- “Realistic and historically accurate legion building mechanics mixed with fun to fight foes and a beautiful soundtrack makes it amazing and replayable.”
- “The sounds are all realistic enough and the ominous music that plays sets the mood before and during battles.”
- “The music is limited, with only about 4 different 'action' tracks that trigger when you approach an enemy convoy or village within 20km, leading to a repetitive experience.”
- “The ominous music sets the mood before and during battles but feels out of place when marching through the woods with no enemies around.”
- “My recommendation: mute the game music, download military marches and/or all the Halo soundtracks and play instead.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
Replayability opinions are mixed, with some users finding the game repetitive and limited due to missing features and excessive backtracking, while others praise its variety in routes, historical accuracy, and engaging mechanics that provide strong replay value. Adding more tactics and soldier variations could further enhance long-term enjoyment. Overall, the game shows promising replay potential supported by an active developer community.
- “The game is great and very replayable.”
- “It's very replayable and very fun to be honest.”
- “Realistic and historically accurate legion building mechanics mixed with fun to fight foes and a beautiful soundtrack makes it amazing and replayable.”
- “Limited replayability — with so many features missing, the game quickly becomes repetitive, lacking the depth needed for long-term enjoyment.”
- “Replayability is limited.”
- “But it just reminds me that this could be procedurally generated and offer new map locations/shapes for replayability.”
atmosphere
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
71%
29%
The game excels in creating a rich, immersive atmosphere, particularly through its historical ancient Britannia setting and the moments between battles. While sometimes rough around the edges, its sound design and camp activities effectively enhance the feeling of a divided, warring land, making the experience captivating and addictive.
- “It does atmosphere by the bucketload: the bits between the battles are where it really shines.”
- “The result is a highly atmospheric and original take on Roman warfare—rough around the edges, but undeniably compelling.”
- “Immersive setting — the ancient Britannia setting is rich with history, and the game does a decent job of creating an atmosphere of a divided, warring land.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is unique and engaging, offering a distinct experience that resonates with players despite some room for improvement. The sense of marching through centuries, building camps, and waging conquest creates a compelling and immersive atmosphere that keeps players coming back.
- “There's a lot of room for improvement, but it touches on something very unique that you can't find in other games, so I keep coming back to it.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users feel that character development in the game is minimal and repetitive, lacking depth beyond basic combat roles. They suggest improvements such as individual character progression and more diverse non-combat activities like trading to enhance the experience.
- “It's more or less hold position, charge, hold position thing... it could be a great game if it applied quality of life things like looting, individual character development, or some more non-combat options like trading and so on.”