For The King II marks the continuation of the epic saga set in the realm of Fahrul. Following the success of its predecessor, the team IronOak Games, in collaboration with publisher Curve Games, embarks on a fresh adventure for our valiant heroes.
After the fall of Vexor, Queen Rosomon’s reign over the kingdom of Fahrul was characterized by wisdom and prosperity. However, succumbing to the allure of darkness, she forged an unholy alliance with the forces of evil. Consequently, her era of peace and enlightenment came to a tragic end, paving the way for a tyrannical rule that oppressed the impoverished denizens of the land. In this bleak atmosphere, a new band of heroes must rise, joining forces with the Resistance, to challenge the queen’s malevolent authority.
In this new chapter, we shall confront the abominations spawned from chaos and the formidable armies commanded by Queen Rosomon. They will stop at nothing to impede our progress and eradicate our existence.
For the King II: four heroes versus a Queen
For The King II builds upon the gameplay of its predecessor by introducing a unique blend of genres. Both games in the franchise combines elements of a board game with a roguelite RPG, offering players a fresh and engaging experience. Notable improvements include a revamped UI, the addition of a new combat area where characters can be strategically moved on a grid, the introduction of character traits, the option to hire mercenaries, and the ability to choose initial equipment before embarking on the game.
In this sequel, players take control of a group of up to four heroes, each specializing in a different class. Initially, there are five classes available, but as players progress and accumulate lore points through multiple playthroughs, they can unlock and purchase new characters.
Lore points have multiple uses in For The King II, including purchasing equipment and unlocking new shops. These rewards are not available at the beginning of each game, but can be earned through gameplay.
The gameplay mechanics in For The King II closely resemble those of a traditional board game. The game board serves as a visual representation of the vast lands of Fahrul, where players navigate through a grid of hexagons to accomplish different objectives and fulfill assigned quests. Throughout their journey, players may encounter formidable creatures of chaos or the corrupted Queen’s guards, leading to intense battles and challenges.
Movement of our characters is determined through a fictional dice roll, which determines the distance we can travel. The speed of the character and the environmental factors such as night or rain also influence the extent of movement.
When encountering an adversary, it is crucial to make a decision on how to proceed. We have three options: engage in direct combat, try to sneak to the hex behind the enemy, or set up an ambush. The outcome of the latter two choices relies on a dice roll that takes into account the character’s abilities and attributes
During combat, we find ourselves in a designated battleground consisting of two grids. One grid represents our party, while the other grid represents the enemy forces. These grids serve as placement areas for our units, with melee attackers positioned in the front and ranged attackers positioned behind them. Units equipped with shields have the ability to safeguard the square directly behind them.
Sadly, we can not change camera position during combat, so sometime a big enemy can cover another enemy. Thus makes difficult to pick the right target.
Fight wisely or perish
The grid system along with an improved AI introduces a higher level of difficulty in comparison to the previous chapter. Now, the enemies are capable of using the focus point, attacking the weakest member of our party, and exploiting the weaknesses of our party members to their advantage. In addition, now you will have to strategize and carefully plan your positioning and movements during battles to minimize the inflicted damage.
Every character possesses a primary action as well as a secondary action. Through secondary actions, we can navigate the battle grid, utilize healing herbs, eliminate poison or curses, or even switch equipment. This significantly enhances the management of battles when compared to the previous chapter.
With the primary action, we can attack, flee, or revive an ally. The attack, like moving on the board, is based on a random roll, where the score will be influenced by statistics, the weapon used, and the equipment. The higher the attack score, the more likely we are to inflict maximum damage with the equipped weapon. It is possible to influence the outcome by spending focus points, making it more likely to perform a perfect attack.
On the map, we will find cities that can offer us secondary missions, a market to buy and sell items, and various services for healing our characters, and finally, the possibility to hire mercenaries. In addition to cities, we can encounter traveling merchants or special hex that will require a good amount of luck to obtain bonuses. If we are unlucky, we will receive several penalties, including death.
In For the King II success heavily relies on luck due to its unique structure. However, employing effective strategies can always tilt the odds in one’s favor. This new chapter demands a significant amount of strategy and attentiveness to survive the initial rounds. Compared to its predecessor, mastering the game proves to be much more challenging. As a result, the first few matches often lead to frustrating and overwhelming defeats, especially for those accustomed to the previous chapter where random enemies were relatively simple to defeat.
Visually, there is a notable improvement in both character design and environmental details. However, in terms of sound, the gaming experience remains unchanged.
It was a bit frustrating to discover that the title was released with some flaws. However, during our review period, the title received multiple updates that addressed various bugs (which we did not encounter) and improved the balance of difficulty. We strongly believe that rushing to release titles that are not yet fully developed or have imperfections is not beneficial to anyone, including the developers who have to face criticism from the community and the players who pay for an incomplete product.
This rush to release often results in user review bombing that do not accurately reflect the quality of the title. For instance, the game currently has ‘mixed’ reviews on Steam with 38% negative reviews. Nevertheless, we believe that the title is very good and a worthy successor to For The King.
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