Key Takeaways
1. Tactical Real-Time Combat: The game features a unique combat system that combines real-time action with tactical elements like pause and slow-motion, rewarding strategic gameplay.
2. Diverse Hero Classes: Players can choose from seven distinct hero classes, allowing for varied party compositions and combat styles, including ranged experts and support mages.
3. Engaging but Secondary Storyline: While the plot explores a forgotten society and mysterious powers, the game prioritizes combat over story, especially at higher difficulty levels.
4. Positive Reception and Content: Tower of Time has received favorable reviews, with an 83% positive rating on Steam and a Metascore of 77, offering extensive gameplay with multiple quests and challenges.
5. Complex Mechanics and Challenges: The game’s depth may overwhelm casual players, with intricate gear customization and character progression, alongside navigation issues due to a fixed camera and clunky mouse controls.
If you’ve gone through Dragon Age: Origins and similar games multiple times and still want strategic fighting, Tower of Time could be exactly what you need. Instead of roaming around an open world, you will venture into a gigantic, inverted tower, where each level becomes more complex, not only in layout but also in gameplay mechanics. You can have up to four active heroes in your party, chosen from seven unique classes – which include ranged experts with area control, melee defenders with shield walls, support mages, and tech users that set up turrets. The combat system is truly impressive: you can stack or mix abilities, enabling you to take out entire enemy squads with a well-timed combination of control and damage.
Engaging Storyline
The plot revolves around a forgotten advanced society, lost technology, and a mysterious power lurking deep inside the tower. Nevertheless, Tower of Time places more emphasis on the battles than on the story, which can be especially tough at higher difficulty levels. Rather than employing turn-based methods or mindless brawling, the game features a tactical real-time combat system that is enhanced by features such as pause and slow-motion. This system rewards careful strategy while punishing hasty actions. Central to this is the Arrow Time feature, allowing you to slow or stop time with a single button press. This gives you the opportunity to unleash abilities accurately, reposition your team, or react to sudden enemy reinforcements. Combat is also unpredictable – foes often attack in groups, flank your party, or unleash area attacks that require you to remain alert.
Positive Reception
Developed by Event Horizon and released in 2018, Tower of Time has garnered a good reception overall. With over 2,000 user reviews and an 83% positive rating, the tactical RPG currently boasts a “Very Positive” designation on Steam. It achieved a Metascore of 77 and a User Score of 7.9 on Metacritic. The German magazine GameStar praised the challenging combat, noting the clever use of slow-motion and pause mechanics. The character system is deep and the gameplay is varied, featuring unique abilities and creative mission goals, which also received favorable comments. With a lengthy playtime, numerous quests, and optional challenges, Tower of Time provides plenty of content. According to HowLongToBeat, players may invest up to 55 hours into the game on higher difficulty levels.
Challenges to Consider
However, the multitude of mechanics can sometimes feel daunting. Extensive customization of gear and character progression isn’t just a feature – it’s crucial. While this might deter more casual gamers, dedicated RPG enthusiasts are likely to enjoy the complexity. Still, the game has its drawbacks. The fixed camera can create problems, especially in cramped combat scenarios, making navigation difficult. GameStar pointed out that the mouse controls can be a bit clunky, complicating things during intense fights. The narrative also left a mixed impression, seeming somewhat arbitrary and emotionally detached.
Tower of Time typically retails for about $25 on Steam. However, until April 15, it is on sale with a 93% discount, reducing the price to merely around $1.80. As per SteamDB, the game frequently goes on sale, but it has never been this inexpensive previously.
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