Two things caught my eye with Warhammer: Chaosbane. First off, it looks a lot like Baldur’s Gate, Diablo, and other top down RPG’s, which is something I usually love. The second thing was the $60 price tag. Warhammer games never feel quite up to the full price quality, so I was nervously optimistic heading in. Luckily, I didn’t regret my time with the game. Warhammer: Chaosbane has its faults, but overall gives you a reason to replay each class and button mash for days.

These Baldur’s Gate style games always offer the same experience. Pick a class, button mash, move on to the next dungeon room. The thing that makes a Diablo-core game great is the story, and that’s something that has me conflicted when it comes to Chaosbane. The title takes place in the Old World, a continent marked by the “Great War Against Chaos.” Evil reins everywhere, and without fighting it off, it may take over. The Great War is a bloody conflict that has ravaged the Empire of Men. You can play as a human, a high elf, a wood elf, or a dwarf, and fight the good fight. Does this sound familiar? A bit too much for my taste.

My first run-through was with the wood elf, and I won’t lie, the archery in this game is not that much fun. Playing as the dwarf and human were far more fun, seeing as the hordes of enemies and close quarter dungeons do not give you much room for projectiles. Overall, the combat was only really fun in these two classes, but once you get rolling with a game like this, the completion-ist in you might drive you to play all four. Magic and arrows are far less fun, but don’t feel impossible to use. Boss battles are great, giving you a good “find the pattern” format while still feeling challenging.

Graphically, the game looks good, but the screen teared a bit too much for a $60 title. Likewise, the resolution feels low, despite a consistent 60-FPS. When there were a lot of enemies on screen,, (which happened often,) I felt lost in the game’s closed off environments. Frame rates stayed consistent, but I could hardly say the hordes were easy to navigate. Sometimes, that’s the point of hordes of enemies. In this case, it felt like an oversight. Dungeons are not meant to be spacious, but there’s not much room to explore in Chaosbane, and that takes away some of the magic of a Baldur’s-style game.

I think a game’s value should not be placed into its price tag. That is, however, a practical way to look at a game like this. It’s not going to be a GOTY contender, and it certainly does not feel worth its $60. Luckily, Xbox Game Pass subscribers can get this game for free. If you’re playing on PC or PS4, I’d wait for a $30 sale or so.

An Xbox One Review Copy of Warhammer: Chaosbane was provided by BigBen Interactive For this Review.

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Warhammer: Chaosbane

$59.99

6.5

Score

6.5/10

Pros

• Good graphics
• Fun Diablo-style combat
• Great boss battles

Cons

• Low resolution
• Crowded environments
• Two classes aren't much fun to play
• Feels a bit cookie-cutter for an RPG like this

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