Divinity: Dragon Commander

Divinity: Dragon Commander is a real-time strategy game that you'd normally dismiss at first glance. It simply looks mediocre. The game is set in a steampunk and fantasy-inspired universe, and borrows its mechanics and style from various sources. Combat resembles Total War, in between the action Starcraft II comes to mind, and the story reminds us of Game of Thrones. And if you take a look at each of the parts, none of them are better than what you'd find elsewhere. Battles have been intense and more engaging, the level of strategy found in the world map could have been much deeper and the player could have been given more choice. What makes Dragon Commander worthwhile is that it offers everything in one package. When put together, these somewhat mediocre components come together in a surprisingly entertaining way.

The game takes place in the realm of Rivellon where elves, dwarves, lizards and immortals live alongside humans. There are airships and tanks and gnomes who build mechanical prostheses and ships. The player is a dragon knight, half dragon, half human, the illegitimate son of the emperor of Rivellon. When the legitimate children of the emperor band together to claim the throne, court-wizard Maxos turns to you. He declares that you are the only one who is worthy of your father's kingdom, and tasks you with leading an army against your siblings.

The steampunk universe of Divinity: Dragon Commander is a curious soup of stereotypes. At times it just seems weird, but sometimes it works perfectly. Imagine a lizard man in a Victorian dress and a monocle, a soldier with steam-driven prosthetic arms, or a dragon with a jetpack.

The experience is a mix of strategy on different levels. The world map unfolds like a board game and you move around your troops, build armies, upgrade units and use cards to sabotage your opponents. The airship Raven acts as your base and can be explored in the same way as Hyperion in Starcraft II. You can chat with generals and advisers who will try and help you. When two armies cross paths on the world map you're taken to the battlefield. A big plus here is that you can choose whether or not you want to lead the troops yourself or let a general take the reins. As the player you can only play an active role in one battle per round.

Battles revolve around seizing control points and placing buildings on them. The one who demolishes all buildings on the other side wins. This makes for matches that can be predictable as the one who seizes the best control points likely dominates. It boils down to being quick at the start of the battle. When I came to this conclusion I upgraded my troops to be quick, and from then on I sent my troops to the control point closest to the enemy base. From there I kept them at bay until my army was big enough to wipe them out. Most matches are this simple, and it seems Divinity: Dragon Commander doesn't try to counter this. In many ways it reminds me of Star Wars: Empire at War in this regard.

The most unique feature about battles is that you can participate in combat as a Dragon Rider. You cue up a number of commands for your troops and spawn a dragon. You can fly over the battlefield and rain fire and magic on your enemies while your troops carry out your orders. The dragon is controlled from a third-person perspective and when used right it can turn a hopeless battle into victory. Naturally you can upgrade the dragon, unlock new magic and before each bout you get to choose what skills you want to bring into battle. It adds an RPG layer to the strategy of Dragon Commander and another piece to the puzzle.

Real-time strategy aside, the biggest draw of Dragon Commander are the politics. Between rounds you meet with counsellors who present you with their agendas. The choices you make have impact on your relations with other factions, and these choices can have ripple effects all the way down to ground level. If you're out of favour with the Elves and you're fighting in an Elven region, you get fewer troops as you have little support among the locals. You're also faced with your morality. The politics tend to be quite complex and even if your choice is a simple yes or no, it can be difficult to know what to choose. Should people be allowed same sex marriage? Are dwarves who get hurt mining deserving of compensation? Should the church pay taxes? Each advisor has their own opinion on the matter at hand, and you'll never please all of them. The highlight came when my court wizard came to me and said it was my duty to marry in order to strengthen political alliances and that the process was already set in motion. I had no choice in the matter. It caught me off guard, and here I was thinking I was dealing with your run-of-the-mill war game.

I would also like to mention one of the best things about Divinity: Dragon Commander is how the story is told through cutscenes in between chapters. These are presented as old film reels with crackling sound and a dusty lens, and they tell the story of how the Dragon Prince led his people to victory. They resemble World War II propaganda films, and is a perfect fit with the steampunk setting. It's a creative way to tell the story that I really enjoyed.

After a slow start Divinity: Dragon Commander grew on me. It may not be the best in the class in any one category - gameplay, graphics, audio, setting or story, but when everything is put together it works. Combat is somewhat monotonous and slightly boring, but the option of flying around on a dragon is amazing. The world map isn't very exciting, but the strategy cards and the political game adds variation and excitement. Divinity: Dragon Commander borrows shamelessly from others, but manages to add enough unique elements that we'll let it pass. The humour borders on silly, but some of you will like it. The singleplayer on its own is entertaining enough to warrant a closer look, and then there is multiplayer on top which makes for an appealing package. It may not be the best game out there, but it certainly entertains, and sometimes fun is all I want.