By Chris Picone, 3 September 2023

Edge of War is an ambitious fantasy CRPG by Action Squad Studios.  It released in a Very Early Access state about a week ago.  And by Very Early Access I mean the game is in a playable but still clearly unfinished and buggy state - but it's okay, because it's a deliberate choice made by the team to make the most of player feedback as they work on the game, and I expect it'll be a work of art by the time they hit their "end of 2025" planned release date.  

I'm one of those people that primarily play RPGs for the story, which is unfortunately one of the least developed parts of the game at the moment.  But the quests themselves seem interesting and surprisingly organic; to begin with, you're a mercenary recruit tasked to bring back a deserter who should be hiding nearby, and the quartermaster also asks for some help looking for a missing supply wagon - or securing a new supply if it can't be found. The developers boast that there are no side quests and that all of your decisions affect the main story, so I'd love to see how that plays out further into the game. In the meantime, I still haven't found either, even though I've explored 6 nearby locations (some villages, some wilderness settings).  The settings are gorgeous and creative, and often you can find caves and cellars and other hidden areas to explore while you're there.  And of course there's plenty to fight along the way, and so far the combat's been a treat, well designed in terms of encouraging a combination of melee and ranged combat, movement, spells, special combat abilities, a range of weapons, and teamwork.  Much of this is due to the range of enemies but also the devs have done a great job creating organic battlefields.  Character creation's a little shallow at the moment, but again it's an area the devs are working on expanding, and for now you can play a decent range of character types including witches and shamans.  All in all, I've found myself enjoying what the game has to offer and I'm very much looking forward to playing it again when it's closer to completion.

The verdict?  Although some of the bugs and missing features make this a tricky title to play in these early days, I can't state highly enough how full of promise it is.  If you love the genre and want to be part of the development process, I'd encourage you to jump into the EA and start shooting feedback.  Otherwise, if you'd rather wait for the finished game, the game's still got 2 years of development in front of it and I think the end product's definitely gonna be worth the wait.

 Links:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1786070/Edge_of_War/