Age of Wonders: Planetfall

The campaign gamemode isn't that great, but the galactic empire mode is amazing. The fact that you can build an empire over time unlocking additional powers and abilities really adds to the replayability.

I bought this game not long after it was released, but didn't play it until three to four years later. For whatever reason like many people I just couldn't get into it, however I did manage eventually, and let me tell you this, this is the best 4X game I've ever played!
As far as I know this is the only 4X game with X-COM like combat, though not exactly like X-COM, it's very fun regardless.
This game has everything, great visuals, art, sound, voice acting and writing. You will not be disappointed on any one of those points.
There are some bugs but it was never a deal breaker for me, it didn't delete my save or corrupt my games, just some minor bugs.
Game wise, the one shortcoming is diplomacy, it's very basic. Other then that I don't have any other gripes.
The factions in this game are all very unique, it's very well done! A faction is not just composed of a race but also a secret tech, so you can have many combination to play with. Some races does have slightly difference with their secret tech.
Units and technologies are also very unique to the faction or secret tech, non playable units are also very cool, and you can get those units in many ways.
198 hours in and I am still not very good at it yet, so I don't know what it's like to play it on very high level, currently I am enjoying hard difficulty AI and normal over all difficulty.
The in game encyclopedia is very thorough, maybe missing one or two concepts or I just couldn't find them. But it's nothing major, I can learn them just through game play alone, so don't worry about the game keeping secrets from you.

Ever wish that Civilization was more overtly combat-focused? Are games too long for you? Looking for a more streamlined experience? Then this is the game for you.
With about 15 hours played, I've completed several games, a feat unheard of for Civ fans. The game plays very much like Civ, but with enough changes to differentiate itself as a completely unique experience. The combat is the most interesting part for me. Turn-based tactical combat is great.
This honestly feels to me like a middle ground between an RTS like Starcraft, and a grand strategy like Civ. It's faster, simpler, and more combat-oriented than Civ, but it's also slower, more tactical, and macro-focused than an RTS. It's great!

I hardly ever review a game but I had to for AoW4 and Planetfall. I am stunned that this game has mixed reviews. Are you people out of your minds? I've had a blast playing this game both solo and with friends. Bought it on sale a few weeks ago almost have 50 hours played 0 bugs or crashes great game 9/10 would buy again don't listen to the haters.

Play This instead of Age Of Wonders 4 - Why? Welll....
1. It's complete
2. No more DLC
???? oh did you need more?
It's everything Age Of Wonders 4 COULD be ironically.
Less customization OBVIOUSLY - But the game is refined and COMPLETE.

A more enjoyable game than Civ: Beyond Earth, although not as refined in its aesthetics, which it makes up for in sheer variety of factions. There's an abundance of rock-paper-scissors gameplay that keeps you on your toes throughout what can at times feel like a chore of a progression system.
Music is serviceable with a few great tracks, graphics are splendid on the map but lackluster in combat. XCOM-style combat is barebones regarding movement but refreshing enough to keep you going.

All in all a good time can be had, however, it's certainly not for everyone.

I refunded this after about an hour when it first came out.

Coming straight from Age of Wonders III probably didn’t help, the shift to sci-fi, the different pacing, and the way systems were presented just felt off at the time. It didn’t grab me, and I didn’t feel like pushing through to figure it out.

Got access to it again later and decided to give it another go after spending a lot of time with Age of Wonders 4, and it’s a completely different story.

Once you understand how Triumph builds these games, Planetfall makes a lot more sense. The mod system, unit roles, and combat depth are all doing interesting things, they’re just not explained particularly well up front. What felt clunky before now feels more like a different design approach.

You can also see pretty clearly how Planetfall feeds into AoW4. A lot of the ideas are here in an earlier form, especially around unit customisation and empire progression, just adapted to a sci-fi setting.

It’s still not the most accessible entry point, and I think bouncing off it early (especially coming from Age of Wonders III) is understandable. But if you’ve gotten into AoW4 and are curious where some of those systems came from, it’s worth another look.