Eldritch Lands: The Witch Queen’s Eternal War
Eldritch Lands: The Witch Queen’s Eternal War is a dark fantasy strategy game in which you play as the titular Witch Queen in her struggle against the endless undead horde.
In this bleak world where all the gods have either been killed or abandoned their people, when the dead rise due to the sudden appearance of a Necromancer known only as the Necroshroom Queen, it’s up to the Witch Queen to defend her Kingdom.
As normal humans only add to the undead army when they die, the Witch Queen diverted all her resources into creating an army of fake people, known as a Homunculi, to serve as an unending fodder to hold the dead at bay.Unlock, Upgrade and Get to Know Your UnitsDiscover up to 12 different units that you can use in battle. Each with different ups and downs in combat, you can customize your team to better fit your playstyle. Prefer slow moving but heavy hitting units? Or quick and long ranged? Build the team that best suits your needs.
Each unit is also their own individual character, and the more you upgrade a unit the more conversations you unlock as well. Get to know each unit and find out their outlook on the war, their life or what it means to be just a copy of a copy of the memories of someone long dead.Farm Resources and Read LoreDuring battle, you can gain seeds that grow into fruits and plants that are highly concentrated in essence, the currency that all of the Witch Queen’s magic relies on. Plant those seeds and harvest them after they grow for a great boost in essence.
You can also read through the lore of the world to gain more knowledge of what happened before and why the world is in such disarray, and a new entry is added with each new enemy and item you encounter throughout your playthrough.
Game Discussion
Steam User 2
I am blown away by the writing in this game.
These characters are people. Not pure heroes or villains that can just be boxed up and put on a side. The main character does objectively horrible things for an objectively noble goal.
The units in this game are constructs, copies of people who once lived, with all their memories, skills, and personality. The spearman is a noble soul who understandably refuses to save the world from abject horror if it means serving the woman who killed him and his people. The cheerful bomb created from scratch to love blowing itself up eventually gains sapience and names itself, so that it can live on it's own terms before it's cheerful death. The near-silent shieldmaster eventually opens up and moves from one-word sentences to profound criticisms of the nature of the player character and the world they've made.
The lore is fantastic, and paints a colorful and lurid world that I can't help but become invested in. It's a fascinating setting, and told with just enough info to be engaging without inundating the player with exposition.
The gameplay? Basically filler. It's a method to moving the story along. That said, it is pretty fun, if simple. You won't be seeing any groundbreaking innovations that will change the genre by any means.
The weirdest thing? This is basically a prologue, a setting for the main game that the developer is working on. It's basically a side project and a warmup for the main game. Unfortunately, that means that the ending to this game is... unsatisfying, being left unfinished for the upcoming main game, and the systems are pretty bare-bones.
It is still a free indie lane defense game in the end. If you go in expected that level of quality, you will be blown away, but if you go in expecting a full high-quality experience, you will be disappointed. If this type of "game" is something you're interested in, it is absolutely worth your time, but if you just care about gameplay, this one is probably better to skip. On the fence? Absolutely give it a try!
I'm really looking forward to the next game.
Steam User 0
addicting game loop, fun dialogue. clearly made with a lot of heart.