Castle Craft: World War Gameplay Impressions

You can call Castle Craft: World War a strategic PvP game where two players face off, constructing buildings and deploying units in a frantic rush to destroy the opponent’s base. We were invited to try it out and I have to admit, it does remind me of other games, but it’s definitely fun, while looking and playing great. And we also have CastleCraft coupon codes for you.

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New players will get a boost package which I don’t know if it’s temporary, but I wouldn’t waste any time. Every new player will receive in their in-game mailbox the following items: Ruby, Gold, an Epic Card, an Expedition's Box, and Commander Elaine. Yes, she’s the one that you’re seeing right now, a melee unit with high damage output and fast movement. Otherwise, you’ll have to start with elf commander Rayha, who excels in bow and arrow attacks, and she’s also pretty cool. Commanders can be deployed on the battlefield and are way stronger than your average units, but there’s a long cooldown when they die, which means that you should use them sparely. Commanders can turn the tide of battle, try to use the ones that you have available to see which one better suits your strategy.

I have to say that I really like the cartoon art style of Castle Craft, with its charming tiny units drenched in strong colors. Unlike other games of the genre, it doesn’t feel basic and rushed; it’s cute and the units are animated very smoothly. First impressions matter, and I was glad to see that the graphics deserved some care and attention.

Now jumping to the gameplay, I can say that it’s smooth, competent, and quite a bit fun. It doesn’t break new ground but what it tries to do, it does well, with a vertical arena where two players battle in very short matches. If no enemy base was destroyed when the timer runs out, there’s a sudden death showdown where the energy of each base slowly drains, and the one that explodes first loses the match.

As for the rest of the mechanics, they are simple yet clever. You have to start by deploying mana refineries, as this will be crucial to develop more buildings, and recruit and deploy units – the more refineries, the faster the mana generation rate. However, you also need to construct camps to expand your territory, meaning that you can deploy units just a little bit farther and also claim those extra mana refinery spots, giving you the upper hand, at least in theory.

Units come in different tiers, requiring more mana to be summoned, but it’s all worth it in the end, as a single tier 3 unit can be stronger and more effective than ten kobolds, for example. Still, you must counter your opponent’s moves and learn which units are best at stopping the rival soldiers, as it’s not a simple case of throwing everything that you have in the battlefield. You must be creative and use varied approaches according to the strategy adopted by your opponent.

But creativity without experience isn’t worth much, and you need to win matches to earn gold and cards to progress. Evolving your deck with the cards that you receive is crucial, making them stronger and allowing you to climb the ranks. As you earn crowns, you unlock more chests, units, spells, and gold, turning your nimble group of recruits into a full-fledged tiny army.

There are other modes to test your skills, one of them being a cooperative mode. Here, you’ll join forces with another player against AI-controlled mobs, defending your base wave after wave, with better rewards as you hold off enemy attacks for longer. Matches can last for several minutes, so it’s important that you save your mana for the tougher units and coordinate your summons with your partner.

Joining a guild is another way of earning more rewards and getting into other battles. For now, only Guild Hunt is accessible, with Guild War and Area Conquest coming with a later update. I’m curious to see where these two game modes will go, and how they will adapt the mechanics around guild gameplay.

Castle Craft uses this familiar system of unlocking chests, and there’s the inevitable battle pass. For now, I have been enjoying the game without worrying about any alleged pay to win aspects, just leveling up cards and largely fighting players who seem to be at my level, so matchmaking doesn’t seem to be an issue. Only after playing a lot more we should be able to make a proper judgment, but until then, there’s a lot to enjoy – it’s fun, immediate, challenging gameplay that requires you to strategize and be clever to win against an opponent of similar level.

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