There are a hell of a whole lot of Warhammer games on the market. But whereas we’ve acquired grimdark trash and genre-defining classics, there have been only a few games set in Games Workshop’s latest setting. The Old World’s been lifeless a very long time – and with few exceptions, no person’s taken an actual crack at Warhammer: Age Of Sigmar’s multi-dimensional mythos. Until this week, when Elite Dangerous and Planet Coaster devs Frontier revealed plans to launch a Mortal Realms real-time technique inside the subsequent few years.
Frontier made the announcement in an IP Licence and Trading Update on May 1st, with CEO David Braben saying delight at partnering with Games Workshop to create “an immersive and accessible real-time strategy game on both PC and console”.
I did need to double-take a second to be sure that stated Frontier and never Creative Assembly, the parents who’ve been making the most recent batch of Warhammer technique games. As far as I can inform, Frontier haven’t ever dabbled within the RTS house. Galaxy-simulators and theme park tycoons, positive, however by no means one thing like this. But minus a cellular CCG and board game adaptation Warhammer Underworlds: Online (a board game I detest, however one my accomplice deeply adores), there scant few Age Of Sigmar games kicking about as of late.
Most of the large Warhammer fantasy games – assume Total War: Warhammer II and Vermintide 2 – happen within the Old World, a muddy bloody grimdark fantasy world wot Games Workshop blew up in 2015. Its alternative is a setting with ample scope to get actual bizarre, actual quick – extra mythology than fantasy, deeply involved with gods and heroes wrecking shit throughout celestial planes. Immortal not-Space Marines powered by lightning biffing up demons on the bodily embodiment of some long-forgotten individuals’s afterlife.
It additionally options these brutally gorgeous murdercrows. Aesthetic objectives, actually.
Underworlds didn’t land for Sin (although appears a lifeline for now-housebound followers of the tabletop) for being too literal an adaptation of a physical game. But Creative Assembly discovered an ideal match in Warhammer’s rank-n-flank miniatures and their very own historic battles, whereas Relic created an excellent technique reimagining of Warhammer 40,000’s faction-play in Dawn Of War‘s first run.
For now, although, it’s too early to inform. All we all know is that, no matter type it takes, Frontier’s Warhammer RTS is ready to launch throughout the builders’ 2023 monetary yr (May 2022-2023).
Elsewhere within the report, Frontier describe their response to the continuing Covid-19 scenario. With the corporate’s full 500+ workforce now working from house, Elite: Dangerous’ Next Era replace has been pushed from December 2020 to early 2021.
