I finished Warlord Battlecry 3’s campaign earlier in the week and I was a little disappointed with its big finale. Defeating the Ultimate Bad Guy more or less involved locking him in his room. The climax aside, I found the campaign a pleasant enough experience.

(“Pleasant” and “nice” seem to be the words to use to describe this game. It’s not a title that inspires effusive praise. I think it’s telling the publisher was only moved to modestly hype it as a “solid” game from a series with a “solid track record.”)

The campaign was simple enough for my Undead Necromancer. At the default level of difficulty, the AI opponent seemed unable to deal with early Undead pressure and would succumb quickly in most battles.

But don’t make the mistake of dismissing the game’s AI as inadequate. The AI opponents are ranked from Squire to Emperor. Squire-level AI opponents are easily whipped but the Emperor-level AI opponent will quickly make you curl up and whimper.

You’re allowed to continue playing in the campaign world after the story ends and it’s likely you’ll want to do just that since developing a hero is so addictive.

I’m currently playing randomly-generated skirmish battles with an Ironman hero. Ironman heroes get double the XP of normal heroes but there’s a twist: they’re immediately deleted upon death. I haven’t managed to keep an Ironman hero alive for more than three battles against Prince-level AI opponents but I’m definitely enjoying the challenge.