My Thoughts on Impire

I'm a sucker for a good dungeon building and management game. Ever since the original "Dungeon Keeper" back in 1997, I've always found that sort of gameplay inherently compelling.

Unfortunately, there haven't been any games since "Dungeon Keeper 2" in 1999 that have been able to successfully scratch that itch for me.

2011's "Dungeons" was the closest anyone had come in a while but its spin on things, while unique, didn't quite resonate.

"Impire" is much closer to the spirit of "Dungeon Keeper" but it too takes some liberties with the formula that could well be a turn off to hardcore fans of the genre.

Having said that, it's still the best attempt I've seen and therefore worthy of note while we all wait to see how "War for the Overworld" fares.

At first glance, "Impire" seems quite a bit like "Dungeon Keeper," with players excavating underground hallways and rooms, summoning minions to fight creatures and heroes, expanding and protecting their dungeon, and the like.

The main campaign, which exposes most of the gameplay systems through a series of increasingly-complex missions, can be played co-operatively with up to three friends now that several post-release patches have smoothed out most of the rough spots in the multiplayer "beta–" though it seems a bit suspect to have a feature in beta in a shipping product if you ask me.

Impire's campaign is often cheesy and underwhelming in terms of presentation
but it gets the job done, and is pretty fun to play with friends.

It isn't until you spend some time with "Impire" that you start to see the weaker parts of it and how it doesn't quite measure up to the legacy of the games that clearly inspired it.

Your minions for example are pretty much dumb as rocks. They need to be constantly told what to do and micromanaged to achieve the various goals the game presents. If they're hungry, they don't eat unless you tell them to do so. If they're inexperienced, they don't train unless you order it. If a ladder allowing heroes direct access to sensitive areas of your dungeon appears, they won't do anything about it unless they happen to be set to patrol and happen to stroll past it.

Do any of these things make the game unplayable or awful? No, but they also make the act of playing it less fun than it would otherwise be, and reveal how there is often little to do beyond managing the minions. Objectives generally only feel difficult or challenging because it takes so much effort to get your minions and dungeon into a state where you can safely leave to perform the tasks required to complete them.

But it's not all bad news for "Impire." There are some genuinely cool features in the game– such as the ability to put minions in squads that allow creatures of various types to work together and compliment one another while fighting. Squads also allow minions to be instantly teleported to any part of the map that has been visited by any friendly player. Consequently, you can easily add your forces to those of a co-op partner who's gotten a bit ahead of you in the common areas of a given level, which reside outside your individual, isolated dungeons.

As a dungeon management game, Impire works and brings a few interesting
new mechanics to the table but it's no "Dungeon Keeper 3."

It should also be noted that "Impire" is a budget-priced title and for $20, it's one of the better looking and sounding (cheesy voice acting aside) games you're likely to find at that price point.

As I mentioned earlier, "Impire" shipped with more than a few serious bugs but most of them have been fixed via patches and the developers seem committed to continuing to improve it. Pun intended. :)

All things considered, I think "Impire" is a solid little game. It may not have the sophistication or staying power of the "Dungeon Keeper" series but it's not too shabby and kinda fun, especially in co-op, once you get a handle on the minion management and accept it for what it is rather than lamenting what it isn't.

Impire (via Steam)