Kingdom Eighties [PC] | REVIEW

I’ve been a fan of the Kingdom series for a long time, with every new iteration bringing me back in for more (I’ve spent SO many hours with Kingdom: Two Crowns). There’s something about Kingdom Eighties that has made me even more excited to play though… I mean… more Kingdom is always going to be a good thing, but I’m a sucker for all things nostalgic, and believe me, this is OOZING with nostalgic 80s charm.

Check out some screenshots down below:

Kingdom Eighties puts players in the role of a young dude named The Leader as he deals with an evil force known as the Greed that is terrorising his hometown. How does he do this? By putting on a crown and paying the local kids to help build up and maintain defences around the town of course, all whilst he figures out where the Greed came from and how to stop them from good.

I’ve simplified it a bit there, because there’s a surprising amount going on in Kingdom Eighties’ narrative. I won’t spoil anything here, but the connection to the player and the town itself goes deep, whilst the constant 80s references really make the whole experience feel like one of those classic movies you might’ve watched when you were a youngster. Add to that some slick Saturday Morning Cartoon-style cutscenes that push the story forward and you’ll find it hard not to be won over by the game’s nostalgic charm.

If you’ve played a Kingdom game before, you’ll know exactly what to expect from Kingdom Eighties. Your time is spent exploring a vast 2D landscape, all whilst collecting the coins required to help build up your ‘kingdom’. This spans over a day-and-night cycle, with your daytime routine seeing you spending your hard-earned cash to pay workers (which are more fittingly kids this time around) to help build up your defences, gather coins, and fight alongside you, and the nighttime sending you into battle against the vicious Greed as you see if your reinforcements can hold off the foreboding threat. It’s an addictive formula and one that’ll keep players invested with each passing day.

“It’s packed to the brim with easter eggs and references to 80s pop culture that’ll bring a smile to plenty of player’s faces (you’ll be surprised at just how many you’ll spot), whilst the finer touches found in the environment always impressed me – I’ve always loved the reflections in the water in previous titles in the Kingdom franchise, but there was just something extra atmospheric about it here.”

Your health is represented by the amount of coin you have, which puts an element of risk-versus-reward into the experience. Do you spend your coin to reinforce your base to keep the Greed from getting in? Or do you keep it to ensure you have that bit of extra health to survive the next onslaught? The game is built around decisions like this, and they can be a real deal-breaker as to whether or not you’ll actually survive the night, so it’s always satisfying when a tough decision pays off. And when you do run out of coin when getting attacked? You’ll lose your crown, and if you don’t recover it and get attacked again, it’s game over. It’s a simple concept, but one that lends itself to the base-building gameplay perfectly.

What makes things a tad more interesting this time around are the story-driven objectives, with players having to complete set goals to progress to the next level. Admittedly, they’re not the most nuanced of tasks and mostly tie into the core gameplay loop, but they add that extra something that gives players a greater sense of progress throughout the game. Recruiting your friends to join you along the way as you complete objectives adds some welcome variety to your capabilities, whilst the different environments you move between across levels ensures the experience doesn’t get too samey.

One of my favourite things about Kingdom Eighties is its vibe, with the pixel-art visuals rich in detail and oozing with bright-lit colours that feel befitting of the era. It’s packed to the brim with easter eggs and references to 80s pop culture that’ll bring a smile to plenty of player’s faces (you’ll be surprised at just how many you’ll spot), whilst the finer touches found in the environment always impressed me – I’ve always loved the reflections in the water in previous titles in the Kingdom franchise, but there was just something extra atmospheric about it here. Add to that the synth soundtrack that feels like it belongs in the 80s and you’ll quickly find that Kingdom Eighties nails down that nostalgic old-school vibe perfectly.

Check out some screenshots down below:

It’s just a shame that the game is a bit short, with it easily beaten in around three to four hours. There was a bit of a lack of depth as you progress too, with the later levels and objectives not doing a whole lot to change up what you would have already been doing, with players just following the same routine with a new area to explore. It does have some added replayability if you want to tackle the tougher difficulty settings, but given that the gameplay loop can get a little bit formulaic, there’s not a whole lot to incentivise players to come back. On the flip-side, this shorter length could be because I’m familiar with the series. The Kingdom games have a bit of steep learning curve where the player has to figure out how to best approach each situation and the base-building themselves, but because I’m pretty experienced with it at this point, I already knew what was expected of me. It would have been nice to see a few more innovative ideas introduced in later levels though, if only to spice the experience up.

Also, the lack of co-op play is a massive bummer, especially since it was so fun in Kingdom: Two Crowns. I’m not sure if it’s something the developer plan on bringing to the game in the future, but if it isn’t, it’s a missed opportunity to keep players coming back for more.

Developer: Fury Studios
Publisher: Raw Fury
Platform(s): PC (Reviewed)
Website: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1956040/Kingdom_Eighties/