Against the Storm is Eremite Games’ latest city-building roguelike with randomly generated maps, traditional RTS elements, and an extensive meta-progression system. Read our review to find out what worked, what didn’t, and if it’s worth buying.

Against The Storm Overall Score – 90/100

This game is an unexpected success, a game that came out of the storm on a roll. It combines two genres that don’t really fit together, taking advantage of the best of both and eliminating the worst. Against The Storm is a manifesto for ingenuity and creative game design. If it weren’t for being partially a city-building game, this game would be one of the best in the roguelike genre.

Against The Storm Story – 7/10

Against The Storm’s story is uniquely compelling for a city-building game, as most games in the genre omit a compelling narrative and instead focus on gameplay. The world-building is spot on, but for casual gamers, there are a few too many parts that won’t make sense without investing dozens of hours into the game.

Against The Storm Gameplay – 10/10

This game takes all the good the roguelike genre has to offer and tempers it with the pacing and complexity of a city-building game. Its fairly fast meta progression is greatly enhanced by its stable and addictive gameplay loop. Every decision seems important, and every action brings you closer to your goal. This is a truly sublime experience and should not be ignored.

Against The Storm Visuals – 9/10

Against The Storm is highly stylized as a city-builder, but strangely enough it works well with the roguelike parts. It’s a fascinating piece that combines the neo-pagan design of World of Warcraft, the explicit characters of a children’s book, and the calculated grandeur of an oil painting. You expect it to be a challenge, but strangely enough it works. The only thing holding back the game’s perfect visual score is its consistency; the switch from blocky 3D architecture to 2D Renaissance paintings can feel a bit jarring at times.

Against The Storm Audio – 9/10

Against The Storm’s audio is pretty good for a city-builder game, not just because of the music but also the voice acting. The music never gets boring, even though you’ll undoubtedly be spending long sessions trying to get to the next outpost. And the titular storm is the icing on the cake, tingling your ears with constant ASMR.

Against The Storm Value for Money – 10/10

Don’t be fooled by the affordable price. This game is dense with content that you’ll spend dozens, if not hundreds, of hours on. Each leg of your journey is a separate city to build. That means each “run” consists of multiple city-building games stacked on top of each other. And that doesn’t even take into account the amount of randomness that can occur in between. Like a nomadic governor trudging through endless forests in a never-ending deluge, you have a long journey ahead of you, and there’s always something new to discover along the way.

Against The Storm Review: A Near-Perfect Storm

What do you get when you combine the massive metagame progression and infinite replayability of a roguelike with the micromanagement and synergistic gameplay of city building? The short answer is Against The Storm. The long answer is in the rest of this review.

Against The Storm is a game that brilliantly combines the roguelike and city-building genres to create something truly special: the best of both worlds, with all the advantages and very few disadvantages. The result is a game that is surprisingly complex, but not confusing; an experience that will captivate you for hours and never let you go; a truly sublime journey through a strange world untouched by the sunrise. Let’s take a look at what makes this game so great, raindrop by raindrop.

Against The Storm takes great pains to incorporate the fundamental elements of the roguelike genre into its gameplay, but at its heart it is a city-building game. These core elements include an extensive tech tree unlocked with metagame currency, a loadout system offered at the start of each run, and a series of blessings and packages awarded periodically midway through each city-building stage. No two are alike, which adds immense replay value to the game and keeps even the most dedicated fans of the genre glued to their core.

That doesn’t mean this game is only for veterans; quite the opposite. This game is a good introduction to the RTS and city-building genres, as it encourages challenging gameplay rather than requiring it. This allows players to learn at their own pace and makes it more accessible to newcomers.

Taking a closer look at the gameplay details of Against The Storm, your primary goal is to carry out the Queen’s orders by producing, refining, processing and collecting resources at your outposts. But the Queen’s patience is limited, and taking too long to carry out orders will result in you being dismissed from your position as Viceroy. Fulfilling orders is no easy task, especially when both the sky and the forest are against you. The constant hostility from the trees and sleet from above weakens the villagers’ resolve, making them inefficient and in extreme cases, rebellious.

That aside, we can discuss how this game is presented, because it is something very special. Against the Storm has a unique style that is hard to put into words. If I had to describe it in other media, my best attempt would be “a cross between World of Warcraft, C.S. Lewis and old Renaissance painting”. The game’s interface and tone also reflect that, creating a melancholic but strangely unruly atmosphere that makes you want to rage against AGAINST THE STORM.

The only small gripe I have about this game is its story. I’m a fan of the world it’s trying to build, but in my opinion, it’s a bit too vague. The premise is solid and the commonalities between the themes are obvious, but I think a lot of it is beyond the understanding of the casual gamer.

Overall, this is a solid game with a lot of strange gameplay mechanics that shouldn’t fit well together, but they do. The visuals and sound combine to create a sad yet rebellious atmosphere that reflects the theme of the game well. However, the vague storyline makes this game almost a perfect storm.

Perfectly Marries Two Genres

As mentioned before, this game combines two genres that don’t usually have anything to do with each other. It’s not the first game this has happened, but I’m willing to bet that this game’s implementation of this strange combination is the best among its competitors.

The game achieves this in a number of ways, but I want to focus on its combination of the RTS time cycle and the blessing system of the roguelike genre. Similar to other roguelike games such as Hades, Nuclear Throne, and Death Must Die, you may receive a blessing that is selected from a randomly generated set. Instead of gaining EXP or finding blessings, they are awarded at the start of each game year, shortly after the most difficult storm of the year.

It comes with a select population and resources (also randomly generated) to give you the motivation to persevere through any difficulties until the beginning of next year. City builders don’t usually do this, so you have to get the resources yourself. This is also true for the new zones called “Glades” that you unlock through the Lumberjack. Each zone gives you a random set of events and resources that will help you progress faster.

Highly Accessible to City-Builder Novices

Nothing deters a new city builder like a difficulty jump. However, we are happy to report that there is no such jump in Against The Storm. Everything is well timed, so you will have to go through a few tutorial towns before you can really set off on your own. These tutorial cities are well thought out and allow the player to learn all the basics without giving away too much of the real complexity of the game.

Guides and tutorials for further development are easily accessible from the game’s built-in archive. The interface also shows how each resource is created, processed and collected, which facilities produce which materials, and other information that will help beginners solve any problems they may face. Getting to grips with this genre is certainly difficult, but there is no better place to start than Against The Storm.

Well-paced Meta Progression

Meta-progression is a hallmark of the roguelike genre, and Against The Storm displays it well with its expansive tech tree. This can be secondary in some games, where a lot of progress is gained per run and the game is better off without one.

Others have so little to offer that the gameplay loop takes too long to pay off. Against The Storm balances this well, giving you just enough to push you forward without pushing you to the end.

Massive Time Sink

You’ll be here a while, there’s no avoiding it. That’s true of the genre, especially in a game that lets you stop time and make plans. The first two tutorial missions take hours, and your first proper run-through takes twice as long. Expect subsequent runs to take even longer.

This isn’t a bad thing in itself, but not everyone has the time, patience, or focus to play for that long. Taking a breather is always an option, but losing momentum after a two-hour session can be a death sentence in a game like this. If you don’t have much time, this game might not be for you.

It Gets Visually Cluttered at Times

I like the visuals in this game, but too much of a good thing can eventually become bad. The game is beautiful to look at, but it can feel cluttered at times, especially late in the game with 30+ citizens running around in each outpost. The similar looking buildings aren’t confusing either, just disorienting due to the rain particles. It probably won’t cause a stroke, but if you’re easily distracted, you might want to stay away.

Is Against The Storm Worth It?

In every respect, this game is well worth the price. Some would say $15 is mediocre, even cheap, but this game could potentially get you hundreds of hours of gameplay for the price of a modest lunch. Even if you’re not interested in the city-building or roguelike genres, this game is cheap enough that giving it a try won’t hurt your wallet. Why not give it a try?

Against The Storm Overview & Premise

You are one of the Queen’s many Viceroys, overseeing the expansion of her realm and tasked with the important task of putting an end to this never-ending storm. Many have tried and failed before, but your journey will finally see the sun rise above the horizon once again. Your outposts, however temporary, will bring you one step closer to your goal. Your people, though wayward, will be the foundation upon which your many cities can thrive.

Will your efforts put an end to this terrifying torrent, or will you die fighting the storm?

Against The Storm FAQ

What Happens if I Attack the Trader in Against The Storm?

Attacking a merchant is one way to secure free resources in Against The Storm, but it has many consequences. First, it increases the queen’s impatience and brings you one step closer to losing points. Second, some of your villagers will randomly die (the number depends on the difficulty). Finally, you will receive a major debuff that will delay the arrival of all merchants to your outpost, and some merchants will refuse to trade with you afterwards.

The good thing is that this gives you about half of your inventory for free.

What are Some Beginner Tips for Against The Storm?

Against The Storm prides itself on providing players with a series of difficult but solvable challenges. Here are some tips for beginners that will help you through your first few runs.

Keep Hostility Down During The Storm

Forest Hostility rises during the storm period of every year, causing your villager’s resolve to decrease across the board. One way to prevent this from happening is unassigning villagers from your Woodcutter’s workplaces. In the meantime, they can serve as spare workers for other buildings or as builders.

Don’t Rush Your Orders

Forests During the annual storm, hostility increases and the overall resolve of villagers decreases. One way to prevent this is to remove villagers from lumberjack jobs; in the meantime, they can work as substitute laborers or construction workers for other buildings.

Stockpile Resources Before Clearing Dangerous Glades

If possible, only select orders after you’ve weathered the first storm. This will give you a foundation, allowing you to build an outpost, and increase your chances of completing the order quickly.

Stock up on resources before settling dangerous settlements.
Dangerous and forbidden settlements usually have events that require tools, seals, and coal to complete. Be sure to stock up on these resources before setting off on your path with the Lumberjack.