War for Westeros designed to welcome Game of Thrones fans to RTS

MUMBAI: Winter may be coming, but the learning curve is being sent packing. PlaySide is designing Game of Thrones: War for Westeros to welcome not only seasoned real-time strategy (RTS) players but also the franchise’s legions of fans who may be picking up an RTS game for the first time.

The strategy title, which is due to launch on PC next year, is expected to draw two very different groups: RTS enthusiasts looking for their next tactical fix and Game of Thrones fans eager to take control of Westeros. PlaySide game director Ryan McMahon said the studio is preparing for the latter without stripping away the complexity that makes an RTS appealing.

“Approachable is the key word,” McMahon told IGN during gamescom. Rather than simplifying the genre, PlaySide is focusing on how players are introduced to its systems.

The game will feature a “very robust” tutorial at launch, while its campaign mode will gradually teach players the systems needed for skirmish play. But one of its biggest accessibility moves happens away from the tutorial screen — in the way workers operate.

Traditional RTS games can demand constant micromanagement, with players repeatedly assigning workers to gather resources, construct buildings and then find their next task. War for Westeros instead uses a ‘set and forget’ approach.

Once a building is constructed, it automatically farms resources, meaning players do not have to keep assigning workers to resource collection. That reduces what McMahon described as the macro and mental overload of managing workers, leaving players to concentrate on units, commanders, heroes and battlefield strategy.

And there should be plenty to concentrate on. The game features iconic Game of Thrones characters, with likenesses from the HBO series. Jon Snow, whose likeness was approved by actor Kit Harington, is among the playable characters, while PlaySide has also announced Gregor ‘The Mountain’ Clegane and Arya Stark.

The Mountain can be recruited by House Lannister and is built around brute strength and battlefield disruption, while Arya serves House Stark as an assassin trained by the Faceless Men.

Interestingly, however, Jon Snow is not currently the king of the popularity hill among PlaySide’s internal players. McMahon said Tywin Lannister and Robb Stark are currently the most popular picks, helped by their cavalry and their ability to strengthen surrounding units as commanders.

That preference also reflects how the game’s balance is evolving. Earlier playtests saw players gravitate towards Jon Snow and Jaime Lannister because they were particularly powerful heroes. As development progressed, PlaySide shifted more emphasis towards armies and commanders rather than allowing a single hero to dominate the battlefield.

The developers are putting that balance through regular stress tests. The team conducts weekly playtests every Friday afternoon and holds an internal tournament at the end of each development milestone. The winner takes home a trophy, which is then passed from desk to desk until the next tournament produces a new champion.

Those sessions also generate data on faction win rates, hero selections and where players construct buildings on maps. PlaySide uses the information to shape level design, faction balance and the way heroes are developed against one another.

The AI has also been tuned to give players room to learn during single-player sessions before they consider multiplayer. The idea is to introduce layers of complexity gradually, allowing newcomers to understand the game without needing to master every system from the outset.

That could prove important when the Game of Thrones name brings a much wider audience through the gates. For PlaySide, the challenge is not to make an RTS less strategic, but to make the first step into Westeros feel less like a battle in itself.

And while the studio’s current data may have Tywin and Robb sitting on the Iron Throne of internal popularity, Jon Snow could yet reclaim it when War for Westeros reaches PC next year.