Minecraft Legends review – battle for the fate of the cubic world

The legendary Minecraft sandbox has already had one significant anabasis that has gone beyond known waters. Minecraft Dungeons hasn’t performed well in reviews, but the community has embraced it, which seems to have prompted the company to try their luck again and again in a completely unfamiliar space. Minecraft Legends is an unusual strategy game that you can read more about in our review.

• Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, XO, XS X/S, Nintendo Switch
• Publication date: 04/18/2023
• Manufacturer: Mojang Studios, Blackbird Interactive
• Genre: Action strategy
• Czech localization: Yes
• Multiplayer: Yes
• Data to download: 10 GB
• Game time: 15+ hours
• Price: 980 CZK (couples)

The Minecraft Legends universe is facing a radical invasion

The population of the Minecraft world has always been at enmity with each other and did not shy away from killing each other. The main problem was the monsters that come to the surface of the world only at night. However, now an enemy appears on the scene, posing a threat to everyone. The Hell Pigs are sent on an invasion to help them rule the mortal world. The ability to defend is zero, so the mysterious entities call into action a creative hero who has already helped this universe so many times. However, in Minecraft Legends, another task awaits him.

This time, with the help of the elements and omnipresent allies, they must form an alliance that will save the world from evil and, ideally, bring the conflict to the realm where the source of all evil resides. The main idea of ​​the story is not bad, and I really like it, because it brings back memories of some old series of strategies. I definitely have to say that I enjoyed the story, despite the moments where the game sent me to several nonsensical locations within the story several times. The fact that the story is presented in Czech is undoubtedly a plus for many people.

saddle invasion

You start all adventures on the back of your favorite horse, which can be exchanged for another carrier at any time. The only thing that is impossible is to dismount. You can navigate the game world either nicely on the back of the currently selected pet, or you can also use fast travel to move around. You apply this between fountains, which function as spawn points, and cities, which are a source of resources and frequent problems. So, if not to exaggerate, they only create problems from the very beginning. Once you enclose them with walls and plant a few towers, they will practically become just a source of materials needed for expansion.

Building in Minecraft Legends is intuitive, so you can get into it very quickly, so after a while you put one building after another in the field and watch them destroy enemies, or just prevent them from attacking with your presence. Buildings are what can be improved and moved here. Your loyal servants are also a product of buildings, so there’s not much you can do without them. You need raw materials to realize everything. You get them both for rescuing innocent villagers and for mining. However, you don’t need to get your hands dirty. To do this, you have mining assistants capable of mining for a lifetime. I really like the assembly as a whole, because you quickly delve into it. It’s the same with the army.

While in a regular RTS you will find a simple system, here a very large part of the responsibility falls on the protagonist. He leads a slowly growing battalion of his loyalists into battle, and when they accidentally fall, nothing prevents him from cutely returning to the rear and starting recruiting there again. The battles are epic and pigs die in them by the hundreds. Occasionally an overgrown whiner will show up on the scene, but usually it’s nothing the army under your command, often backed by buildings, can’t handle. The pig community itself is also one of the strengths of Minecraft Legends, as in the case of gameplay and building, I really like how the creators managed to deal with individual raider clans.

Both the hero and the pigs need more care

You can really spend a lot of time here. So it’s a pity that the protagonist is not a character that needs to be actively worked on. At the same time, a development system would ideally fit the set, motivating the player to collect items, get additional levels and in some way develop steadily. Thanks to this, the game would avoid stereotyping, which is quite noticeable after a while, because the war with pigs in Minecraft Legends is dragging on and its end comes only after many hours of painstakingly conquering their fortresses, which are a decent nut.

As for conquest, it’s only difficult up to a certain point. The main reason for this is the artificial intelligence in Minecraft Legends. It works on relatively simple principles, so the moment you start ignoring some pre-drawn lines, its abilities quickly crumble under the onslaught of long-range cannons and well-built towers. This would give her more strength and, above all, opportunities in terms of building, thanks to which she could respond more effectively to the problems that arose. However, I understand that this is not a thing for seasoned strategists, but for younger players, so Minecraft Legends can be forgiven to some extent. But I expect that over time the creators will definitely come up with a number of improvements, followed by DLC packs, for which there is certainly potential.

The creators of Minecraft Legends managed to create a memorable work

Minecraft Legends is another hit in the black. Although this piece doesn’t look very appealing at first glance, it manages to draw you in surprisingly, so you often find yourself conquering a fortress for several hours, and the real night is slowly coming to an end. The format of the rider leading the army into battle is interesting and sometimes unexpectedly difficult for tactics. You always need to combine units correctly, which is not always easy. The open world is built primarily on the fight against demonic minions, so at least for myself I did not find many attractions in it, similar to the classic Minecraft, but there was also a desire to explore it properly, because it was fraught with various treasures.

As for the variety of enemies, it was decent. I also found the format of how they work in Minecraft Legends interesting, as well as the structures they have. Even if his AI is not one of the best due to huge odds, he is definitely not an enemy to be underestimated. Combat can get a bit stereotyped after a while, but that’s not uncommon in strategy games.

However, the problem I have in the first place is that the main character, who is actually the center of everything, does not have much room for development, so he has to rely primarily on his minions. Overall, though, it’s a pleasant surprise that makes this part definitely worth checking out. In addition, the story is presented in Czech, so that even younger players, for whom the game is designed, can enjoy it.