Review of Solium Infernum – the infernal “Game of Thrones”

A good grand strategy is never enough. In fact, it can be said that their number is quite limited, so a new work representing this genre is always welcomed with a certain enthusiasm. The Solium Infernum update caught our attention as soon as it was announced. How things stand in terms of gameplay and much more, you will find out in the following lines of our review.

• Platform: PC (review)
• Publication date: February 22, 2024
• Manufacturer: League of Geeks
• Genre: Grand strategy
• Czech localization: No
• Multiplayer: yes (online)
• Download data: 8 GB
• Price: 995 (Steam)

Hell Needs Its Own Ruler in Solium Infernum

The Lord of Hell is gone. No one has heard from him for some time, so excitement spreads among the demons. Several players appear on the stage at once, eager to sit their asses on the vacated throne. In total, eight infernal leaders are fighting for a place under the “sun”. On the menu you’ll find the conqueror Astaroth, the magic that controls Lilith, the manipulation of Mammon’s wager, or the fallen angel Andromalius. Each of the Demon Lords has different abilities, units and amulets to battle for control of the realm of hell.

If you rely on each of them to only have a bunch of imps on hand, you’ll go astray very quickly. They all have minions, dressed in shining armor and armed with special tools. The statistics of individual lords and the abilities they can operate with are also unique. For example, such an Astaroth has the ability to attack his opponent without any preliminary diplomatic steps within one round, spending a certain amount of prestige.

So, when this guy starts placing troops on your border, it’s time to prepare your defenses. Once you have chosen one of the Solium Infernum lords, there is nothing stopping you from starting a grand campaign or one of the scenarios prepared for these infernals. The main idea of ​​the gameplay revolves around making the most of the two to three actions you can perform in a turn. As in board games, you can use this action to recruit new recruits, improve your infernal leader, intrigue, diplomacy, or use magic, which also has its place here.

You increase your leader’s rank through prestige, which is then applied to diplomacy. However, if you want to gain strength, improve your abilities, or cast spells, you will always need a certain amount of the four essences. Once you have them, it is not a problem to purchase various forms of demonic creatures from the bazaar, ready to fight for you, or assign commanders to existing units. It will increase their statistics and lead them through a game world in which you do not build, but only take control of territories and places of power that give additional statistical bonuses to the one who owns them.

The battles are turn-based, so there is no rush. But you’ll always have to do a little tinkering with unit stats, pay rates, and when it’s your turn during an asynchronous turn. If you make a mistake, your army may end up in empty space where the enemy was originally supposed to be waiting. However, he played earlier, thanks to which he not only escaped pursuit, but also eliminated the detachment that was intended to strengthen your troops. Sometimes you just have different unpleasant moments.

However, in Solium Infernum, it is not only the steps of your demonic opponents that will cause wrinkles on your forehead, but also various events that sometimes turn the gameplay into a real hell. Sometimes an angry angel appears on the scene, sometimes a leviathan. However, these moments always manage to significantly disrupt your planned trips, because fragile creatures inside them do not appear on the scene. Invading each of them really means a decent problem that you will have to solve in order to keep your empire running smoothly.

Diplomacy deserves more attention

Although at first glance this place may seem like a place full of anarchy, it is definitely not the case. As in the human world, the Solium Infernum universe has its own laws that are insurmountable for demons. Thus, diplomacy is a fairly important component of the gameplay. However, I did not find its processing very difficult. I guess I could imagine that instead of simple orders and demands, it would be possible to enter into complex alliances and build something more complex on the negotiating field. Fortunately, there are many ways to betray your opponents.

Moreover, despite certain limitations of diplomacy, the goal is more. One of the “easiest” ones is probably getting a capital city where you just sit on a throne. Another option is to let other demon lords choose you or destroy them all and thus become the only being capable of ruling the hellish depths of Solium Infernum. I really liked the range of options as it offered individual demons alternative paths to the throne. I tried most of them while playing and I have to admit that each time it was a slightly different hell of an adventure.

I was also very impressed with the visuals of Solium Infernum. That is, the game itself doesn’t look all that impressive, but it does have a lot of highly processed artistic imagery associated with various situations occurring in the game world. Perhaps such a hellish crusade looked amazing. What about the coronation moment? The overall impression of this theme is enhanced by the excellent soundtrack, which I really enjoyed.

Despite some shortcomings, the battle for the depths of hell in Solium Infernum can be fun.

In my opinion, Solium Infernum does exactly what an above average politically minded grand strategy should have. It features several unique power-hungry rulers, turn-based combat, and a ton of opportunities to help you make your way to the top. The enemy AI knows how to react to situations, so it has no problem sometimes taking its own initiative. First of all, people fight beautifully with each other and encounter various random situations, which gives the overall experience a realistic feel.

Personally, I could imagine that the player would be offered a larger world and, above all, a slightly more developed idea of ​​diplomacy, which by the standards of the genre is relatively flat. For a player unfamiliar with strategy, the overall difficulty can be a major problem. However, if you’re looking for a challenging grand strategy game that will keep you stuck until the early hours of the morning, this is definitely one of the games worth checking out.