TerraScape

TerraScape is a city-builder turn-based strategy game developed by German Bitfall Studios and published by Toplitz Productions. Unusually for this sub-genre, building heavily emphasizes randomness and uses mechanics known from card games.

Plot

TerraScape doesn't have a story per say. The campaign consists of increasingly difficult missions. Each mission represents a new step towards creating a perfect kingdom.

Mechanics

The main objective of TerraScape is slowly transforming a modest settlement into a city, and then a kingdom of our dreams. The game is turn-based, so the player can set the pace themselves.

Drawing cards determines what buildings we can construct. Each structure also has specific requirements - needing to be in vicinity of specific objects, requiring resources or the right kind of terrain. Meeting these requirements grants more points, these grant new decks, which grant new buildings.

The number of available constructions can be increased further by focusing on objects assigned to a single type of deck. This lets us focus on a specific strategy and reduces the likelihood of having a large number of currently useless cards.

This is important, as the maps are procedurally generated. Thus, not every building can be constructed where we wish it to, or connected to already existing structures. Some of them can also carry negative effects if placed incorrectly.

Game modes

TerraScape supports singleplayer, as well as local and online PvP multiplayer. Scored achieved during missions are recorded on online leaderboards, letting us compare them with other players.

Technical aspects

The 2.5D visuals of TerraScape are nice and colorful. The maps, covered with a hexagonal grid, are displayed from the top-down perspective.