Aussie-Made Age of Darkness: Final Stand Receives its Biggest Update...
Steve Farrelly
AusGamers Editor
Sydney, New South Wales
9731 posts
Aussie-based Playside Studios and Team17 have combined to drop the biggest update yet for the hardcore old-school RTS Age of Darkness: Final Stand. The update, titled Flames of Retribution, introduces Acts I and II of the much-desired Campaign mode for the game alongside a number of other additions and quality of life fixes.
In Flames of Retribution, players will cast back The Veil to reveal secrets of the grim, dark world of Erodar across the prologue and seven engaging campaign missions, confronting monsters both human and Nightmare in the process.
A new Hero in "Merek, The Bolstering Might" also comes via the content, and has some pretty cool abilities:
Drinks on Me! (Level 1): Merek’s passive Skill is unlocked from Level 1. Drinks on Me! will activate once Merek takes enough damage, whereby he will then heal allies around him for 5% of his maximum HP. When Merek’s Ultimate, Holy Protector, is active, Drinks on Me! will also heal Merek.
Crushing Weight (Level 2): At Level 2, Merek leaps into action with his active Skill, Crushing Weight. This Skill gives Merek the ability to jump forward, slamming into the ground to damage and stun enemies within an Area of Effect radius. Merek also regains armour for each Nightmare slain, scaling per level.
Halberd Hurricane (Level 4): Merek comes in like a destructive force at Level 4 with Halberd Hurricane! The Bolstering Might sweeps his Halberd in a 360 degree arc, damaging all units in the area. There is also a chance to proc Drinks on Me! when he kills an enemy using this skill. Halberd Hurricane can be used multiple times in quick succession and the amount of uses that can be stored increases as Merek levels up. The time it takes for each use to be stored also reduced with each level.
Holy Protector (Level 6): At Level 6, Merek gains the ability to buff and support his loyal comrades with Holy Protector. When this Skill is activated, Merek temporarily grants nearby allies Armour equal to his maximum and recovers it to that maximum if it has been damaged – this applies even to units that don’t ordinarily have Armour. While Merek’s Ultimate is active, Drink's on Me! also restores health to Merek. Holy Protector also buffs Merek's other skills by temporarily increasing the area of effect.
As well as all of the above Playside has also committed to delivering follow-up content later this year titled Exile's Return which is set to conclude the game's Campaign mode while also giving players an "aggressive new Survival Mode hero".
The game is still currently in Early Access and will set you back $31.95 dollarydoos.