SpellForce 2: Shadow Wars

SpellForce 2: Shadow Wars
The original box art for SpellForce 2: Shadow Wars
Developer(s)Phenomic
Publisher(s)
SeriesSpellForce
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
ReleaseShadow Wars
Dragon Storm
  • EU: 23 March 2007
  • AU: 30 April 2007
  • NA: 14 May 2007[3]
SpellForce Universe
Genre(s)Real-time strategy, role-playing
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

SpellForce 2: Shadow Wars is a 2006 real-time strategy and role-playing video game, developed by Phenomic, published by JoWooD Productions, and released for Microsoft Windows in 2006. The game takes place after the events of 2003's SpellForce: The Order of Dawn, with players taking on the role of an immortal warrior known as "The Soulcarrier", who seeks aid to liberate his homeland from invaders, only to be drawn on a quest to defeat a powerful alchemist responsible for creating the immortality of the warrior and his people.

The game combines traditional role-playing elements such as taking on quests, equipping characters and improving them with levelling up, alongside real-time strategy elements that focus on gathering resources to construct bases and train an army of units to help in defeating opposing forces, with the game featuring a selection of factions to control. The main campaign can be played solo, or with up to three players either via an online connection or with a local area network. In addition to this, players can engage in skirmish matches against an AI, or online matches against other players.

Shadow Wars received positive reviews from critics, who praised it for improving in many areas that the first game had been lacking in, including its graphics and audio design. It received three expansions following its release: SpellForce 2: Dragon Storm in 2007; SpellForce 2: Faith in Destiny in 2012; and SpellForce 2: Demons of the Past in 2014.[5] A remastered version of Shadow Wars, complete with its first expansion and featuring an updated engine with widescreen support, was later released in April 2017, and a sequel, SpellForce 3, was released later that year on 7 December.

  1. ^ "Gold - SpellForce 2 - Shadow Wars". JoWood. March 22, 2006. Archived from the original on March 23, 2006. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  2. ^ "SpellForce 2 - Shadow Wars (PC)". Koch Media. Archived from the original on April 10, 2006. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  3. ^ "New games this week: Shrek the Third edition". Engadget. 2007-05-14. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
  4. ^ "New PAL Releases Roundup". Eurogamer.net. 2008-04-03. Retrieved 2024-01-13.
  5. ^ "SpellForce 2: Demons of the Past". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 18 June 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.