If you’ve ever stayed up late with friends battling in Warcraft III or Age of Empires, The Scouring will feel incredibly familiar to you. It is made by The Orc Group and has some ties with Pavl Zagrebeli, the one-man show behind Spintires, which later went on to Mudrunner and Snowrunner. From the beginning, it is just so blatant about its influences.
The Scouring sets out to bridge the roots of old RTS games with the idea of a hero managing the battle. It is currently in early access, meaning that it will allow for ongoing construction while adopting already relatively firm foundations, but inevitably thin on content. I’ve enjoyed the basics but found them lacking in length.
At the moment, there is no real story. It’s orcs versus humans, and even that is not explained in the game. No cutscenes; no twists; no big narrative—just you and the mechanics. The developer has promised a campaign for the full release, which, if they take cues from classics such as Warcraft III and Starcraft II, could make for a much more enticing experience.
The biggest surprise to me was the fact that The Scouring has two primary ways to play.
Classic RTS Mode is what you expect-collect gold and wood, build your base, train soldiers, and defend or attack. Your army size is relative to how many farms you have. Run out of food, and your troops start dying. Suddenly, resource management feels a little more tense; you’re allowed to clear trees to expand, build walls and towers for defenses, and even put units inside buildings for an edge in battle.
Good AI, and a real difference when you upgrade units. But, as of now, there are only two factions–humans and orcs–with scant troops and structures. Reminds me of a simplified Age of Empires, but in a way, I like the simplicity.
Heroes mode is a whole different ball game. The AI takes care of the base and troops, while you control a single hero. Think Dota 2 or League of Legends. You start at level one; you fight enemies for XP, explore dungeons for loot, and build your hero’s strength. Items boost your stats, and you have to decide when to fight and when to pull back or teleport to base. The battles are fast-paced, and I’ve really enjoyed leading small squads into chaotic fights.
It is fairly easy for both modes to get into combat. In classic mode, it is pretty much down to numbers positioning, then upgrades. But in Heroes Mode, it feels much more personal, with timing abilities, item usage, and survival. There is even a so-called optional script called “Curse of the Undead,” which makes zombie raids happen every single night, tougher as the game progresses.
Progress varies depending on the mode. For classic, upgrades, and veteran points are reset after each match; in Heroes, you improve your hero throughout the match with abilities and items, making it feel a bit more like a mini RPG experience.
Visually, I like what they are getting with it-the day-night cycle, warm lighting, and small animation details all lend charm to the game. Watching peasants chop wood, shields raised against arrows, or sunsets over burning villages all was reminiscent of older RTS games, but with fresh paint on top.
The UI works well, but still lacks a few features. For example, you cannot rotate the camera or zoom it precisely, which feels somewhat limiting. Resolution settings can be chaotic at times. As for sound, I found it to be the weakest part right now-unit voices are bland, music is off-theme, and effects sound generic-so distant cannon fire and environmental sounds do a good job at times.
One thing I appreciate, though, is that it runs without issue. No crashes, no major bugs, off-line-only pathfinding issues here and there. Online is still hard to judge since there are not many people in a lobby can take a long time to find.
More fun in an RTS group with friends. Even in its Early Access state now, I’ve put hours into messing around with matches and mods. But if you’re after a deep solo RTS-style campaign with all the bells and whistles, I’d wait for future updates. A little early-access lower price would also make it easier to recommend.
Right now, it’s like proof of concept with promise. With more factions, units, and story content to manipulate and better-sounding design, it could become a cult classic in the RTS community. Until then, just keep an eye on it and maybe grab it when it goes on sale. You may also be interested in: Halo Might Be Coming to PlayStation 5: What We Know About the Multiplayer Crossover
