Lead armies, rebuild fallen kingdoms, and rise to greatness in Songs of Silence. Embark on an epic journey through an Art Nouveau-inspired fantasy world with intense battles and captivating storytelling.
Developed by: Chimera Entertainment
Length: 20 hours (30 hours for completionists)
A review key was provided by Chimera Entertainment.
Another game, another review. This time, it’s a game called Songs of Silence, the second published game from the independent studio Chimera Entertainment. The game is reminiscent of my old favorites like Heroes Of Might And Magic and Disciples, which are top-down tactical strategy games that Song of Silence most definitely drew inspiration from.
There are a lot of similarities, from the heroes to the units and the castle system, but Songs of Silence puts its own unique twist on the genre. It was a joy to play the game and reminisce on an old game that I had spent countless hours on, with some new innovative systems in place.

The gameplay, as mentioned, is a top-down tactical strategy game where you control a hero, while building armies attached to the hero and improving your main city. The hero you control can explore the map, while capturing certain strategic locations that may provide additional bonuses and resources, and unlocking new armies to be attached to the hero.
As you level your hero, you receive new abilities, unlock new city improvements, and grow the size of your army. As the game goes on, you are able to purchase more heroes, thus further growing your army and better positioning your units to defend or attack other armies. The battle system is simple yet intuitive, where your army battles automatically while you play cards representing the abilities of your heroes.
What I Like About The Game
The visuals are a treat for the eyes, as the art direction of the game is on point and I have not seen a game with this much illustration since Gris or Pyre. The game illustrations are a mixture of old paintings (but with more vibrant colours) and comic-style cell shading which gives life to the cutscenes, the menus and the battlefield on the map.
The battles between armies are flashy, with various animations for each unit and each ability being used. The world is vibrant and beautifully rendered, with each city, town and location having unique assets, and each card having their own unique design depicting their abilities. The excellent sound design gives players a wonderful mix of sensory pleasures while playing the game.

The Card system where you unlock and have to choose a card every time your hero levels up is an innovative system which leads to replayability. Each card is unique in what their ability does, and each hero has their own set of cards, thus choosing which hero to start with and which hero to unlock further deepens the tactical and strategy aspects of the game.
There are three types of Cards that can be unlocked, which are Battle Cards, Recruit Cards and Strategy Cards. Battle Cards are abilities that you can use to direct a unit or hero to use, for instance, a Charge ability where all mounted units will charge a location. Recruit Cards are abilities that are used on a unit to upgrade said unit to a better one, and Strategy Cards are upgrades for the city to provide better resources and buffs.

The RNG of the cards and hero recruitment plays a role in the replayability of the game, especially the Strategy Cards and the Recruit Cards. The Strategy Cards of each hero are unique and the buildings that can be built each have their own advantages, thus, choosing your starting hero and which cards to be picked when leveling up is crucial in establishing a good start or to follow certain a strategy. Even the Recruit Cards give upgrades based on the Heroes that you pick, thus also playing a strategic role in the game. These RNG systems in terms of cards and heroes give the genre a much needed breath of fresh air.
The last thing that the game brings that I like is the variety of game modes, from the titular story mode, to the scenarios and the ever replayable skirmish mode. The story itself is very well done, with the overall theme of having two worlds being invaded by a third world setting up the factions of the game. Each faction has their own unique heroes, cities, armies and abilities, each with their own design theme. The main scenario story is beautifully told through cutscenes, compelling voice acting and gameplay, that makes you want to play the main scenario story before playing the skirmish mode.
What I Don’t Like About The Game
The main problem I have with the game is that it is too simple, without much of the depth of its predecessor games like the Heroes Of Might And Magic series and the Disciples series. Though placement of units does play a role, being an auto battler, the battles ultimately depend on luck to determine which of your units will attack the enemy units.
The card system of the Battle Cards does help in guiding which enemy to attack first, but being a “roguelite” the random cards that you get when leveling do not help the battles by much. I was hoping that the battle system would be more of a mix between the old Heroes Of Might And Magic system, which uses a turn-based battle with control of your units on a grid; and the new card system where your heroes draw from a deck of cards to attack or use skills.

The movement of heroes are also a letdown. Where its predecessors opted for grid-like movement controlled with one click of a mouse button, Songs of Silence opts for free movement, where you can click anywhere on the map and the hero will move there. However, the hero can only move in a straight line. Thus, if there is an obstacle in the way, you will have to click multiple times in a straight line just to get the hero to move to your intended destination.
The map itself is empty and bare, with only locations and sceneries, and nothing more to offer like gold mines, mana crystals, or other interactive locations where you can gather resources to boost your economy. The enemies run around the map, thus there are times where you’ll find yourself playing tag with some of the enemies instead of trying to progress your game plan.

Even with its game modes, heroes, abilities and factions, the game feels a little basic or simplified compared to its predecessors, so much so that it feels more like a mobile game. At the very least, it feels like it was initially concepted as a mobile game, with its RNG cards, auto-battler and minimal content, that was instead turned into a PC game. The game has a lot of room for improvement, especially with the map, as there are a lot of games that they can take inspiration and ideas from which can improve the gameplay even more.
Verdict
Songs of Silence is a solid game, but not for its usual price of RM60 as it still lacks content compared to older games that are priced way lower. The game might scratch that itch for a tactical strategy top-down game, but it ultimately does not hold up to older titles. It has room for improvement, but for now I would give the game a 7 out of 10 pies for what it is trying to do.
From now until January 21, Songs of Silence is on sale for only RM34.99. Wishlist the game on Steam, and top up your Steam Wallet on Codashop.