“Sport of Thrones: A New RPG Adventure That Keeps You on the Edge of Your Seat”

Game of Thrones: Kingsroad, an innovative action RPG set in the era of Westeros explored by the TV series approximately 11 years ago, received measured enthusiasm upon its debut last year. A narrative-driven RPG that adapts a literary and now multimedia franchise? Well, The Witcher demonstrated that this formula can indeed work. Earn attention. However, that excitement waned significantly when the developer announced that, despite the existence of a PC version, Kingsroad will primarily be a mobile game.

At present, large action RPGs are easily accessible on smartphones. I am our resident Genshin Impact and Zenless Zone Zero advocate, although I do play these on PC as well. However, based on the newly released demo, now available during Steam Next Fest, Kingsroad does not give the impression of being like one of the standout titles. It resembles more of a mobile-to-PC adaptation that led many Game of Thrones enthusiasts to express disappointment when the target platforms were revealed. It’s akin to trying to fit a twin-sized sheet over a queen-sized mattress; it deserves some recognition for holding it together, but I’ve reevaluated my level of praise and it’s pretty much all I can muster.

From my brief experience with the demo, it appears to be a third-person action-adventure RPG centered on your character, shaped by a robust array of customization options—yet another small compliment there—engaging with White Walkers alongside the well-known Jon Snow. Yes, Jon provides his signature line. Winter update: on the way. While the presentation unfolds quite well, when it comes to gameplay, Kingsroad disintegrates relatively quickly, and this is without delving into the nightmarish nuances of mobile game reward systems like this:

So far, Game of Thrones: Kingsroad feels like a subpar version of numerous action game staples. You can choose to play as a knight, sellsword, or assassin class, and even team up in co-op “to earn impressive rewards and craft high-level gear.” Combat includes light attacks, heavy attacks, blocks, dodges, finishers, and skills tied to a mana-like resource, but nothing about it feels particularly responsive or impactful. Combat was previously described as “skill-driven,” which is technically accurate in that it does include skills. There are stealth elements, but enemies move sluggishly and with minimal agility, making it not particularly engaging to clear camps filled with repetitive Wildlings—I noticed three identical characters in one camp of around nine total.

There’s a chase scene where you dramatically scramble over obstacles and squeeze through a crack in a large rock, maintaining characteristic equivalence with nearly every action-adventure game from PlayStation Studios. But it’s just a matter of following the motions, progressing as your character moves along a predefined path. The mobile-like issues cast a veil over everything, and the demo performed rather poorly for a game whose recommended specifications fit comfortably within my PC’s. The lock-on camera, in particular, gave me a lot of trouble. It did recognize my PS5 controller reasonably well, however.

This isn’t always truly an aggressively unpleasant demo, yet the honest aspect I can convey about it is that it functions, although it isn’t necessarily very enjoyable. It is a Game of Thrones video game, but I wouldn’t have given it more than 5 minutes if it were an ordinary game. While this Steam Next Fest demo is indeed just a short glimpse into adaptations for a title set to release in Q2 2025, I’m not very hopeful that sufficient enhancements will be made to compete. I’ve played significantly better mobile RPGs, and I’ve engaged with about a myriad more on PC without the heavily anticipated mobile monetization issues of Kingsroad.

The strangest Steam Next Fest horror demo is merely 5 minutes long, but I’ve been contemplating its eerie Severance vibes for days.

Austin has been a gaming journalist for 12 years, having contributed to esteemed outlets such as PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and others while completing his journalism degree. He has been part of GamesRadar+ since 2019. They have yet to uncover his penchant for disguising himself in his long-running Future column, and he has maintained the ruse with numerous articles and the occasional feature, all while indulging in as many roguelikes as possible.