Games of Ice and Fire: there’s an interactive Game of Thrones experience for everyone

It’s that time of the year when three quarters of the world spends some quality Monday morning time with their torrent client of choice pirating the world’s biggest television show. Yes, Game of Thrones is upon us once again for the sixth consecutive year, and despite television channels and media apps reaching HBO’s show to Indian audiences in some form, one could argue that it is a far cry from the show in its original, uncensored state. Fortunately, Game of Thrones’ interactive counterparts do not suffer from this problem.

If you were not already aware, everyone’s trying take advantage of the wonderful world created by George R.R. Martin—game creators included. There’s a fair bit of variety in terms of genres and experiences to choose from, and picking up these games is a great way to reach some royalty money to the estate of Martin, as well as rights owners of the franchise. Of course, it’s not Game of Thrones if you’re not entertaining yourself in the process while exploring its world of infinite intrigue. Without further ado, let’s take a look at our options, shall we?

The most obvious candidate is adventure game developer Telltale Games’ Game of Thrones – A Telltale Games Series. It is a six-part episodic game series set in the same universe as the TV show. The story is entirely original, following the journey of House Forrester (who have been vaguely referenced in Martin’s novels). Through a series of choices, players will be able to determine the fate of various family members—including who ends up as lord, who lives and who dies.

Each episode plays for around 2 hours, and captures the essence of the world very well. Just don’t expect every small choice to have an impact on the world as you would in say, a Witcher game, because most of the story is heavily scripted and only choices made in key moments actually have an effect on the story. Nonetheless, Telltale’s game contributes a great deal to the universe and could very well coexist with other works of fiction based on A Song of Ice and Fire. All episodes are extremely accessible, with little-to-no learning curve, and yet they reward players who can think like a character from the series, manipulating NPCs or giving the correct responses to situations. You can pick it up on any platform, including Android and iOS , on which the first episode is free.

Next up is Game of Thrones: The Role Playing Game. Developed by Cyanide Studios (a studio formed by ex-Ubisoft employees), Game of Thrones is a surprisingly competent RPG which is a little rough around the edges. Its two main protagonists, Mors Westford, a ranger in the Night’s Watch, and Alester Sarwyck, heir to House Sarwyck come with some serious baggage which makes for great story twists and gameplay: one’s a Warg and the other’s a Red Priest of R’hllor.

The Game of Thrones RPG sports more unique settings otherwise left unexplored in other forms of entertainment, and the tactical combat system is particularly interesting. There’s no doubt that budgetary constraints resulted in the somewhat shabby presentation of the final product, but fans will likely be willing to put up with its problems for the experience. I would have liked to say that it was “criminally underrated”, but that would be pouring too much praise on what is only a decent game.

The first strategy game on this list wasn’t the best received by critics or users. Game of Thrones: Genesis , which was developed by Cyanide Studios and released the year before the Game of Thrones RPG, promised its players immersion into the “battles and intrigues that shaped the Kingdom of Westeros”.

Where it succeeds is the sheer volume of underhanded methods players can use to overcome their enemies; spies, envoys, assassinations and bribery to name a few. Where it fails is in its execution. Things can get too difficult to micromanage after a point and the actual combat portion of the game is unsatisfying. But fans who want to get a feel of how it is to really play the game of thrones might be interested in investing some time in Genesis. Just remember that pretty much everyone who’s played it disliked it, however.

Crusader Kings II , on the other hand is considered one of the best grand strategy games ever made. What’s more, there is a free Game of Thrones full-conversion mod available for the game. It is grander in scope than other titles based on the Game of Thrones series, and the core gameplay of Crusader Kings II translates very well in this instance. Step into the shoes of a lord in Westeros or command the army of a Dothraki Khal.

Bear in mind, however, while this sounds great in concept, it comes with the baggage of being a community created modification for a game. Expect crashes, installation troubles and other technical problems. Also, the refinement associated with a retail release is likely to be absent. The full-conversion mod also requires you to own an original copy of Crusader Kings II.