Is Wrath of the Righteous Better Than Kingmaker in 2024? A Comprehensive Comparison
After conducting thorough research and analysis on the current states of both Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous in 2024, I believe Wrath of the Righteous is the superior game for most players. However, Kingmaker still holds up strong and excels in some key areas where Wrath falters. This article will dive deep into the strengths and weaknesses of both titles, examining gameplay, reviews, expansions, and more to crown a definitive winner. Let‘s analyze how these classic CRPGs stack up in 2024!
At a Glance: Wrath Edges Out Kingmaker
To provide a quick answer upfront: yes, Wrath of the Righteous is generally considered the better, more polished game by 2023. Wrath builds on everything Kingmaker did well while improving pain points like kingdom management. However, Kingmaker remains a must-play for fans of classic challenging cRPGs with deep systems.
Based on critic reviews, player impressions, and my own expertise – Wrath currently holds an edge in writing, combat balance, character options, mythic paths, and quality of life. However, Kingmaker offers unmatched world interactivity, exploration, and map diversity. Both are phenomenal games!
Gameplay & Mechanics: Wrath‘s Refined Systems
In terms of core gameplay, Wrath of the Righteous evolves and refines Kingmaker‘s systems in almost every way. Combat, character building, mythic paths – Wrath adds more depth and variability.
Wrath‘s combat encounter design is more balanced and thought-out. Kingmaker was often criticized for uneven difficulty spikes. Wrath also expands the available classes to over 25, plus prestige classes and mythic paths that fundamentally alter playstyles. This customization freedom is unparalleled.
Kingmaker offers a more open-ended exploration experience across a diverse world map. Wrath trades that in for a more focused, story-driven structure. But with 6 mythic paths versus Kingmaker‘s kingdom management, Wrath has far more replayability.
Overall, Wrath perfects Kingmaker‘s build and combat systems while offering incredible variety through mythic paths. The sheer volume of class and build options is staggering.
Expansions & Updates: Advantage Wrath
Both Wrath and Kingmaker have seen major expansions since launch, but Wrath‘s inject more high-quality content.
Wrath‘s latest DLC, Treasure of the Midnight Isles, adds a 10+ hour island realm with new quests. Conversely, Kingmaker‘s last expansion, Beneath The Stolen Lands, simply expands endgame rogue-lite dungeons.
Overall, Wrath has received twice as much DLC – all robust additions. Kingmaker‘s last major expansion was in 2018. Owlcat continues updating Wrath, so it feels like the fresher and more expanded game.
Reviews: Wrath Wins Praise
Critically, Wrath of the Righteous holds a 83 Metacritic score versus Kingmaker‘s 76. User reviews are also higher on Average for Wrath. In reviews, players widely cite refinements to mechanics, writing, replayability, and class options as major improvements.
Popular consensus among Pathfinder fans on Reddit and Steam is that Wrath is the new gold standard. Reviewers agree it iterated on Kingmaker‘s ideas while adding more polish and customization. Kingmaker is still renowned, but seen as much harsher and buggier.
Player Impressions: Mythic Paths Win Out
On gaming forums, the biggest driver of excitement and replay value for Wrath of the Righteous seems to be the mythic path system. These branching narratives overhaul your character with new abilities and story interactions.
Kingmaker offers rewarding kingdom management between battles, but forum discourse indicates players have more fun mixing and matching Wrath‘s distinct mythic paths. Plus, Wrath‘s crusade system has received improvements over Kingmaker‘s kingdom management.
Streaming Popularity: Wrath Wins Views
On Twitch and YouTube, Wrath of the Righteous garners significantly more views and streams than Kingmaker. In the last 30 days, Wrath received 5.3 million YouTube views versus Kingmaker‘s 630k. And Wrath had almost 650k hours watched on Twitch compared to Kingmaker‘s 75k.
The increased streaming activity indicates Wrath‘s superior word of mouth and retention of an active player base. Streamers tend to choose games that will be most engaging for audiences. Wrath‘s stellar reception draws more eyes.
Mod Support: Vast Improvements
Being on a newer engine, Wrath enjoys stronger mod support from the community with mods that overhaul difficulty, balance, classes, and add quality of life features.
Kingmaker has robust mods too, but its outdated Unity engine limits the scope. Wrath‘s mod scene on NexusMods is currently much more active. Mods can extend these already lengthy games indefinitely.
Which Should You Play First?
For new fans getting into the series, I‘d recommend starting with Kingmaker first then moving onto Wrath. Storywise they are unconnected, but Kingmaker serves as a great onramp to the intricacies of Pathfinder‘s rules before tackling Wrath‘s deeper mechanics and mythic paths.
However, you truly can‘t go wrong with either. They are both phenomenal old school CRPGs. Kingmaker remains one of the greatest RPGs of all time – it just shows its age a bit now versus its stellar successor.
The Verdict: Start With Kingmaker, Then Play Wrath
In closing, Wrath of the Righteous currently stands as the new gold standard for classic CRPGs – improving on Kingmaker‘s formula in almost all areas while adding incredible replay value through varied mythic paths. However, Kingmaker remains an absolute must-play legend in its own right – unmatched in world interactivity and exploration freedom.
My recommendation is to play Kingmaker first, then move onto Wrath. Together, they provide hundreds of hours of incredible old school RPG depth and challenge. Both are masterpieces, with Wrath claiming a slight edge for its refinements. We‘re blessed as RPG fans to have two CRPGs of this astounding quality to enjoy. Start your journey through these classics today!
