Game of Thrones: Path of Kings is a love-hate kind of game. As a free-to-play action RPG, it ambitiously recreates the world of Westeros — from the freezing winds of the North to the sun-soaked gardens of Highgarden — all vividly and carefully rendered. As a long-time A Song of Ice and Fire fan, I stepped into this politically charged and monster-filled land full of anticipation, only to have reality throw a very cold bucket of water on me.
The story takes place during the fourth season of the show. You play as a northern noble’s illegitimate child, who sets out to win favor and support from various houses as your father lies gravely ill and the line of succession hangs by a thread. Along the way, you’ll battle White Walkers, rebel Bolton forces, and even mythical creatures. The plot has substance and intrigue, but these are only surface-level decorations. In truth, Path of Kings feels more like a lesson in resource management than an immersive role-playing adventure.
The game begins by letting you choose from three combat classes — Mercenary, Knight, and Assassin. I picked Mercenary, partly because I’ve always loved the Barbarian archetype from Dungeons & Dragons, and partly because I’ve been inspired by Brienne of Tarth — there’s just something satisfying about cleaving through enemies with a two-handed axe. It’s worth noting that the game allows you to switch classes freely and share your inventory across them, which is a considerate touch. However, if you want to reset your character, rename them, or start a new class from scratch — sorry, the system doesn’t allow it. That became a nightmare when I accidentally created a knight with an awkward facial expression during testing and couldn’t delete her afterward.
Character creation isn’t as detailed as Dragon’s Dogma 2, but it’s decent enough to craft a hero with some personality. I gave my character smoky eye makeup and a scar — she looked a bit like a heartbroken Triss from The Witcher 3. That was actually my friend Max’s comment; he always spends two hours in the character creator of any RPG just to build a battle-hardened female warrior with a tragic past.
The tutorial section is well-designed. It takes you from beyond the Wall all the way back to the South, even letting you meet Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly — a fun little treat for fans of the show. Unfortunately, the character models aren’t very appealing. Their expressions are stiff, their eyes lifeless — Jon’s face in particular looks like it was traced from a low-resolution photo. This “looks fine from afar, terrible up close” problem persists throughout the game. The landscapes of Westeros — snowy plains, rolling hills, towering castles — look magnificent from a distance, but once you approach, the grass looks like bouncy rubber mats, the trees have sharp polygonal edges, and the atmosphere collapses instantly.
Even worse is the movement. Whether on foot or horseback, it feels like gliding on ice. In platforming sections that require precise jumping, this becomes torture. Once, after painstakingly climbing a hill to complete a side quest, I slipped and fell into an enemy camp, instantly surrounded by ten foes. The helplessness was real — like saving up for a weekend ski trip, only to find your gear broken and having to order replacements on the spot.
As for the combat and enemy design — they’re mediocre at best. The action looks flashy and the hits sound impactful, but once you dig deeper, it’s clear that combat feels stiff and rhythmically dead. Hitboxes are inconsistent, and while the skill trees and trait upgrades look expansive, they barely affect gameplay. Abilities like learning to parry or craft arrows sound cool, but most upgrades only provide small numerical boosts, leaving your combat style basically unchanged. After 60 hours of play, my fights felt nearly identical to those at hour 20 — which made it hard not to feel like I was wasting time.
The real exhaustion, though, comes from a system called “Momentum.” This progress lock calculates your overall score based on gear level and skill power, then uses that score to gate the main storyline. In other words, if your score isn’t high enough, you’re forced to grind boring side quests, farm resources, or — of course — pay to upgrade. It reminded me of my friend Laura’s complaint about Destiny 2: “It’s not about skill; it’s about whether your numbers look good.” In Path of Kings, that philosophy is taken to the extreme.
And behind it all lies an ocean of microtransactions. You can pay to speed up crafting, buy higher-tier expedition wagons, or even unlock fast travel. Almost every system has a hidden “Pay to make this easier” button behind it. I get that free games need revenue, but this approach makes you feel less like a hero and more like a cog in a meticulously engineered commercial machine.
What’s most frustrating is that this game could have been the Game of Thrones RPG we’ve all dreamed of. The worldbuilding is serious, the map is grand, and the dialogue contains genuine respect and understanding of the original universe. I remember one quest where an old woman tearfully thanked me for rescuing her daughter from the Boltons — for a brief moment, I truly felt like I’d done something good. Sadly, those moments are drowned out by endless waiting, awkward animations, and the relentless chase for higher stats.
In the end, Game of Thrones: Path of Kings feels like a beautifully crafted illusion. It wears the noble attire of Westeros and follows the structure of an action RPG, but its heart beats to the rhythm of microtransactions and repetition. For fans like me, it’s both a continuation of the dream and a harsh reminder — in the game of thrones, you don’t win or die; you pay, or you can’t move forward.
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