Dungeons 3 Be the bad guy, hilariously

Underground is where it starts. Your goblin workers dig tunnels into the earth, and you decide what goes where: rooms for sleeping, eating and drinking, workshops, and traps at every corner a hero might turn. Some rooms need a minimum size or specific equipment to work, and closed, door-secured rooms run more efficiently, so layout actually matters.

You settle three creature factions, each with their own demands. The horde wants a tavern to drink in, demons want to bathe in mana, the undead want a temple to pray in, and everyone wants chicken and a bed. Neglect them too long and they go on strike, doing absolutely nothing until you deliver. Dig too far and you might strike gold, mana, or a diamond vein that produces gold forever. You might also find spiders. It keeps things interesting.

A dungeon alone does not make an empire. Once your forces are ready, you send them up to the surface, where the real-time strategy half of the game takes over. You guide your army across the overworld, corrupt the land as you go, and dispatch anything heroic, cute or unicorn-shaped.

Thalya, the dark elf priestess you lured away from the surface world, leads your forces as your chief lieutenant while you run the campaign from the comfort of your lair. Back home, heroes will occasionally break into your dungeon to attack its heart, so defenses and traps earn their keep. The two layers feed each other: raids on the surface bring resources, resources grow the dungeon, and a stronger dungeon supports a bigger army. The campaign has 20 missions and more than 20 hours of playtime, and the missions ease new mechanics in step by step.

For the first time in the series, the whole campaign works in co-op for two players. You and a friend split the duties of running a joint empire of evil: one digs and manages the dungeon while the other marches the army, or you tackle both layers together and coordinate as heroes push back.

It is the kind of game made for chatting over. The pace is relaxed enough to leave room for conversation, the narrator keeps up a running commentary, and plans go wrong in ways worth laughing about. If the campaign is not enough, you can also face off against each other, one playing the dungeon master and the other the heroes. Sessions start easily, the systems are simple to learn, and there is plenty to argue about, starting with whose fault the last defeat was.