Risk: Factions

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Risk: Factions
RISK Factions Logo.jpg
Developer(s) Stainless Games
Powerhouse Animation Studios, Inc. [1]
Publisher(s) Electronic Arts
Designer(s) Simone McDermott
Programmer(s) Ben Lyons
Nick Slaven
Artist(s) Will McCourt
Writer(s) Robert Levine
Composer(s) Jamey Scott
Platform(s) Xbox 360 (XBLA), PlayStation 3 (PSN), Windows (Steam), Facebook Platform
Release23 June 2010
21 December 2010 (PSN)
9 March 2011 (Steam)
Genre(s) Strategy
Mode(s) Single-player, Multiplayer

Risk: Factions was a downloadable video game for Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service, PlayStation 3's PlayStation Network, and Windows computers through Steam. The game was announced on January 12, 2010 for Xbox 360, [2] December 21, 2010 for PlayStation 3, [3] and March 8, 2011 for Windows. [4] Based on Hasbro's popular board game Risk , the game has both single player and online modes of play. [5]

Contents

Gameplay

In addition to the brand new Factions game variation, Risk: Factions also features a Classic game variation derived directly from the 2008 Risk rule set. Players must complete three objectives and have control of their capital to win the game. Alternatively, a player may defeat all the opponents to win the game as well. The game is played by 2 to 5 players, depending on the size of the map. For example, the classic World map is available for a 3 to 5 player game.

The features exclusive to the Factions game variation are overkills and terrain features. Overkills are awarded by rolling two or three sixes. If a player rolls two sixes, he destroys twice as many units as he would normally. If a player rolls three sixes, he destroys all the opponent's units in the current battle. Some maps have special terrain features like the volcano, which can erupt and kill most surrounding soldiers, or the temple, which allows the player who has captured it to convert an opponent-controlled territory of his choice and all units within it to his color.

The Factions game variation also includes a single player campaign, divided into 5 chapters. Each chapter unlocks one of the game's five playable factions.

Factions

Dice probabilities

In the Factions game variation, it is possible for a player to gain the ability to use up to a fourth die when attacking and/or a third die when defending. This, along with the overkill and super-overkill features, makes the probabilities of winning battles different from the original Risk board game rules. Below is a table summarizing the dice probabilities for the factions game type: [note 1]

Attacking dice444333222111
Defending dice321321321321
Attacker loses all0.5%0.5%0.5%
Attacker loses 47%2.8%7%2.8%7%2.8%
Attacker loses 230.6%18.2%40.2%31.2%54.4%42.1%
Attacker loses 129.3%34%41.7%82.7%74.5%58.3%
Both lose 131.2%33.1%29.2%24.3%25.5%32.4%
Defender loses 170.7%66%58.3%17.3%25.5%41.7%
Defender loses 223.1%36.7%18.8%35.5%11%20.8%
Defender loses 46.7%8.0%4.0%5.8%1.6%1.9%
Defender loses all0.9%1.2%0.3%0.4%
Attacker wins30.7%45.9%70.7%23.1%41.7%66%12.6%22.7%58.3%17.3%25.5%41.7%
Defender wins38.1%21%29.3%47.7%34%34%61.9%44.9%41.7%82.7%74.5%58.3%
Tie31.2%33.2%0%29.2%24.3%0%25.5%32.4%0%0%0%0%

Reception

Risk: Factions received generally favourable reviews upon release, with a Metacritic average of 77%.

Destructoid praised the developer for not just making a copy of the traditional board game with the console version. The reviewer said: "Clearly a lot of time was put into making sure Factions not only overflowed with personality, but was also able to capture the interest of new players. I can't recommend this game enough, especially at such an affordable price." [6]

1UP.com said that "while the factions aspect could have been fleshed out a bit more, the title still stands as a solid update to the game and a worthwhile purchase for strategy fans." [7]

Discontinuation

Xbox Live

As of 2014, RISK: Factions is no longer available for purchase on Xbox Live's Arcade Marketplace. [8]

Steam

Some time around October 2020, the Steam version of the game was made unavailable for purchase at the request of Electronic Arts, presumably because Electronic Arts had lost the Hasbro license for Risk at the time.[ citation needed ]

Notes

  1. ↑ The probability table makes the following assumptions about the rules of Risk: Factions, which are not explicitly defined:
    • If both the attacker and the defender roll an overkill or super-overkill, the defender's overkill overrides and is the only one that counts.
    • The defender using 3 dice has the chance of rolling a super-overkill.
    • If the attacker rolls an overkill, while the defender rolls even a single six, the attacker's overkill is annulled.

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References

  1. ↑ "EA Sets Stage for World Domination With RISK: Factions". Archived from the original on 2010-05-31. Retrieved 2010-05-24.
  2. ↑ "Announcement Release". Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
  3. ↑ "Risk: Factions Brings Global War to PSN". IGN. 2010-12-21. Archived from the original on 2011-01-31. Retrieved 2010-12-22.
  4. ↑ "Now Available - RISK Factions". Valve. 2011-03-08. Archived from the original on 2011-03-17. Retrieved 2011-04-05.
  5. ↑ Miller, Matt (February 2010). "Xbox Live Arcade gets three new exclusives, and MotionPlus comes to WiiWare". Game Informer . No. 203. p. 30.
  6. ↑ http://www.destructoid.com/review-risk-factions-177870.phtml Archived 2010-07-24 at the Wayback Machine Destructoid
  7. ↑ http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3180110&p=4 1UP.com
  8. ↑ "A Trio of Delistings Hit the Marketplace". Archived from the original on 2014-07-20. Retrieved 2014-08-04.
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