Game of Thrones Failures Players Can Fix in War for Westeros

One of the most fascinating elements of Game of Thrones: War for Westeros is its promise of fictional revisionism. Even in the War for Westeros reveal trailer, which depicts Jon Snow turning into a White Walker at the Battle of Winterfell, there’s a clear focus on narrative flexibility as much as epic gameplay.

For a lot of Game of Thrones fans, the chance to do some rewriting is probably tantalizing. Indeed, the once-beloved HBO fantasy epic suffered a major fall from grace in its final season, which was controversial from top to bottom. Even the seventh season of the show, which isn’t as bad, has a lot of not-so-lovely quirks, which are exactly the sort of thing that Game of Thrones: War for Westeros could remedy via the recreation of certain key conflicts.

Major spoilers ahead for Game of Thrones Seasons 7 and 8.

Game of Thrones: War for Westeros Already Feels Way Too Much Like Walking Dead: Destinies

Game of Thrones: War for Westeros is being compared to The Walking Dead: Destinies, and those parallels aren’t exactly reassuring.

The Battle of Winterfell

This is the very same battle depicted in the War for Westeros reveal, and while it’s an overall win for the good guys, it’s not much of a win narratively speaking. This showdown unfolds in the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones, and is essentially what the entire series has been leading up to. Virtually every major character, save those that the show made irrelevant, such as Cersei Lannister, features in this final fight against the Night King, struggling against this ever-encroaching, corporeal manifestation of Death.

Not only could War of Westeros allow players to “save” characters like Theon Greyjoy and Jorah Mormont, it could also address possibly the greatest narrative issue of the episode: the death of the Night King. Arya Stark is a great character, and she has a lot of great moments, but her killing the Night King is incredibly underwhelming because her story has nothing to do with Him or the Walkers. Arya literally has a list of characters she wants to kill, and the Night King isn’t on it—he’s just not on her radar in that way. It would have been far more satisfying if Jon or Bran, the two characters with the greatest investment in the White Walker plot, killed the Night King, rather than being generally ineffectual during the Battle of Winterfell.

The Battle Beyond the Wall

The entire premise of this battle is quite ridiculous: Jon, Daenarys, and Daenarys’ dragon Viserion lead a modest group beyond the wall in an attempt to capture a zombie, bring it to King’s Landing, and show it to Cersei in order to sway her to their cause. The absurdity of this plan makes the battle’s immense casualties, including Viserion, all the more frustrating. Assuming War for Westeros retains this controversial Game of Thrones battle, it could soften the blow a bit by allowing players to emerge victorious.

This could be especially interesting in the context of War for Westeros’ teased narrative forking. If players win this battle as the Targaryen/Stark team, then maybe the White Walkers will lack the converted dragon in future battles.

The Loot Train Battle

Also taking place in Game of Thrones’ seventh season is what the fan community refers to as the Loot Train Battle. After raiding Highgarden for its food and money, Jamie Lannister is leading a peasant army back to King’s Landing when he is beset by Daenarys and her company of Dothraki. The Lannister force didn’t stand a chance: the combination of Dany’s dragon and the fearsome Dothraki made for a one-sided bloodbath. Since Targaryen and Lannister are two of the factions players can control in War for Westeros, it seems like a likely inclusion.

Aside from what this could mean for War for Westeros‘ multiplayer, it might also bolster the game’s replay value, allowing players to experience this fight from both sides ala Command and Conquer. War for Westeros could show whether it’s possible for the Lannister army to win against a dragon and the Dothraki, which is the kind of thing nerds’ dreams are made of.