The rise of great nations can begin with you

If you are an aficionado of the Civilization series or Age of Empires, here is a computer game that will satisfy your hunger: Rise of Nations will enable you to conquer the world, combining all the best features of real-time and turn-based strategy games.
Gathering resources and micro-managing cities are the two primary goals of this game. The gamer climbs up the tech tree over time as he moves on to new ages.
To expand into new territory, the gamer must construct cities from available resources and build an army to maintain them. Personally, I think micro-management is much easier in Rise of Nations than in the Civilization series.
In Rise of Nations, there is only a minimal amount of micro-management. It does not interrupt the general gameflow, however, as the primary goals of the game are constructing armies and preparing them to go into combat situations.
The game has several features that provide variety. For instance, the gamer may attempt to complete projects, or “wonders,” that will give the gamer’s nation bonus points that strengthen the combat units. Each city has a designated radius within which city improvements, such as granaries or barracks, may be built.
As each city has a limit to which these improvements can be made, the gamer must explore the area around him carefully to maximize the use of his unoccupied land.
If you are a fan of micro-management, this is the game for you. If you are not a fan of strategy games this one may turn you into one.
Rise of Nations moves at a good pace; it is not so slow that the playing experience drags on.
This game may be played alone or against the computer. The game has five levels of difficulty, and the gamer may find that without a tight strategy, even playing at the “moderate level” may be quite challenging.

Rise of Nations

Category: Strategy
Players: 1-multiple
Difficulty: Medium
Platform: Playstation2
*****

by Brian Lee