Rome: Total War Barbarian Invasion

"This sequel doesn't live up to its original."

Rome Total War was one of the best real time strategy games ever, however its expansion pack is not. I really love the original Rome Total War and I really wanted to love Barbarian Invasion too but there are to many flaws. At first glance it resembles the original but once you play it for a while you wish that you hadn't spend the $20.

Game play: 6
Game play has been changed in several ways in this one. First of all when you go to choose a faction, such as the Eastern and Western Roman Empires, the Goths, or the Huns, you will notice that each faction has their own specific goals to win the game instead of in the first one where you just capture Rome and get 50 provinces. But once you pick a faction you will notice that each faction is pretty much the same. If you are a barbarian faction, which is every faction other then the two Roman Empires, have pretty much the same buildings, like wooden pallisides and pubs, and the same units, only basic infantry and a whole bunch of different forms of calvary. Once you start the game you go to a big map of Europe, North Africa, and West Asia where you train armies, move your armies, and build up your cities. However all is not well on the world map, in the first one you had cities all over the map but in this one it feels like they have taken away a lot of the cities and most of what you is doing is trying to find a city to attack. A new feature is that religion, religions included are Christianity, Pagan, and Zoraoster, is now added to the game which in theory is good but I could never figure out how to have the cities convert. Another new thing is the addition of horde mode which is when you lose all your cities and all your remaining armies get additional reinforcements and it is now your task to take a new capital. My only problem with this is that you get to many troops in horde mode and it's hard to wipe out an enemy faction then. The battles themselves remain relatively unchanged. You do the same thing as in the original, build an army, find an enemy city to attack, lay siege to a city and build siege equipment, and either attack or starve the city until they surrender. The only change is the addition of night battles which I have never used, but you have to have a general with the ability to use it.

Graphics: 10
Pretty much the same as in the first one which is great because once you are in battle parts all the men look pretty real, even the world map looks good.

Story: 2
There really isn't really a story other then what history provides. The Roman Empire has split into East and West and now barbarians try to destroy them. It is up to you to choose a faction and either try to preserve the empire or destroy it.

Sound: 4
Music is the same as the first one and I didn't care for that music. But I like listening to the general's speech before a battle, since he sometimes gives you advice for the upcoming battle, or the men celebrating once you win a battle.

Rent or Buy?
Since it is a PC game you would have to buy it but I don't recommend it. If you have Rome Total War stick with that and if you don't have Rome Total War and you are looking for a good real time strategy game then play that.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 11/29/05