"The Best RTS there is"

INTRODUCTION: I must say that this is one of the best RTS games i have played. It is as good as Rome Total War, and better than Warcraft 3 or Age of Mythology. It is a very fast game with quick clicking (unlike Rome Total War) but after the beginning, it slows down, and you have to do a lot of strategical thinking.

PRESENTATION (graphics, sound etc) (8/10)
This game has great, 3-D graphics, but it isn't anything revolutionary or spectecular (about as good as AoM or C&C Generals). The units don't have enough detail, and that is a big problem.

RoN has some decent music, but the sound could have been a bit better. All you hear are people dying, and weapons clashing. Quite good overall. Of course, RTSes dont have to have great sound or graphics, but RoN does have some attractive graphics and good music, although the sound is sometimes boring.

CONTROLS (7/10)
Simple controls, but sometimes there are more things to do than you can control, especially at the beginning. You have to research technology or you would fall behind technologically, build cities, manage your resources, build military units, manage them, build citizens, research more techs, expand your borders and attack enemies. Too much to do at the beginnning. But the game slows down after 15 mins of it.

GAMEPLAY (11/10)
This is where the game really shines. You have many different units to pick from, and a whole 18 different civs. Also you have these things called borders which is the edge of your land. No RTS game has done that before, and it is just like real life. You can pick from different scenarios such as Quick Battle and World Conquest and have tons of fun playing both. There are also a few mini-games you can play. While playing a Quick Battle,you can upgrade everything you own numerous times and research different time periods (Gunpowder Age, Information Age). It is a TON of fun and I will be playing it for years to come.

REPLAYABILITY (10/10)
Very replayable. Try it yourself.

In the campaign, you play as a civilisation in the real world. It is like Rome Total War (although less detailed), with a board and territories on it. You move armies across to enemy's land, and if you succeed in conquering it, then you get bonuses like wonders or tribute (which is like money). Also you have the options of purchasing territories, making alliances, declaring wars and a bunch of other stuff.

Quick Battle is also very fun, where you choose where to start, as well as the resources you start with, your allies, enemies as well as the map where you play on.

OVERALL (9/10)
An extremely good game, with revolutionary gameplay, and good graphics. I would like to see heroes (like those in Warcraft 3) in it as well, and also perhaps a government system would be nice (you would get industrial bonuses for communism, or business bonuses for democracy) maybe.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/05/04