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I have been a big fan of strategy and city building games for a long time, and when I run across a game that combines them both, I simply have to give it a try. The demo for this game was released the other day, and I have spent the last couple of days playing it. If you have played Imperium Romanum, this game will feel pretty familiar, but there have been some changes. The graphics in the demo look good, much more detailed than Imperium Romanum. Also, instead of the Timeline in Imperium Romanum, you play a persistent character, working your way from the backwater of the Empire all the way to Rome herself. The combat system has also been much improved! The full game is scheduled for release March 9'th.
RealGamer has a recent interview with Haemimont Games designers Boyan Ivanov and Lyubomir Iliev about the games development and the improvements it makes over its predecessor.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><b>Interview: Grand Ages: Rome</b>
Written by: Darren Cartledge Posted: 26th January 2009
Grand Ages: Rome is the sequel to last year’s city building strategy game Imperium Romanum. We spoke to Haemimont Games designers Boyan Ivanov and Lyubomir Iliev about the games development and the improvements it makes over its predecessor.
<b>Firstly lets talk about the persistent character Grand Ages: Rome introduces for the player, why was this done and what benefits does it bring to the playing experience?</b>
The persistent character was introduced as a means to allow the players to create their own style of playing the game. Each of the five different families brings important differences and options that have to be taken in to account. In multiplayer, the clashes and alliances between differently developed characters provides innumerable combinations of different player strategies.
<b>Speaking of multiplayer, how will Grand Ages: Rome support this?</b>
The game offers 6 different multiplayer modes based on achieving military or economic dominance. Cooperative and competitive team play is fully supported.
An important new feature is the "Team City" option, which allows several players to share control over the same city.
<b>Getting back on track, how historically correct is the game, and was it important for you to make it so?</b>
We have always tried to represent the events and individuals in our games as historically accurate as possible. The campaign in Grand Ages: Rome is based on one of the most turbulent periods in Roman history and we did a lot of research as we wrote the story for the missions. Player’s will have the opportunity to witness key moments in Roman history such as Spartacus’ Rebellion, Caesar’s civil war, the crossing of the Rubicon, and finally the rise of Octavian to emperor.
<b>The combat system in Imperium Romanum, I felt wasn’t the best how has it been improved in the sequel?</b>
Based on a lot of player feedback, we decided to completely remake the combat system. In Grand Ages: Rome players will command their armies using a standard RTS control. Orders are issued with a right-click, there is a drag-selection which allows players to select multiple groups and so on. The player will still command entire squads and not individual soldiers. We have also added warships and naval warfare.
<b>So how much has fan and critic feedback had in influencing the development of Grand Ages Rome?</b>
Fan and critic feedback had an important influence on our general design goals. Both players and journalists remarked on the simplistic combat system in Imperium Romanum. There were also concerns about the economy of the game and the lack of a stronger story in the campaign. Based on this we decided to remake the battles and the economy of the game altogether. We also designed the campaign with a single story line in-mind, instead of a different story for each mission.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
You can read the rest of the interview here:
<a href="http://www.realgamer.co.uk/pc/articles/1232963809.html" target="_blank">http://www.realgamer.co.uk/pc/articles/1232963809.html</a>
You can download the game from StrategyInformer here :
<a href="http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/imperiumromanum2/demo/29468.html" target="_blank">http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/imperiu...demo/29468.html</a>
You can watch a trailer for the game here :
<a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/player/44677.html" target="_blank">http://www.gametrailers.com/player/44677.html</a>
And you can find the official web page here :
<a href="http://www.grandages.com" target="_blank">http://www.grandages.com</a>
<img src="http://pcmedia.ign.com/pc/image/article/950/950209/grand-ages-rome-20090202020521630_640w.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />
<img src="http://pcmedia.ign.com/pc/image/article/950/950209/grand-ages-rome-20090202020524708_640w.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />
<img src="http://pcmedia.ign.com/pc/image/article/950/950209/grand-ages-rome-20090202020528099_640w.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />
I have been a big fan of strategy and city building games for a long time, and when I run across a game that combines them both, I simply have to give it a try. The demo for this game was released the other day, and I have spent the last couple of days playing it. If you have played Imperium Romanum, this game will feel pretty familiar, but there have been some changes. The graphics in the demo look good, much more detailed than Imperium Romanum. Also, instead of the Timeline in Imperium Romanum, you play a persistent character, working your way from the backwater of the Empire all the way to Rome herself. The combat system has also been much improved! The full game is scheduled for release March 9'th.
RealGamer has a recent interview with Haemimont Games designers Boyan Ivanov and Lyubomir Iliev about the games development and the improvements it makes over its predecessor.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><b>Interview: Grand Ages: Rome</b>
Written by: Darren Cartledge Posted: 26th January 2009
Grand Ages: Rome is the sequel to last year’s city building strategy game Imperium Romanum. We spoke to Haemimont Games designers Boyan Ivanov and Lyubomir Iliev about the games development and the improvements it makes over its predecessor.
<b>Firstly lets talk about the persistent character Grand Ages: Rome introduces for the player, why was this done and what benefits does it bring to the playing experience?</b>
The persistent character was introduced as a means to allow the players to create their own style of playing the game. Each of the five different families brings important differences and options that have to be taken in to account. In multiplayer, the clashes and alliances between differently developed characters provides innumerable combinations of different player strategies.
<b>Speaking of multiplayer, how will Grand Ages: Rome support this?</b>
The game offers 6 different multiplayer modes based on achieving military or economic dominance. Cooperative and competitive team play is fully supported.
An important new feature is the "Team City" option, which allows several players to share control over the same city.
<b>Getting back on track, how historically correct is the game, and was it important for you to make it so?</b>
We have always tried to represent the events and individuals in our games as historically accurate as possible. The campaign in Grand Ages: Rome is based on one of the most turbulent periods in Roman history and we did a lot of research as we wrote the story for the missions. Player’s will have the opportunity to witness key moments in Roman history such as Spartacus’ Rebellion, Caesar’s civil war, the crossing of the Rubicon, and finally the rise of Octavian to emperor.
<b>The combat system in Imperium Romanum, I felt wasn’t the best how has it been improved in the sequel?</b>
Based on a lot of player feedback, we decided to completely remake the combat system. In Grand Ages: Rome players will command their armies using a standard RTS control. Orders are issued with a right-click, there is a drag-selection which allows players to select multiple groups and so on. The player will still command entire squads and not individual soldiers. We have also added warships and naval warfare.
<b>So how much has fan and critic feedback had in influencing the development of Grand Ages Rome?</b>
Fan and critic feedback had an important influence on our general design goals. Both players and journalists remarked on the simplistic combat system in Imperium Romanum. There were also concerns about the economy of the game and the lack of a stronger story in the campaign. Based on this we decided to remake the battles and the economy of the game altogether. We also designed the campaign with a single story line in-mind, instead of a different story for each mission.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
You can read the rest of the interview here:
<a href="http://www.realgamer.co.uk/pc/articles/1232963809.html" target="_blank">http://www.realgamer.co.uk/pc/articles/1232963809.html</a>
You can download the game from StrategyInformer here :
<a href="http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/imperiumromanum2/demo/29468.html" target="_blank">http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/imperiu...demo/29468.html</a>
You can watch a trailer for the game here :
<a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/player/44677.html" target="_blank">http://www.gametrailers.com/player/44677.html</a>
And you can find the official web page here :
<a href="http://www.grandages.com" target="_blank">http://www.grandages.com</a>