Developer Koios hammered its way onto the turn-based strategy scene with its unique game,
Tin Soldiers: Alexander the Great, a game that catered to those who either loved or had the potential to love tabletop wargames – without all those pesky game-store kids to deal with. Though it delivers a unique experience, it is not for those with A.D.D. The turns are long and tedious affairs that require a lot of concentration and attention to detail. Victory is only attained by those with perseverance and a lot of time on their hands.
Tin Soldiers: Julius Caesar offers a non-linear Campaign mode that more or less resembles Caesar’s conquests through Europe. There are a variety of missions that you can choose from and they don’t have to be completed in any particular order. Along the way you gain and lose units whose stats increase depending on their actions in battle. Like most tabletop games, you get victory points as you win. You can spend these points on more troops and upgrades that carry over to the other missions. The Campaign is lengthy, and watching your units grow, as well as seeing them die, gives things a nice emotional appeal.
The A.I. has been handled remarkably well. Not only does it use decent maneuvers and tactics, but it is a great place to learn if you haven’t studied the military exploits of the Roman war machine. The enemy is very good about not committing its entire force until it has found a weakness in your strategy, and it keeps victory objectives in mind all the time.
Multiplayer is limited to two players only, and you have to connect directly to your opponent’s IP. Koios must have had Multiplayer on the back burner, because there isn’t even a multiplayer browser to deal with. The lack of any games for more than two players also is something to lament about, but being able to play this game against actual humans can be a treat (as long as your opponent has the guts to stay in the game for the whole shebang).