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Warrior Kings

Score: 85%
ESRB: Teen
Publisher: Microids
Developer: Black Cactus
Media: CD/1
Players: 1
Genre: Strategy

Graphics & Sound:

Most of your strategy games aren't known for their ground busting graphics, or visuals that leap out and just grab you. Warrior Kings is a bit different in that regard, in that it actually looks good. The buildings are very distinguishable, letting you tell a castle from a granary with no effort. The backgrounds and terrain are nice with crisp greens and dusty browns merging to make impressive hills and swaying trees. Probably one unfortunate thing is that the backgrounds don't change much, so after a few levels, things get drab in a scenery sort of way. The people in WK look good as well. Your stout, valiant army marches in tight formations as it charges a contingent of the Undead. Skeletons, goblins, etc. look as good in this game as they have in any other game save Castlevania II.

Probably the most impressive thing for these legally blind eyes was the battle scenes. Naturally, Warrior Kings was built around battles, so it's nice that they look so good. Archers volley whistling arrows, while armed cavalries make headway against entrenched footmen. Swords clash, while blood and body parts make the battlefield a sovereign reminder to the brutality of war. The graphics are very impressive, especially for a strategy game. Probably the only thing that could have been improved upon was the cut scene movies. They are fairly well-done, but there was room to make them prettier, especially since in-game graphics made me whistle.

The sound isn't anything breathtaking, but it's still very well done. The clanking of armor and overall steely battle sounds make the game very real. The hoarse voices echo across the hills as you rally your troops, all the while your castle walls serve to protect the hustling bustle of the merchants inside. The villages brim with wheat being harvested and wood being cut. All in all, you get the feeling that you're an actual King, trying to balance something so precarious as a kingdom. The music is very kingdom-like as well, with majestic swells bounding in the background. I see music as one of two things: either it goes with the game or it doesn't. This music goes perfectly, making the game that much more enjoyable, and not adding to the frustration factor like music sometimes does.


Gameplay:

You are a king that must guide his people. You think that's easy? Well, read the Difficulty section. There is a lot of micromanagement to Warrior Kings , some of which gets very overwhelming at times. You build up a castle that is your be all, end all. If it gets knocked down, you lose. Simple. Your castle provides protection to the villagers and merchants of the surrounding areas. They, in turn, provide food (for your troops), wood and gold, etc. You also have supply routes setup by packmules that go between distant merchants and your castle. Word to the wise: don't lose your packmules. Your soldiers will eventually overrun any food you can make, so you need those supply lines open. What I liked to do was set up supply lines with enemy merchants. They didn't get attacked so much it seems, as the enemy needed my money, while I needed their food. As your people advance, you even get to the point where you choose which path of religion they must take. Everything from Pagan to Imperial is there. Most of the game is played out on the battlefield, though. Trying to accomplish a goal or protect your innocent is the meat of Warrior Kings . Have no fear, as battles never get boring. Black Cactus has done a top notch job of making the AI smart and adaptive. You think that putting archers on the hill will work all of the time? Maybe for a little bit, but the computer will think of a formation of proper troops that can pry those archers right off the hill. It's like a game of paper, rock, scissors. Certain troop types can easily conquer other troop types. To complicate the mix though, certain troop formations (there's quite a few too) can take out other troop formations. So you've got to be familiar with the strengths of each troop type, as well as each formation. All in all, the battles make for good replay value, as you can try a different strategy each time to see how the (smartest I've ever seen) AI will try and match you. The only thing missing is that the king should pay some kind of child support to all the kingdom's maidens.

Difficulty:

Ah yes, difficulty. Warrior Kings is fun, but extremely tough at times. There's one level I couldn't get past where the game sets you up having to retreat from a huge army in a set amount of time. I tried and tried to where I got so frustrated. Three mice and two keyboards later, I decided that my brain had gotten far enough. There is no easy option, as Warrior Kings is kind of lenient on you, getting progressively more difficult as the game wears on. For most strategy fans, it will be what you're normally used to, but for a racing, sports fan like me, I either lacked the patience or the mental capacity to be a true Warrior King. The controls and interface are easy enough to get, so no issue there. It's just the plain fact that sometimes during the game, you are applauding the AI for making a brilliant move. I spent most of my time applauding. Warrior Kings does reward you for being resilient, but it won't be a walk in the park. Sometimes it takes prayer or an Act of God to beat it, but don't worry because Black Cactus thought of those things too! You just have to make sure you pick the right religion!

Game Mechanics:

You use a mouse and a keyboard to move around the battlefields, preach religion, peddle etc. The manual is very short, but precise at explaining things. I think that is absolutely brilliant. Most strategy manuals are a bit novel-esque, but I enjoyed reading this one. The load times are a bit long, but the graphics and gameplay are well worth it. Seamless is the word. The game really doesn't take up a lot of disk space like most of today's games which is always refreshing, as I need my disk space for stuff like reviews, and any space shuttle blueprints I may have saved.

Riot Rundown: Warrior Kings is a well done game is a genre that is often swamped with lackluster efforts. There are some things that could have been done to make it great, but it's still a game worth buying and playing and replaying. To me, replayability is the important part. If you're a first time strategy gamer, you might want to skim this one and go for Starcraft . If you're into being smart and strategy games, this is definitely a game that won't collect dust in your library.


-Sydney Riot, GameVortex Communications
AKA Will Grigoratos

Minimum System Requirements:



Pentium II 350 MHz, 128 MB RAM, Windows 98/ME/2000/XP, DirectX 8.0, 8 MB DirectX-compatible video card, DirectX-compatible sound card, 4x CD-ROM drive, and 900 MB hard-disk space
 

Test System:



AMD Duron 1 GHz, 320 MB RAM, Windows XP Pro, Direct X 8.1, GeForce 4 MX 420 video card, Hercules Fortissimo II sound card, 46x CD-ROM, 900 MB hard disk space, keyboard, mouse

Windows Warm Up! Sega Dreamcast Bomberman Online

 
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