Rome: Total War Gold Edition

I love reading and learning about history, and just finding out how people lived back then. While there are certain things in history I do not enjoy reading, I find myself very fascinated with the ancient Roman time period. This nation really did a lot and held power over the world for a very long time. Everything about this culture is just really captivating, from their religion, mythology, art style, and even military campaigns. This time period has inspired many movies, books, poetry, and games over the many centuries. Two years ago the developers at Creative Assembly created the game Rome: Total War and shortly thereafter released the expansion Rome: Total War Barbarian Invasion. These games were received with much acclaim and are very highly rated. Since this is the case the developers decided to make a “Gold Edition” that contains both games at a very reasonable price in one box. Read on to find out why you should go purchase this game when you see if in store shelves.

This is the first time that I have had the pleasure of playing Rome: Total War and its expansion Barbarian Invasion, and I must say that I have missed out on a lot. These two games allow you take part of events that made Rome a key player in the world. You will get to take control of the game when Rome is still a republic all the way until the Roman Empire gets divided into two empires until its final collapse. This allows players to experience some of the most defining moments in history and see if they can mimic the victories and overcome and win the famous battles some of these generals lost. Every decision that you make will affect how the game is played, so before you make a move you need to make sure it is the right one in order to win the game.

Rome: Total War Gold Edition is really a combination of two great games. First you have the Civilization-style gameplay. This means that you will have to build up your empire, trying to take over as much land as possible. Doing this means that you will have to build up your army's power in order to stave off any incoming attacking enemies that might come upon you. This part of the game requires a lot of tactical strategy in order to become successful. The other part of this game is all done in real time a la Age of Empires. What I mean by this is that when you attack (or an enemy attacks you) the game switches to real-time mode where you take direct control of your armies as you try to kill off any enemies that you come upon. The merging of these two types of gameplay is done flawlessly and makes the game a blast to play through.

It is hard to review a game that has been released two years ago, especially one in the computer market since there are constant updates to PC technology. With that in mind I would like to say that I really understand why this game received such high marks two years ago. Rome: Total War Gold Edition is a really great-looking game. The negative point to this is since this game was released nearly two years ago, there have been many better looking games that have come out recently that are full of even more eye candy. So while it is hard to fault this game on various aspects you have to take this game into perspective that it was released two years ago.

With that being said, the graphics for this game do look really nice. I am fond of the various character models in this game. They all are really detailed and have a nice look and feel to them. What makes it even better is that the various characters in this game have a nice animation set to them that make it look even more realistic. Another thing that makes this game look nice is that all of the places where you do battle at are also really detailed, from trees to the actual land that you are doing battle on.

Continuing on the “praise train” this game has a great sound selection. Hearing all of the battle cries of your soldiers on the battlefield is really inspiring. Also hearing the footsteps of a huge legion go across the land (and various types of terrain) sound really good and realistic as well. The voiceovers that the developers used for this game are nice and fit the game as a whole, from hearing the various speeches on the battlefield to hearing your generals shout out orders. It is all really done with taste and plenty of flavor. The music that the developers used for this game also complements the entire game as a whole. It will move to you complete each mission and try with every ounce of strength in your body to beat back the enemies.

Rome: Total War Gold Edition is rated Teen for violence.

The system requirements are as follows:
Windows XP or 2000
1.0 GHz or greater processor
256 MB of RAM
8X or faster CD/DVD drive
2.9 GB of disk space
64 MB Video Card
Direct X 9.0b

Gameplay: 9.0
Rome: Total War Gold Edition is a blast to play. This is a combination of two great games (or at least in my mind). First you have the tactical/strategic side of the game, where you try to build your empire and maintain it from various enemy forces. When you get into a battle, you take control of your armies directly as you try to defend and overcome all obstacles that are presented to you.

Graphics: 8.5
For a game that is about to become two years old, it still looks pretty decent. While you can’t compare it directly to games like Age of Empires III and Earth 2160, this game still can hold its own, for the most part. The character models are fairly detailed and have a nice look to them. The various places where you actually do battle on, looks nice as well. Anther thing that I was impressed with was the animation. After viewing this game I can see why it earned such high marks a couple of years ago.

Sound: 9.1
I really enjoyed everything that both games had to offer in the sound category. Everything in this game feels more realistic and inspiring, from the loud battle cries to the well-done voice acting. The developers also did a really stand-up job with the music, on how it complements the action instead of distracting the players wondering what in the world is playing.

Difficulty: Medium
Just like all strategy games, it will take a while to get adjusted to how this game is played and for you to make your own ways of overcoming various obstacles that the game might throw at you.

Concept: 9.1
I really like how the developers really made the players feel that they are a part of history in this game, because it is by your actions if you win or lose a campaign. The way that the various missions were structured and the options that you have on and off the battlefield is just great and makes this game a blast to play.

Multiplayer: 8.2
The multiplayer aspect of this game adds a lot of life into an already great game. Do you have what it takes to topple your friends in an online game? Try it out as many times as you want and you will see how addictive this game’s multiplayer aspect is.

Overall: 8.9
I really wish I knew how good Rome: Total War and its expansion Barbarian Invasion was when they were first released. I really enjoyed every aspect that this game offers to players. I am really looking forward to seeing what the developers of this game have to offer in their next game, as it will be something to keep our eye out for. If you see Rome: Total War Gold Edition on the shelves, you need to purchase this game because you will not regret it.