Grand Ages Rome

Grand Ages Rome was first unveiled at this year's Tokyo Game Show in October. At the time, we wondered how it would come along, and were pretty amazed by how it managed to pull off the strategic nature of such an ambitious strategy game. From the single-player mode to the multiplayer, Grand Ages Rome has a lot of potential. After all, the Romans themselves seem to be extremely interested in war, but they really aren't interested in war. If you read on, you probably didn't have a chance to play a real-time strategy game with a Vinci background. But the potential for a true "grand strategy" game has certainly been discussed.

Grand Ages Rome combines historical fact with a little bit of strategy. You can create a Roman campaign in all its glory, which is a lot of work. In addition, there are a number of buildings, units, and campaigns that can be played from the comfort of your home. Most of the historical characters that are featured in Grand Ages Rome are real people. For example, there's Homer, the chief engineer, and Homer himself. As you gain experience, you can add one of three random characters, each with unique personalities. The key to this campaign is to build a successful empire. And even if you don't have any sort of progress in your empire, there are plenty of other benefits that can be gleaned from placing yourself at the start of the game.

GSUK: Tell us about the units in the game. What kinds of units can you use in the game?

MJ: The initial game starts with all units. We have numerous swordmen and pikemen that represent all of the units in the game, although there are also lots of infantry and archers, though there are also plenty of smaller creatures that may be able to be thrown into battle. Then, in the early stages, you'll have more than one scout cavalry. Then, you'll have a greater number of infantry, archers, and pikemen and armies with lots of strong infantry, pikemen, and cavalry, which makes it easy to build more of them. We also have multiple scout pikemen and pikemen that can be placed in battle.

A quick search on the Imperial Age will see some units that are available to all units.

GS: And what about the archers and pikemen? Are they a balanced mix of infantry, cavalry, and archers?

MJ: Yes, they can be a great weapon against a good force, but they are also weak to enemy cavalry, pikemen, and pikemen. And they have good scouting abilities to scout out the battlefield and scout out the landscape for valuable land engagements.

GS: And of course, when you're playing as an Imperial soldier, do you use any other tactics to maintain control of your troops, and when will that be?

MJ: You can use some strategy and brute force to dictate the direction of the battle. For example, you can use cavalry to flank your enemies or even to flank their ranks. However, the other forces can also use some tactics to improve their rank. The archers of War will remain the most powerful in combat.

GS: And how will these units be able to perform against the most advanced enemy troops? What role will they play in battle?

MJ: In addition to the soldiers, which have great statistics and skills, you can also use the level-two hero unit, which has special powers, including the ability to revive fallen soldiers. Additionally, you can also make use of the air units for offensive and defensive purposes.

GS: In the game, the Imperial forces have a unique unit skill--in one case, they can use the remaining structures to counter attacks. Is this a kind of new skill system from the previous games?

MJ: Actually, we will use it in Warlords II as a great example of how to make use of different units. In Warlords II, we removed the three camps from the battlefield. We have also added new towers and weapons, so you can strategically place them anywhere you want, like without building a gate. These are not just for offense. However, the game has been changed so that you can build buildings and turrets. Basically, this means that you can build a huge force of heroes that also can attack multiple units at once. It also means that you can take out a large portion of an enemy army at once.

GS: We understand that there will be plenty of town centers, however, the one new base in the expansion will be a new city that you will unlock as you progress through the game. How will this be handled? Are there specific buildings in the expansion, such as a giant castle or a massive palace? How will they be balanced?

MJ: We don't want to give too much away about this area. It's not a real new feature, but we want it to be.