Developer: Kubat Software
Publisher: Slitherine Software
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Aggressors: Ancient Rome – Review
Here is a 4X historical strategy underdog that could really surprise you. Hitting the gaming industry in the same genre as big hitters such as Civilization and Total War, Aggressors: Ancient Rome is not one to ignore as it throws you into the ancient Mediterranean history with new ideas bringing the Roman period to life in a surprising accurate style.
Story
Aggressors: Ancient Rome takes place during the Roman Times where you can choose between 20 different factions. The bigger and well-known factions such as Egypt, the Greek States and of course the Roman Empire adorn the list but you are also able to find smaller civilizations such as the Antigonid, the Celtic Tribes or Pontus. Each will start with their own economy, population and land to offer a different feel to the game.
The player is invited to delve into a tutorial playing as the Roman Empire where the game teaches you the basic elements in a story driven way. Following the basic tutorial you are able to go through an advanced tutorial which provides you with objectives to complete at your own pace. This is it in terms of story, however. As often with these types of games you forge your own story through your actions and conquest.
Graphics
This game is very light graphically which means it runs fine on almost all machines. The models are recognizable though this is not a game to play if you are looking for a visual experience. For you players wanting to play from a distance like a sofa, you will get a great map-based visual, though you will experience discomfort in the user interface since the icons and values are quite small. Of course, you’re able to adjust your UI scale to counteract this minor inconvenience.
That being said, it is easy to differentiate a settler from a soldier and the view of how your empire expands with its buildings and resources provides a pleasing feeling of accomplishment for each road or building you add to the map.
Sound
It’s quite nice to have ambient sounds such as water sounding like water, a hammer striking when you build something, swords clashing when you go to war and a plethora of natural sounds. What really will please its players is the music.
The music in this game is rich and entertaining to listen to. While playing it delves the player into a state of immersion while making all the difficult decisions an emperor is faced with. The smooth percussions and rhythm is truly pleasing to listen to and simply adds to the gaming experience.
A feature not often found in games is the ability to skip to the next song in the UI overlay of the game. This feature deserves a mention and a big thumbs up for games of this genre. You will be able to choose your own music without having to mute the sound and playing your randomized playlist in the background and thus fight off invaders to sweet melodies created specifically for this game.
Gameplay
Now comes the golden part of Aggressors: Ancient Rome and what truly sets it aside from the other games of the 4X Strategy genre. Despite all of the similarities to Civilization’s gameplay, its aspects are so expansive and filled with details and topics you as the player will have to pay attention to.
As you start a new game you have a choice to play in the Ancient Mediterranean world with the age-appropriate 20 playable nations in their historical locations which could mean you can start as the Roman Republic with all of its wealth and power, as the German Tribes scattered in the northern regions or any of the Greek states. This game mode allows you to enjoy the historical accuracy that Kubat Software put in this game. Alternatively, you can play in a customized world where you can choose your map size, the map type, the resources, number of opponents, difficulty and starting level of development. Both game modes are one uninterrupted game until a nation reaches one of the victory conditions through either Military superiority, Technological dominance or Country development.
In order to win battles you will have to ensure you’re on proper terrain, see to the morale of your troops and ensure they’re ready for battle. Neglecting even one of those can set you back or cost you a city, if not worse. Your troops gain battle experience and can be upgraded to truly have several unique legions for different tasks depending on where you deploy them. Finally, troops need to be supplied and war is an expensive business. Neglect this and troops will starve before they even reach the enemy.
Your empire thrives on order, loyalty and even the population as you will dictate the birthrate through your choice of government. Your settlements and troops will grow organically as you let them do their thing, though you will every now and then need to decide on a building or recruit troops or settlers which will not only cost you resources but lower the productivity as the chosen city performs its duties. You will manage politics, economy, research, internal reforms, laws and a whole bunch of other things needed in order to keep the population happy.
The depth of management needed in this game can be a downside for players who aren’t looking for this level of depth, though for people interested in deep strategic management Aggressors will definitely scratch that itch.
Conclusion
Kubat Software put a lot of work on making the gameplay feel as historically correct and it paid off. The very in-depth mechanism of the game gives the genre a new dimension that isn’t easily found or pulled off as good as Aggressors: Ancient Rome does. If you like 4X games and the historical Roman empire, this game in all its complexity is the treasured underdog to the genre.
Aggressors: Ancient Rome - Review,
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