Gamespot has some screenshots of the upcoming XIII Century: Death or Glory. You can read more about it at 1c Games headquarters. Gee. Epic battles, a Risk-like strategy game, 10 playable factions, sieges…didn’t I play this before? Creative Assembly has a good thing going. A distinctive look and complete command of the sub-genre. They had […]
Entries from May 25th, 2005
Underdone Strategy Settings
May 25th, 2005 · 4 Comments · Uncategorized
As wide and deep as the strategy genre is, you would think that we would see more variety in the settings for the games. The push for a familiar world to put the player at ease means that most games just repeat the same moments over and over again. Games with a broad historical sweep […]
Tags:
Default Powers in Discovery
May 23rd, 2005 · 7 Comments · Design, History
It’s funny how strategy games tend to follow each other as if there are default settings for what these virtual worlds are supposed to look like. I’ve already mentioned how the trebuchet moved from an obscure medieval weapon to being something that strategy gamers expect. Age of Empires II made this siege device a household […]
Tags:
Enthusiasm waning
May 22nd, 2005 · 1 Comment · Uncategorized
I love the anticipation part of gaming. Waiting for the game, consuming all the news, checking forums and screenshots. All this stuff is what separates the serious gamer from his casual friends. Sometimes things take a long time, though, and my attention is drawn to a shiny new bauble. Or disappointing news comes out and […]
Tags:
Games for the Masses
May 21st, 2005 · 3 Comments · Uncategorized
Ron Gilbert has an interesting post (leading to interesting comments) over at Grumpy Gamer. The gist of it is that complexity and immersion – hallmarks of games designed for the hardcore audience – are not the way to go if you want to bring in the casual gamer. It brings to mind a conversation I […]
Tags:
Games that Never Were: Sid Meier’s Dinosaurs
May 20th, 2005 · Comments Off on Games that Never Were: Sid Meier’s Dinosaurs · Uncategorized
One of the great might-have-beens in gaming history is Sid Meier’s Dinosaurs. Meier has an amazing track record of innovation and creativity, but lately Firaxis has been dipping into the wayback well a bit too much for that reputation to stay golden. But, shortly after Firaxis was formed, Meier and company said that they were […]
Tags: