Gamespot has a nation preview of the Persians for Midway’s upcoming Rise and Fall: Civilizations at War, Stainless Steel Studios’ final game.

So they go through the units and the heroes and something is a little off. Well, more than a little off.

Persia, like all the nations, gets two heroes. Theirs are Nebuchadnezzar and Sargon II. Two great rulers. Conquerors, diplomatic masterminds, both builders in their own way.

Of course, neither is Persian. Nebby is the great Babylonian king who hauled Judah into exile and promoted the prophet Daniel as his right hand man. Sargon is considered the most important of Assyrian kings.

The rest of the article makes reference to Persia’s wars against Greece and Macedon, so they know who Persia is.

Is this just a nitpicky point that doesn’t really affect the game. Sure.

But it’s not like there is a dearth of great Persians to choose from. Where’s Cyrus the Great, the builder of the Achaemenids? Darius who reformed the administration and suppressed the Ionian Revolt? Stick a Sassanid or two in there. But a Babylonian and an Assyrian? Both of whom died before Persia was even an empire?

Things like this bug me. Not enough to write off the game, but enough to make me roll my eyes once or twice.