The video vignettes and bonus history content keep things interesting among many traditional “resource up and go” missions. Whatever the case, it works, and I found myself motivated to complete each fierce war involving William the Conqueror, King John, and others to unravel the next layer of edutainment. Some of the video segments occur in an offbeat fashion where ancient battles and history are superimposed onto modern environments. I haven’t had a Magna Carta refresher like this since high school. Instead, I had a blast nerding out during History-channel-style videos and segments between missions. However, the most enjoyable aspect of the campaigns wasn’t the gameplay. Padfield, Tide of Empires, 2:22-63 Jones, Anglo-Dutch Wars, 14578 Clowes, Royal Navy, 2:25398, 42437, P. Much of the good stuff here outside of the ordinary involves historical figures that lead troops that have been given special abilities for the campaign, adding a bit of zest and flair to the rote. These campaign offerings are heavily rooted in classical RTS and mostly involve building up forces and resources and taking out your opponents, but there are some nice surprises here too.
There’s a meaty campaign in which the first segment functions as an extensive tutorial that can teach even an RTS neophyte to harvest resources, form control groups, and learn how to break down walled fortifications.
