I had quite a few titles planned for this review, but I was side tracked by just one: Sierra's Caesar III. This is easily the most addictive game I've played all year. Let me set the stage: you are a newly appointed governor of the Roman Empire. You move from province to province, building cities and establishing economies. Each city is tougher, and with each success a higher rank and more work is awarded. The goal: to become Caesar!
Sound easy enough? Caesar II builds on the foundations of the earlier titles, adding lots of new features. Here's the basic gameplay: you start with a plot of empty land, and from there establish housing, water services, religious and entertainment facilities, commerce and trade. It's up to you to keep your citizens happy, by providing all the things in life people want. They start by wanting food and shelter. Then it's temples. Next you need to get some income going, so you start taxation. Raw materials are harvested and worked into saleable goods like furniture or pottery. You establish trade routes with other cities in the empire, selling off your excess and buying what you can't produce locally. All the while you must answer Caesar's call for goods and troops, or get fired. As well five Roman Gods can bless or cripple your city: temples and festivals keep them happy.
You're probably asking how to keep up with everything. A group of advisors are provided that tell you when you need more workers, or low food stores, that kind of thing. But let 's get into the actual gameplay: you build the city by selecting buildings and placing them. Once placed workers emerge from the buildings and wander your streets: you can click on them and get their opinion on how things are going. You know buildings are working by the unique animation: the lumber yard has a log being sawed in half, while the market has a banner that gently sways in the wind.
Then there's combat. The Roman Empire was not a peaceful place, and as such you have to establish and train up to six legions to defend your fledgling province. You don't actually fight it out: you move your legion to the trouble and choose their formation, letting the game take care of the rest.
What's great about Caesar II is that everything takes place on the screen; no jumping to a combat window. I can't say enough about it: you have to see the map filled with your city, the streets teeming with people of every kind. The city is alive, so much so that you're drawn into it. People are clamoring for more schools and libraries, but where do you find the employees, and how do you fit them into an overcrowded neighbourhood. It just never ends.
Don't take my word for it: go to www.caesar3.com and grab the demo. It includes the first two missions and lets you get a taste for what makes an emperor.
I just received a new shooter from Activision: Sin. It's the future, and you're blowing away the bad guys. Smooth graphics and aimed shots set this one aside. Sin lets you aim at a guys head and take him down with one shot. Similarly, hit him in the leg and immobilize him. Fast and furious is the only way to describe this kind of action. Drop by www.activision.com and grab the demo. Be warned: this one gets pretty dicey, so be prepared.
by Scott VanderPloeg
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