Rise of Nations is a real-time strategy computer game, developed by Big Huge
Games and published by Microsoft Game Studios on May 20, 2003. The development
of the game was led by veteran game designer Brian Reynolds, of Civilization
II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. The game has taken several concepts from
turn-based strategy games such as territories and attrition warfare. Rise
of Nations features 18 civilizations, playable through 8 ages of world
history. Rise of Nations: Extended Edition is a
re-release of the main game and its expansion on Steam, released on June 12,
2014. Graphical changes to the game include updated textures, lighting and
water. Other changes to the game include Steamworks integration which adds cloud
saves, Steam Trading Cards, achievements, Twitch integration and
multiplayer with Elo ranked matches to the game. Extended Edition is developed
by SkyBox Labs. Gameplay
The core of Rise of Nations's gameplay centers around the concept of
"territory". The area near the player's settlements is considered their
territory, and players may only construct buildings within their
territory or that of an ally. A nation's borders can be expanded by the creation
and expansion of cities and forts, a technology tree, and obtaining access to
certain rare resources. Other technologies and resources cause enemy
units within a nation's borders to suffer attrition over time, which can
eventually destroy an unsupplied invasion force.
Citizens in Rise of Nations gather resources, or build or repair damaged
buildings. All of the six resource types in Rise of Nations are infinite in
supply. Any of the game's nations can be played
during any age, regardless of that nation's fate throughout actual history.
Each of the 18 civilizations in Rise of Nations has 4 to 8 eight unique units.
Some unique units are based on units that those nations would have, if they
were not destroyed in real-life. For example, the Native American nations
have unique units in the Modern and Information ages which resemble
real-world Iberian-South American guerrillas. There are 4 end conditions:
capture, territorial superiority, wonder victory, or score victory.
Gameplay focuses heavily on creating a balance between offense, defense, and
economy. Generalship is also needed in this game like most RTS games; this
includes a knowledge of the troops and what they are good at fighting. For
example, pikemen are better than cannon at killing cavalry. Terrain plays a
major part in this game and knowing the terrain is an important asset in battle.
Generals can also be created from a fort to aid an army.
Five tactical formations are also available, including the ability to
compress or expand the line of battle. When a formation is chosen, the selected
units automatically reposition themselves accordingly, typically with
faster moving units in the front and slower moving, vulnerable units in the
rear. In a manner similar to chess, slight
strategic mistakes early in the game can turn into major tactical problems later
on. For example, if a player starts with the nomad setting where no city is built
at the start, it is wise to scout for an area that has resources before building
a city, for without resources there is no army and the player will lose.
A single-player campaign, Conquer the World, is included in the game. It is
comparable to the board game Risk, except that attacks are resolved with a
real-time battle, which can last as long as 90 minutes depending upon the
scenario. The player can also purchase reinforcements or bonus cards and engage
in diplomacy with other nations. The campaign starts at the Ancient Age and
progresses slowly over the course over the campaign to end at the Information
Age. During a battle it may be possible to advance to the next available age and
upgrade units for the battle. Rise of Nations uses an Elo rating
system to rank players. = Units =
There are more than 100 different units in Rise of Nations, ranging from the
Ancient Age Hoplite to the Information Age Stealth Bomber. Military units are
created at certain structures: the Barracks, Stable/Auto Plant, Siege
Factory/Factory, DockAnchorage, Airbase, Missile silo, and FortFortress/Redoubt.
Most Infantry units operate in squads of three, and when a player builds an
infantry unit, three soldiers are produced, rather than just one soldier.
Exceptions to this rule are: Scout and Special Forces units, armed civilians,
flamethrowers, and machine gunners. Unit types, such as Light Infantry,
Heavy Infantry, and Ranged Cavalry, can be upgraded as the player advances
through the ages. These upgrades usually represent revolutionary changes in their
particular field. For example, the Arquebusier of the Gunpowder Age becomes
the Musketeer of the Enlightenment Age, representing the great advantage of
flintlock muskets over the earlier matchlock muskets and showing increased
attack power and reload speed. Also, each nation gets its own set of unique
units. For example, the Greeks can build Companion cavalry; the Russians can
build Red Guards infantry and T-80 tanks; the British can build Longbowmen,
Highlanders, and Avro Lancaster Bombers; and the Germans get the Tiger and
Leopard tanks. In the Thrones and Patriots expansion pack, the Americans
can build various Marine units. Because of the wide variety of units in
the game, players have the opportunity to create an army customized to their
tastes. Most units have a cost that is roughly equal to that of their peers.
Additionally, most units use only two resource types, making the creation of
diverse armies easier and almost required. Terraced costs further
contribute to the incentive for a diverse army, as each additional unit a
player creates of a single type will cost slightly more than the last.
= Wonders = Wonders are important buildings in the
game. They are real-life structures ranging from the Colossus and the
Pyramids to the Supercollider and Space Program. They provide various benefits
such as improving resource gathering or making units cheaper. Building wonders
can also allow a player to win the game if 'wonder victory' is chosen as a
custom setting of the game, as each wonder is worth a preset amount of
"Wonder Points". Wonders can be built starting in the Classical Age. The only
exception is the Egyptians can make wonders an age earlier. As you progress
in the game the wonders become more expensive, but generate more points. For
example, the Supercollider is worth eight times as much as the Pyramids in
terms of Wonder Points. = Multiplayer =
GameSpy was originally used to host the game but currently does not host the
game on their servers. The LAN networking, implemented on both
platforms, provides a system for people on the same network to play together.
There is also a Direct-IP option, allowing non-networked players to
connect without the use of GameSpy. Cross-platform play is not supported
between Windows and Mac users. Development
38 Studios acquired the rights to Rise of Nations and Rise of Legends, when it
acquired Big Huge Games in 2009. After 38 Studios filed for bankruptcy in 2012
its rights to Rise of Nations were sold at an auction to Microsoft.
Related games = Thrones and Patriots =
On April 28, 2004, Big Huge Games released Rise of Nations: Thrones and
Patriots, an expansion pack. Later that year, a Gold edition of Rise of Nations
was released, which included both the original and the expansion.
= Rise of Legends = In May 2006, Big Huge Games released
Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends, a fantasy-themed spin-off with similar
gameplay. = Tactics =
Rise of Nations: Tactics, a game for the iOS was in development at Big Huge Games
but was cancelled. = Extended Edition =
Rise of Nations and its expansion pack has been revitalized under the name Rise
of Nations: Extended Edition and was released on June 12, 2014 on Steam. Rise
of Nations was redone by Skybox Labs. It features high definition graphics
upgrade, multiplayer ranked matches, and Twitch integration. The core of the game
remains untouched. Reception
Rise of Nations received many positive reviews for both its soundtrack and
gameplay from many websites and magazines and won several awards. It
holds an 89% rating at review aggregator site Metacritic.
= Critical reception = PC Gamer - 88%
PC Gamer - 95% PC Format - 93%
LeveL Turkey - 92% GamesMaster - 89%
GameSpot - 9.3/10 IGN - 8.2/10
GameSpy - 90/100 Eurogamer - 9/10
Maximum PC - 10/10 = Awards =
GameSpy 2003 Game of the Year - PC RTS GameSpy Top 10 RTS Games
Best Strategy Game of 2003 by GameSpot Best PC Game of 2003 by GameSpot
= Sales = Rise of Nations and its expansion pack
Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots have received combined sales of over 1
million copies, despite it receiving less advertising and media attention as
its other strategy counterpart, the popular Age of Empires series.
= Scientific study = Rise of Nations was shown in 2008 to
improve a variety of "critical cognitive skills", most prominently working memory
and task-switching ability, in older adults.
Notes References
External links Rise of Nations guide at StrategyWiki
Official website for Rise of Nations: Extended Edition
Rise of Nations Community site GameSpy Rise of Nations Rankings
Rise of Nations for Mac OS X Rise of Nations Strategy Catalogue
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