"I bought this game along with a friend so we could play the strategic game
over a network with one another. Imagine my chagrin, after opening the box, to
discover that strategic mode is available only for single players! Foul! It
doesn't mention that fact on the outside of the box!
Well, I kept it and am playing it and I like it, although it definitely has
many problems. All these comments refer to the Strategic Game. Battlefield mode
seems to work pretty well, although it's really hard to master.
The designers of this game must never have played Master of Orion. They ought
to. As the game progresses, you find yourself in charge of many many provinces,
and many many armies. There is no set of charts and tables showing you what's
going on (units training, or buildings in progress)in each of your provinces, or
what is in your provinces. There are a couple woefully inadequate tables listing
your troops and ninjas, but there is no way to click on that army or unit and go
directly to it (and the chart doesnt show where each ninja is located).
And the biggest fault of all, is the inablility to program your armies to
move. You end up with long production and movement chains (aka Warlord) where
you must build in one province, and move a string of units slowly toward the
front.
As for diplomacy, forget it. The "Throne Room" is a joke. I thought
we might have some diplomatic options as in Master of Orion. Maybe some bribes,
threats, etc. Maybe a chance for the enemies to join you. No, it's not there.
The whole Throne Room is a wast of time and programming. You can either ally or
not with emissaries, and that is it. And the only thing an ally is good for is
to suddenly attack you when you least suspect it. Exactly the same as a not
combatant neighbor.
So there you have it. It is almost a great game. If the developers spend a
little more effort, they will have a great one.
Please Please Please:
1. Give us multiplayer Strategic Mode.
2. Give us better charts and statistics, and the ability to click on the
charts and progress to the units themselves.
3. This is least important. Give us some diplomatic options!" - Tom
Wham, Lake Geneva, WI
