A big map, fog of war, and enemies all around. What’s a leader to do? Well,
construct buildings, gather resources, and build military might to win control
of ancient Scotland. A campaign scenario from Age of Empires? No. The latest
offering from Data Becker, Highland Warriors.
There is no doubt that Highland Warriors is an Age of Empires spawned game,
so we will approach the review from that standpoint. The game play basics are
the same. Your clan starts with limited resources, and a few peasants. You must
immediately set your peasants to gathering resources (lumber, gold, ore, stone,
food, etc.), and constructing the buildings that will be your city. As resources
become available, you will need to begin to construct military buildings and
defenses, and military units for defense, scouting, and conquering. Form
strategic alliances with neighboring clans to defeat your enemies, or go it
alone in an all out blood bath for control of the map.
So far, so good, everything is the same as AoE. So here are some of the
subtle differences. Specialization plays a much more prominent role for your
peasants. As you put them to work at a given task, they eventually gain the
experience to achieve a master level in their occupation. Upgrading your peasant
to the master level does cost a little gold, but they will be much more
effective at their given task. However, if you need them to change their job
(say, to repair a building damaged in combat, or to cut lumber when a gold mine
runs out), they are at a disadvantage as they are out of their element.
Constructing your buildings takes on a new twist, as they can only be built
in designated building sites (can anyone say “Ye Olde City Planning
Commission”?). Your clan starts in a sizeable zone, and other zones are
scattered around the map, usually around neutral resources such as a gold or
stone mine. Building zones are not free for the taking though. Any and all enemy
buildings must be destroyed from all parts of a building zone before you can
begin any construction of your own.
Now for the downside. The graphics of Highland Warriors are nowhere near as
sharp as AoE, even set at the highest resolution. The added twists of Master
Craftsmanship and building zones turn out to be a real pain. As your clan grows,
it is an annoying waste of time (and gold) to make the several clicks required
to upgrade peasants. Keeping in mind that one would need to switch peasants’
occupations frequently to prevent specialization would be just as easy
(cumbersome). The building zones detract measurably from strategy. The building
of forward military bases is nearly impossible, and is limited to what the map
dictates. Buildings are already limited in construction (i.e. you cannot build
on trees, water, or unexplored parts of the map), and will be eliminated quickly
by enemies when their strategic placement is flawed.
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