The Wargamer

I met a traveler from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read,
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed,
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look upon my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
                                            -Percy Bysshe Shelley
                                                   (1792-1822)

Introduction

Chariots of War is the latest game from Slitherine Strategies the coders of Legion. Like Legion, it is a turn-based strategy wargame, this time set in the ancient Near East. Chariots of War lets players try their hand at empire-building in the era of the great ancient empires by leading one of the major civilizations of the time (Sumerian, Egyptian, Assyrian, among others) and fighting to expand and survive.

Chariots of War builds on the game engine introduced in Legion, and expands it with several solid enhancements. As with Legion, Chariots of War features excellent attention to historical detail, solid AI, and an easy-to-understand game interface. It boasts of enhancements over Legion in the areas of empire management, particularly in diplomacy, trade and resources. It also has a Grand Campaign (something which Legion lacked) that lets you take on the full scope of the game at once and compete with all 50+ nations and territories. Chariots of War is, however, strictly a one-player game: there is no support for multiple players or Internet-based playing. Also, Chariots of War sports solid but not "bleeding-edge" graphics: players for whom the latest and greatest graphics are important will likely not appreciate this game.

But, for the right player, Chariots of War is highly playable and enjoyable. Wargamers who like turn-based strategy games with a great attention to historical detail will find it has a lot to offer. Also, its accessability and solid historical grounding make it a game that a more casual gamer with an interest in the history of this region will enjoy, and perhaps even find educational. For anyone who has wanted to be Ozymandias, Chariots of War gives you the opportunity to build your works and make the mighty despair.

In the beginning...

Installation of Chariots of War is simple and straightforward. Because the system requirements are modest, it leaves a small footprint and was trouble-free for me. One thing to be aware of, however, is that it requires DirectX 8.0 or greater, and ships with DirectX 9.0. The game offer to install DirectX 9.0 so be prepared to upgrade DirectX as part of the installation.

Learning from the Clay Tablets

Chariots of War comes with a short booklet of about 50 pages that covers most of what the player needs to know to play. For those too impatient to read, it also has a tutorial campaign that uses the game's "Message" feature to walk players through some of the basics.

The booklet provides good information, although there are some places where more information would be helpful, especially as far as resource dependencies. Players may find it helpful to "crib" notes on their own or consult the online forums.

The tutorial is helpful but brief, and only covers the absolute basics, but even the most impatient player will benefit from reading it. Also, the tutorial does not monitor the player's actions. If the player doesn't follow instructions, the tutorial will not call this out and this can lead to some minor brain cramping. For example, the tutorial can urge the player to attack with troops that haven't been raised yet.

Make a Joyful Noise...

The music and sounds are solid, even if they're not cutting edge. Not surprisingly, the battle music has a decidedly near eastern feel, which helps give the battles a certain "pep". Just as with Legion, the units do not respond in English (this time it's modern Arabic, the closest equivalent to the old languages) and the battle sounds give a vivid dose of realism without drifting into parody. If your army is victorious, you'll hear a cheer, while defeat is greeted with the silence of the wind blowing over the sand, leaving the player to think about how the desert swallowed up his army.

Deciphering the Hieroglyphs

As mentioned before, the graphics are modest compared with other available titles. However, it would be a mistake to judge Chariots of War only on its graphics. First, the advantage of the modest graphics is that the system requirements are more modest for this game than for other games, enabling those with less powerful systems to play. Also, while not splashy, the graphics are solid and in fact more sophisticated than they seem at first. Instead of focusing on pushing the envelope of the available hardware, the developers at Slitherine have given Chariots of War respectable graphics and obviously gave attention into the details. The maps boast excellent topographical accuracy and give a real feel for the regions portrayed; for example, the Fertile Crescent and the Nile Valley are green and lush, surrounded by arid deserts. Also, the military units look like miniatures of Osprey Publishing illustrations (and in fact, the Slitherine team has said they rely on Osprey for their unit design). For the wargamer who is also a military history enthusiast, this last point will be much appreciated.