Empire Earth

Graphics and Sound

The graphics are okay, but not top-notch. This fact becomes quite apparent when the camera is zoomed all the way in and one can see how blocky the units are. The in-game movies are also made by zooming the camera all the way in and focusing on individual characters. As a result, they do not look particularly good. However, the 3D engine seems to do a good job of rendering many units without frame-rate degradation, so the loss in graphical quality is probably necessary.

I really enjoyed the sound effects and music…especially the music. The various effects, whether they consist of swords clashing or machine guns firing, seem quite apt while the music is suitably epic for the game, and really got me into the mood to play. However, the voice acting is atrocious. This lack of quality is largely due to the fact that the actors use really bad foreign accents. Gamers would not lose out on much if they simply turned off the speakers when the cut-scenes play.

Interface

Empire Earth's interface is quite simple. Indeed, anybody who has spent time playing the Age of Empires series should be able to jump right in with little difficulty. Icons display how much of the five resources (stone, gold, food, wood, and iron) have been collected, while a mini-map shows where units and buildings are located. Units are selected by left clicking and told where to move and attack by right clicking. Many of the game's functions are also assigned to hotkeys, some of which are the same as those in Age of Empires 2. In addition, the interface includes such useful features as the "Find Idle Citizen" button, which centers the screen on peasants who are not working.

Gameplay

On the surface Empire Earth seems to be fairly standard RTS fare: explore the surrounding countryside, exploit the land's resources, expand the empire, and exterminate the opposition. However, its gameplay is quite a bit deeper than that. At the heart of this title is the idea of advancement - civilizations progressively developing better ways of doing things (or at least cheaper and more efficient ways). In the game, players gradually develop more and more powerful technology while hindering the progress of their enemies. In fact, it is theoretically possible to take a civilization from hunting with spears in the Stone Age to waging war with nuclear weapons in the 21st Century, although doing so would probably take several hours. Furthermore, players do not have to win through military might alone. More peace-loving players can construct wonders of the world and pursue victory by demonstrating their cultural superiority over their foes.

However, it should be noted that Empire Earth is still and RTS and therefore it is restricted by certain conventions of that genre. First of all, this is by no means a simulation of nation building. Players will never have to deal with things like taxation rates or domestic politics, which a more strategic game would offer. Instead they start with a village and must then destroy all opposition to that settlement. They do this by gobbling up resources and pumping out units as quickly as possible. Also, while it is possible to cow others into submission by building wonders, the main focus of the game is the generally historical goal of wiping one's foes off the map. That means that, as in most if not all games of this type, players are basically being asked to commit genocide against their opponents. Such are the conventions of this genre, and gamers looking for a heavily detailed simulation in the mode of Civ III will probably be sorely disappointed.

Getting back to the core gameplay, exploration, exploitation, and expansion of one's empire are the purview of the citizenry. These units are created at a town center or capitol for a one-time expenditure of food. While they may be weak at offensive maneuvers, they are nevertheless the backbone of any civilization. It is the citizens who establish the first settlement, gather up the five resources (food, wood, gold, stone, and iron), construct buildings, and create the walls and towers that provide a civilization's first line of defense.


One of the beautiful cut-scenes.	To battle!

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