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Empire Earth

by Jim "Bismarck" Cobb

Article Type: Review
Article Date: February 22, 2002

Product Info

Product Name: Empire Earth
Category: Real-Time Strategy
Developer: Stainless Steel Studios (Rick Goodman)
Publisher: Sierra
Release Date: Released
Min. Spec: Win 98/Me/2000/XP; PII/350 MHz; 64 MB RAM; 450 MB HD Space
Files & Links: Click Here

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Age of Empires/Kings casts a long shadow over historical real-time strategy (RTS) games. Every other entry into this sub-genre will be hailed as an improvement or dismissed as a clone. Players and reviewers alike start playing RTS using Microsoft’s work as a benchmark. Unfortunately, depth in an RTS comes only after substantial playing time so games tend to be judged quickly in terms of Age of Empires/Kings without gleaning subtle nuances.

Empire Earth is subject not only to these biases but also from a cynical approach to any game claiming to simulate military operations from the first use of a rock to the advent of lasers. Surely, such an attempt is just layers upon layers of chrome thrown over an overworked and aging chassis. Did Sierra just dump the latest glitz bag on the market in time for the 2001 holidays?



Not-So-Base Basics

Both the handsome 238-page manual and the theme-driven tutorials have déjŕ vu written all over them. The player must gather the five basic resources—wood, food, gold, stone and iron—to create workers, military units, priests, vessels and structures. By meeting specific goals, he can advance to the next of fourteen epochs and gain new technology, improving quality of life and war. Military units are classified into three categories: piercing, shock and fire. Naval units have a similar triad of characteristics. Each category is superior to one other but inferior to another. Tactics are grounded on such a mix along with X formations and four combat stances. Orders are given with icon clicks, left and right click and mouse drags. This interface is largely mirrored through hot keys. A mini-map represents the whole playing area with red X’s and an annoying voice-over announcing enemy attacks while friendly units utter the usual inanities. The graphics and sound effects are state of the art and so no better or worse than the myriad of other RTS games. So far, all the player sees is another RTS writ large.

The Red Baron and his pilot talk things over after a crash in the first scenario of the German campaign.



A zoomed-out view of the same scene.

The four campaigns—ancient Greece, medieval England, early twentieth-century Germany and slightly-futuristic Russia—all begin with the cutesy story based around a character like William the Conqueror or Baron von Richtofen. Combat seems to be a race in how fast replacement units can be created and thrown at the enemy. The first six hours of play seem like Age of Kings with different hotkeys.

Something happens as play develops, however. Differences between Sierra’s product and Microsoft’s develop. The first inkling is with the units. Granted the three categories conjure up a metaphor of “rock, scissors, paper” and, in early games, this old childrens' game seems similar to Empire Earth’s combat. As games progress, a lot of “paper” can overcome “scissors”. Epochs bring advances in up to six characteristics such as speed, attack, defense, range and area effects so not all “rocks” are equal. Further play yields more of the 200 plus units, differentiating between units of the same category. Thus, long bowmen are different from crossbowmen. The first impression of “rock, scissors, paper” becomes one that the military calls “combined arms tactics”. Improving characteristics require often-scarce resources so choosing improvements become a function of tactics. Suddenly, some of the depth of the game appears.

“Character” units also take on aspects that seem gamey but may represent historical phenomena. Prophets can produce calamities such as earthquakes and thunderbolts. Hokey? perhaps, but clashes of cultures and religions have destroyed nations and states. Given Empire Earth’s mechanics, calamities may be proxies for culture clashes. Heroes represent another “character” unit. Beginning with the Bronze Age, two historical heroes can be produced in each epoch: one a warrior and one a strategist. Warriors like to mix it up with the troops. They have great personal combat and healing skills while instilling their armies with superior attack values. Strategists lay to the rear and imbue troops with better resilience and cast a psychological pall over enemies with their war cries. This method is a simple yet effective representation of the “Great Men” in history.

Leaving artillery unsupported is not a good idea.

Houses also represent a subtle and unique touch. They don’t have anything to do with population. Instead, they increase the morale of units near them. This small important innovation simulates the effect of populations fighting for their homes. Given the military bent of this game, such use of housing is a way to enhance non-military aspects of a civilization without muddying the game’s core mechanics.

Finally, the diplomatic and trade options, simple though they are, add a dimension lacking in most other RTS games. In sum, the similarities in game mechanics between Empire Earth and Age of Kings are superficial with Empire Earth’s adding more depth to the system.



Epochal Choices

The four campaigns are made up of around seven scripted scenarios with definite goals. The first scenario revolves around a hero and tends to be an exercise in role-playing. Succeeding ones gradually broaden in scope. The second scenario in the German campaign deals with breaking the British blockade in World War I where Richtofen merely leads a Jasta in covering convoys. In the succeeding scenarios, he disappears altogether as Germany enters World War II and finally attempts to invade England. Each scenario is more difficult and more historic than the next but completing each goal gives “civilization points” to enhance players’ units as desired. The whole of each campaign is more than the sum of its parts and yields a nice historical flavor by the end.

A prehistoric settlement goes about daily affairs while groping for advancement.



The beginnings of an industrial town produces its first soldier.



The scene at the beginning of the Nano Age isn’t that much different.

The heart of Empire Earth, however, is the random map campaign. Here, players can define their own campaign by choosing epochs, size and type of continents, number of units per side, number of other players and AI difficulty. Twenty-one historical civilizations, each with their own unique attributes, can be the player’s foundation for dominance. Victory can also be defined as something other than military domination. Building Wonders of the World and raising the social level of a civilization can be goals rather than the usual hack-and-slash. Limiting the number of units that can be on the board can eliminate the "bum’s rush" approach to tactics. Small numbers of players on a large continent allow for peaceful build-ups before the inevitable clash. An archipelago world forces amphibious thinking for strategy. Starting in the industrial age quickly introduces the most powerful and interesting units and makes diplomacy and trade more feasible. These choices allow players with an historical background to play in a much more thoughtful manner than games that force the “build, grab and swarm” method of playing.

All twenty-one pre-made civilizations and their attributes are here.

The ability to choose the gaming environment allows players to choose strategies reflecting different times in history. Aggressive players may opt for beginning with high resource levels and many units with which they can build juggernauts. Players who want to give peace a chance can go for low unit density on a large map, allowing them to create an advanced society without frequent clashes. Empire Earth allows for even a moderate strategy through improving settlements to capitols by expending civilians for habitation. Pushing their influence through this mechanism and construction of towers creates a “spreading ink blot” that slowly strangles opponents without massive battles. Such strategies are not usual in other RTS clickfests.

Setting up a campaign provides a wide variety of features.

Further historical play can be developed using the full campaign and historical editors. Maps can be created from scratch and every unit can be used regardless of epoch. All the variables present when creating a random campaign are also included in the editor. Triggers can be set so that events can happen in a logical sequence. Fascinating custom campaigns and scenarios can already be found on the net at sites such as Empire Earth Heaven.

The scenario editor has a myriad of choices.

For once, information about play is readily at hand. The manual is extensive and complete with handy tips. The Prima strategy guide is actually helpful with walkthroughs for the campaigns, an alternate organization of facts in the manual, algorithms for the more esoteric aspects of the game and a nice explanation of scenario creation. Finally, a quick search at Sierra's official Empire Earth links page reveals a wealth of helpful sites. Such wide dissemination of information and interests enhance the TCP/IP and Net play options by creating a pool of knowledgeable people who can understand the immense opportunities of team play.



Almost There

As in most good games, Empire Earth’s failures are made only more irritating by its successes. The computer AI on higher levels doesn’t become smarter, just meaner. Foreign accents are annoyingly vaudevillian with the French characters sounding like a convention of Inspector Clouseau wannabes. Unit dialogues still use the “With all my heart” and “Heads will roll!” cliches that add absolutely nothing to the gaming experience.

Both the scripted campaigns and the random maps have features that will turnoff serious players. The silly story line in the first scenario of each campaign could have been dispensed with. Who believes that the Red Baron rescued a Polish farmwife from the clutches of a Russian officer? More important, the beginning of each random campaign begins with one building and five workers, regardless of epoch. This repetition means that the first few turns will be identical for every random map game. The number of buildings at the start should increase with the epochs. For example, a food supply and a barracks should be functioning at the beginning of the Industrial Age. Terrain effects don’t change with advances. Thus, forests are as impassible to snipers as they are to phalanxes.

Finally, the history is bad. The Bronze Age is about 800 years too long and the Iron Age disappears altogether. The designers switched naming conventions after the Bronze Age, going from metallic to historical conventions. The Middle Ages were a part of the Iron Age. It would have been better to end the Bronze Age at 800 BCE and continued with the Hellenistic period, giving continuity to the linkage between advances and ages.

Crippling, as always, is the urge to please all audiences. Not only can Empire Earth be played like mainstream RTS games but the early scenarios seem to advocate it with run-of-the-mill plots and redundant early game strategies. Players looking for simple experiences will be taken aback by the play in later stages or miss many nuances. Players expecting more might throw in the towel before they get to where they can use the more subtle and rich features of the games. This dilemma is symptomatic of game marketing; designers wanting to break molds run the risk of appealing to limited markets. When they also try to appeal to mass markets, they either water down their product or mix styles to confuse all players.

Empire Earth is a fine, rich game. Its subtleties of units, civilization characteristics and advances reward players who stick around through the early stages of games. The powerful editor unleashes the imagination and allows players to take the game to its highest possibilities. Hopefully, Sierra will see fit to produce an add-on that will skip its more juvenile elements.



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