Posted on: April 25, 2008 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Imperium Romanum (PC) / 2008 Haemimont / http://www.imperium-game.com / http://www.southpeakgames.com /

Imperium Romanum is a game that is set up in a way similar to Civilization, in that individuals start out as a governor of a province, and are charged with making their province equal Rome in terms of stature and size. Individuals that played Glory of the Roman Empire should know that this is the true sequel to the game; individuals that are not familiar with Glory should understand that individuals do not need to be educated with Glory to play Imperium Romanum. Imperium Romanum is free-form in that the goals are diffuse and spread out over the lifetime of the city, rather than having specific goals to do with each “level” of the game.

However, there are certain environmental things with which individuals need to contend, such as the explosion of Mount Vesuvius. Players are not completely removed from the rest of society when they play the game; there are other civilizations that individuals need to content with, whether through diplomatic treaties or wars. Regardless of what happens, individuals should look to fortify their cities, lest they be destroyed by a civilization that had not been previously deemed violent. When one things of games in this genre, graphics are not typically seen as an important part of the game’s experience. In Imperium Romanum, individuals will be shocked at how vibrant and lively their cities look. Where there is some conjecture about how the city would be laid out and how buildings ultimately would have looked, Haemimont has done a hell of a good job in the graphics department here.

The best thing in this game, for my money, is the fact that barracks in this game can only release one of a certain troop. If one thinks back to the guilds and predecessor organizations, they were largely oriented along this, rather than being a “catch all” for all forms of combat troops. Finally, the makers of this game haveactually given buyers more bang for their buck; theyhave actually made another mission available for free for those individuals that patch their game. If you are a fan of ancient Rome, of games such as Civilization and Heroes of Might and Magic, Imperium Romanum should be the next game that you pick up. Give the game a go and I can guarantee you will have fun recreating the glory days of the Roman empire; just be a good governor and that will happen!

Rating: 7.5/10

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