Ancient Rome Centerpiece of New Europa Universalis edition

"Grand strategy games that model centuries of history across multiple continents can often be complex and intimidating, but the Europa Universalis series has always attempted to bridge the gap between hardcore, high-level strategy, and accessible, dynamic real-time gameplay. The series is now turning its sights to the ancient Roman Empire, with a brand-new setting, new armies, and many more new features. Producer Johan Andersson explains.

The Roman era depicts some of the greatest cultural and military civilizations that have ever existed. We felt there was so much more of this era to explore, and that the time period lends itself perfectly to the type of deep and challenging strategy we have specialized in. In addition, we are all fans of the era, which helps immensely, since we will be well familiar with every inch of it after finalizing this project.

There will be more than 50 playable nations ranging from Rome itself to smaller Gallic tribes. Of course, we have nations like Carthage, Egypt, and Macedonia as well. We chose 280 BC as our starting point because there was a type of balance between several major nations at that time, and essentially any of those major nations could have created an empire similar to that of Rome. Players will have different resources, geographical locations, characters, and governments at their disposal, which will define their strengths and the capabilities of the nations."

Europa Universalis: Rome is set for release in the second quarter of 2008.

Settlers VI: Rise of an Empire Released

In this game, the player builds lively, bustling towns in a medieval world. Everything is visible, lovingly animated and realistic.

Each settler has his or her own daily routine, with a range of different actions and behaviours that can be observed by the player at all times.

This enables him to get the best out of his Settlers, build up a flourishing economy, tend to his settlers' needs, and protect his empire against danger from the outside.

By expanding his empire, the player can aspire to becoming a legendary king or queen.

The most popular features of the predecessors in the series have been retained, and many of the fans desires and wishes were incorporated into the new game to create a very special Settlers atmosphere.

The result is a realistic medieval world, captured in intricate detail. The game features an immersive, yet transparent economic system based on the resources, wares and goods produced by the settlers in their various trades and occupations.

Features
A very special Settlers atmosphere in a lively medieval game world!

The primary objective of the game is to create large, lively medieval towns.

The settlers interact with each other in a completely natural way and have wants and needs of their own.

Female settlers appear for the first time in the series: Men and women fall in love with each other and marry.

The lively, detailed game world is rich in animal and plant life.

The settlers' busy life is presented in lovingly rendered animations that show what is going on in a transparent way.

The world is divided into four climatic zones with changes of season and weather which influence expansion and resource gathering.

The best Settlers game of all time, featuring the best from previous games and lots of gameplay innovations!

The game's instant accessibility and gentle learning curve ensure long-lasting fun; even in advanced game missions, new features are introduced.

All interventions by the player are reflected in the behaviour of his subjects and made transparent through the animations in the game world.

Starting with a small settlement, the player builds up flourishing towns, maintains trade relations, and claims land and villages. This requires diplomatic skills.

Mining, gathering resources, and food production result from wise planning and the various occupations of the settlers.

Goods transport is optimized through skilful road planning. Upgrading buildings step-by-step improves the effectiveness of the economy and towns.

By hiring travelling entertainers and organizing fairs, the player acts as a matchmaker by enabling male and female settlers to get to know each other.

The player can build walls to protect his towns from enemy attacks. In military actions, the player must prove that he has built up his empire in such a way that it can defend itself effectively.

Missions featuring noble knights with various skills accompany the player through the epic storyline penned by Jeff Grubb.

Included in the game: dynamic single player campaign, freeplay mode with a multitude of maps, numerous multiplayer options via LAN and Internet, and a map editor.