Romance this!
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is an epic strategy franchise that has proved enduringly popular over the years, mainly thanks to its mix of depth and complexity which gives it everything fans of Civilization and similar games desire. However, detractors often point out that the series hasn't developed much in terms of gameplay and if you've played one, you've pretty much played them all. All that really changes is the visuals, with even the story being basically the same in this fourth installment. Having said that though, if you did enjoy earlier ones, you'll like this too. As previously, you get to choose from one of a multitude of historical Chinese political leaders, each with their own particular traits, and must then guide them and their people to power by a mix of military and political means. There's a wide range of decisions to be made each turn, including maintaining relations with other leaders, resource management and the movement of troops. Combat here is satisfying and challenging, with a good variety of tactics and weapons to make use of and which helps to cement the game's appeal. If you're into historical strategy games, this is about as good as it gets. There's a real sense of the epic on display here and the almost endless variety of options keeps the game feeling fresh and helps boost its replay value. Combat is exciting and possesses a similar degree of depth, requiring plenty of tactical thought in order to succeed, while this installment also features some of the series' best graphics and sound, with some lovely music and detailed visuals. All in all, a top notch bit of strategy.
