In order to fully prepare for and be creative in the future, we must first look to the past and the new browser-based strategy game 8Realms does exactly this!
Being responsible for guiding an entire civilisation through eight ages of history can sound like a bit of a chore unless you’re a power hungry dictator but Jagex have cleverly created a browser based game that not only embraces the most essential elements of real time strategy gaming but that can be played on any internet chomping device (we’ve played on PC and Android browsers with no problems). This means that it’s easy to pick up and play on the go. With some careful timing and planning, this game can easily be worked into a daily routine so those of you with addictive personalities should look away now.
Anyone who has played Facebook favourites FarmVille or Dragon Age Legends will be familiar with a daily reward system that here doles out extra culture points, resources or sparkly gems with each consecutive day of play, plus there’s a mix of strategic building and upgrading to be done, armies to be trained and hairy barbarians to be driven away.
Beginning at the dawn of time in an Ancient settlement, our cavemen eagerly took up their primitive stone tools and began farming, logging and quarrying away. Gathering materials and completing tasks opens up more possibilities like constructing a village centre, library or barracks – clever bunch those cavemen with their raggedy loin clothes and scraggy beards. Throughout this age, a wonky toothed assistant called Gary introduces different areas of the game. As tutorials go, it’s clear despite there being quite a lot of options to get your head around and initially the pace is good.
Each building takes a certain amount of time to build and as the level increases, so does the time it takes to complete. Again, as with similar Facebook and Browser games, the process can be sped up, in this case by using gems (which can be earned through completing big tasks or bought in bulk; 30 gems are £1.99, 340 gems are £19.99 and 1700 gems are £99.99) but this really isn’t a race. Although the cash shop allows players to purchase certain time, resource and military boosts, you can’t buy your way to victory. Evolving through the eight historical ages (ancient, classical, feudal, renaissance, imperial, industrial, modern and future) takes time – real time – and scheduling progress activity for during the day or ensuring the next bout of action/battles falls during a lunch breaks or the commute home is part of the appeal. Watching the timers click over on the progress tab is both frustrating and calming in equal measure. Never has the adage “Rome wasn’t built in a day” felt truer, but there is some sense of control over how things develop, that you can to some extent tailor your game to your individual, desired style of play to suit your level of commitment. Will you build a rapidly expanding, knowledgeable society like Ian or a wealthy war mongering one as Tracey did?
This game isn’t overly dramatic with epic, tense battles or gripping, earth shattering events but its charming animations and overall ambition makes it worth pursuing. Once you hit the classical age, the options for attacking, gathering resources, opening trade routes and forming alliances become far more interesting. Full social integration with Facebook means you can compete against your friends and once the world map opens up, surveying neighbours and knowing when to plough forward to plunder some luxury resource from their boarders or when to hang back, observing where their next settlement is being located also become important. You won’t survive in this game if you don’t prepare against potential invasions, no matter how peaceful an empire you want to create. It’s a delicate balancing act; massive armies need feeding and if you run out of resources, they will desert you. Looking after all your interests requires some skill, especially when you see how your friends are evolving. Despite some lengthy building times, 8Realms is compelling, competitive and may feel like a race to the end. Ultimately, the choices that you make whilst making your way though the game will affect your high score and you can instantly compare your scores with players from across the world. This means that the first person to complete the future age is not necessarily the winner of the game. It’s all about the strategy. Jagex say they are keeping the end game under wraps at the moment, but assure us that players that reach the pinnacle of the future age will find that the game won’t end there as there will be new challenges to discover and new enemies to face.
Want to join in early? We have a VIP code, exclusively for SFL readers!
Head over to the 8Realms website and enter the code ‘COBRA’ to start your empire.
