Category: video-games

Empire Earth 2: The Beauty of the Parthenon

The Parthenon in Empire Earth 2.

Empire Earth was released some 20 years ago and the yet the game is an amazing piece of software engineering and artistry. While Empire Earth is still a classic game, I prefer Empire Earth 2 simply because it combines the original with the Civilization series. This is a similar change that seems to occur to many games in their second iterations. Generally speaking, the original is the rough experimentation and sometimes it becomes more complex or less complex. Empire Earth 2 is the more complex approach and it is truly magnificent game with some rough edges around it.

The building of the Parthenon in Empire Earth 2.

Empire Earth 2 was a beefy game when it came out in 2005. In comparison with other RTS games, it sought to have a holisitic approach and combine many genres together. The original game was somewhat more RTS than a TBG(Turn-based game). Empire Earth was more about giving the player control and the emphasis on being a grander version of Age of Empires.

Empire Earth 2’s weather effects are a remarkable aspect of this game. Often video games in the contemporary era seem to shy away from such effects, choosing instead to focus on streamlining the experience.

Empire Earth was made in a time when streamlining was mostly something that one saw in console ports not in the PC market. Gaming on the PC was still its own hidden world, one that was separate from the consoles. It was the equivalent of finding a huge city in an endless stream of jungles. Empire Earth 2 had the privilege of having been right at the peak of PC gaming before it became too mainstream and would have its edges smoothed out by an influx of new players.

The Parthenon in this game is a true testament to this game’s beauty.

Sometimes, the best games are found in the past not the present.

While it may not young anymore, it still shines brightly and that why I enjoy playing this game and share it online with gamers.

Empire Earth 2: The Design of the Futuristic Capitals.

Empire Earth 2, the successful sequel to Empire Earth turned 20 years in April 2025. However, this game has become obscure while the original is having an active community on YouTube and Reddit. This site seeks to remedy that and provide more context to understand the beauty of this amazing game. Empire Earth 2 is a more strategic game than the original, but it is no less amazing in its gameplay and graphics.

Empire Earth 2 is a game that seeks to overtake its predecessor, and it was quite successful at release. However, the video game industry recently has been focusing on retrenchment over new games. The sequel has been languishing in obscurity. The game is well worth one’s time to play and there is a simple reason for it: the aesthetics of its future ages.

In Empire Earth, there were three future ages but they were underdeveloped. Even in the Space Age, introduced in Empire Earth: The Art of Conquest was somewhat of a letdown and wasn’t as interesting as it could have been.

Empire Earth 2 gives much more character to the future ages than in the original game.

What I appreciated the most was the effort put into the Asian capital buildings in the game. The screenshot above is the Asian Capital building in the Genetic Age.

While Empire Earth 2 may not be most advanced game now, one can see the great efforts in the way how the developers were approaching this game.

I wish the video game industry still would have this level of respect for details and efforts when making their virtual experiences for the players.

Tainted Grail reaches 55,000 Stream views

tainted-grail-twitch-views-on-the-streams

Tainted Grail has now been out for a day and it is clear that the game is going to gaining popularity. On Twitch specifically, the game is boasting some impressive numbers for an independently made game without a huge publisher behind it. According to the picture that I have attached here, the game got over 55,000 viewers on Twitch streams.

How does this compare to other games?

The closest comparison is the Obsidian developed game, Avowed, which came out earlier this year. That game was largely seen as a failure as its player base basically abandoned it in favor of other titles such as Kingdom Come 2 or Oblivion Remastered Edition which had much higher player counts in comparison to it.

Avowed Stats

As you can clearly see, Avowed had more players watching at its peak in February. However, the game basically has hardly any viewers now. The game also only has about 500 players playing it now. In comparison, Kingdom Come 2: Deliverance is still having a healthy 20,000 players peak on the weekends, which shows the staying power of this game.

Why is Tainted Grail Twitch Streams so low in comparison to other RPGs?

This game is not a mainstream release. While the game’s studios, Questline and Awaken Realms has published it, there are still hurdles. In a market as saturated with games as the Steam marketplace, Tainted Grail has to stand out from the competition. Oblivion Remastered is taking traffic away for sure and I am not surprised it has been performing so well with players.

Tainted Grail is an independent title in the truest sense. It hasn’t been picked up by any major publishing companies, which means that word of mouth is going to what helps this game become a success.

The three main areas for Tainted Grail to get attention are:

  1. Steam
  2. YouTube
  3. Twitch

These three social media platforms are the main places where the awareness around the game can grow.

Currently, the game is looking quite strong for an independent Skyrim coming out of the Republic of Poland. Hopefully, it is not an Avowed but a true spiritual sequel to the Elder Scrolls.