Category: video-games

Empire Earth 2: This 2005 RTS surpasses modern games

Empire Earth 2 Synthetic Age City Center

Empire Earth 2 is growing on me, and I enjoy it in spite of it being 20 years old now. That the game is so playable is a testament to how the developers managed to create a worthy sequel. While some may say that it strays too far away from the original game, I think that it is a worthy game that is well worth your time. Even if you are RTS aficionado who only plays Starcraft games, I think that this game is a great addition to one’s catalog.

Empire Earth 2 Rain Weather Effects in game

One of my most favorite aspects of this game is the weather. It is great to see the rain falling in the Spring and the snow falling in the winter. This adds so much character to the game. Empire Earth was great at its use with the day and night cycles, especially in the campaigns. However, Empire Earth 2 took it to another level and make it even better.

The great thing about the weather in Empire Earth 2 is that it is integrated into the game. The game actually tells you about weather in the game. The outposts which function as the equivalent to towers from Empire Earth are also able to tell the Weather to the player. In comparison with most games, this is one of the most innovative features in the RTS space that I have ever seen. It is very rare for any video game to take weather seriously except a couple games. However, in Empire Earth 2, the weather is a player of its own.

Empire Earth 2 Snow Effects in Ancient Age

In the screenshot, you can see that the weather effects in Empire Earth 2, despite being 20 years old, have a weight to them. In many games that I have been in have had this effect. Being a man who loves the winter, seeing these winter storms is a treat.

Even when it is raining, you can really get the feeling of those rainstorms. The lightning strikes and noise of thunder all add great character to the game.

Another aspect which shows the attention to details is that the amount of snow that is collecting on the roofs of buildings in the game. Unlike in older games, the game was made in a way that shows this change instead of treating like an static weather effect. Star Wars: Empire at War, which came out a year after Empire Earth 2 also heavily utilized weather effects in gameplay. Interestingly, there was a cluster of games in the mid 2000s that seemed to really emphasize such features in their games.

It shows that experimentation while respecting the past is an important part of making video games. In my opinion, the video game industry has simply become too comfortable with rising sales on the backs of their subscription services and the mobile app stores.

I think that looking back at the past is what the video game industry really needs right now. If anything, it shows that older isn’t necessarily worse than the new. There is much that older video games can teach us.

Why you should pick Speed as your attribute in Oblivion Remastered edition.

In my Oblivion Remastered playthroughs, Speed is my favored attribute. I currently play a female Nord Barbarian, and it is an incredibly interesting way to play the game.

Rather playing a lumbering knight or warrior, as a barbarian you focus on quick movement towards to victory over your opponents. The importance is on quick hits that have a concentration on damage over a slow battle. Speed tends to get not as much attention in the Elder Scrolls games. However, in Oblivion they are well worth your time and make the gameplay have more frantic and fluid pacing which helps to ease players with the somewhat clunky combat systems in the game.

What Empire Earth 2 has what modern games are missing in our contemporary age

It seems that there is no shortage of videos complaining about the state of video games. There are some users who try to say that the video game industry is healthy, but the truth is sobering that the industry is not healthy no matter what one says. It has been trending towards a state of stagnation and open disdain for the people who made it what it is today: the gamers.

Such sentiments seem to be arising out of a culture of complacency which seems to have seeped into the industry due to its own successes. The 1983 Video Game Calamity which struck the industry has been the rear-view mirror since Nintendo came and rescued the home video game market with the Home Entertainment System.

However, there is still a wealth of old games that are just waiting to be discovered once again and give us hope about the future of this great means of storytelling. One of those games is Empire Earth 2.

Empire Earth 2 Japanese City in Game.

The thing that Empire Earth II has the most modern games do not have is that the game show a desire for actual innovation while respecting its foundations that were in the original game.

The interface of Empire Earth 2 is more clunky than intuitive to the player. However, one can appreciate how the developers were trying to put as much effort into putting as many features as possible into the menu. Some games such as the recently released Civilization VII, represent a regression in showing information to the player. In Empire Earth 2, every button, every signal has a purpose. Maybe they overloaded the player with choices but I prefer more choice than not having any choice.

What I really love about this game is the weather effects. Age of Empires IV, in spite of being a beautiful game skimps on the weather and it shows. There is too much of a desire to optimize every single feature so people do not complain.

In my opinion, it is better to have people complain and have a great product. If it is able to stand on its own, the crowds will come regardless of initial skepticism surrounding the game.

What Empire Earth 2 has is ability to stand on its own without relying on nostalgia. The sequel is able to improve upon the foundations without disrespecting it. The game seems like a reasonable approach to the need for change and innovation in a game series that was very successful when it launched in the early 2000s.

Overoptimization is the bane of the Video Game Industry. Let’s return to rough around the edges.