Random Musings - 3 geeks on life, the universe and everything.

Empires

Written on December 11, 2007 at 5:41 am about Video Gaming by Chris

“Watch the left. No, the left. LEFT YOU DUMB FUCKER!”

Not an uncommon turn of phrase in Empires, I’ll admit.

So, Empires is a Half Life 2/Source mod. 1 player per team takes command, and has an RTS like control where they build up a base for their team, while the other players are essentially their ‘units’. Given that these units are human, they don’t always obey orders, and don’t always need them. After a couple of rounds, it’s common to see teams which need no orders issued, and so work cohesively as a force.

Also, the Northern Front tanks are just funny. Kinda like Ork vehicles in Warhammer 40k.

So, it’s multiplayer only, but that’s no big deal. With a good team, it’s an epic game to play. With a bad team, it’s the source of much rage and anger. But really. It’s epic when you can load up a heavy tank with just missiles, no machineguns, no cannons, and make it into a rolling RPG battery. And it’s great for just pelting the enemy base with missiles. Stick an engineer’s ammo crate behind your tank and you have a plentyful ammo supply. Done right, you harrass the enemy base till they send tanks out after you, at which point, freindly forces can smash in and wreck as much as possible.

Or the slow moving siege. Build walls, stick turrets behind em, and use artillery to shell your way in, while heavies attempt to smash through the enemy defences.

The map EMP_MONEY is best for that tactic, though.

In any case, you should try Empires if you get a chance. It’s a nice mod, and well thought through. Even if the learning curve is a little steep.