Presuming you start in the Ancient Age, every game begins with a city, a few workers, a woodcutter’s camp, a library and a scout. After setting your workers to gathering, you will inevitably task your scout with exploring the map, which will show you the borders of your Nation. As you build additional cities, you’ll start to see these borders expand exponentially as your circle of influence reaches the outer territories.

To build these cities, you’ll need to become accustomed to the realistic resource requirements in the game and the means of acquiring resources. What is particularly impressive is that the gathering and research processes, which always run the risk of being the most boring gameplay elements, are almost as fun in Rise of Nations as obliterating an enemy. Rather than each city acting as a "storage center" where the sheer number of houses increases your population, the population is based on military research performed at the Library. The Library is where you actually perform the majority of your research, which in turn allows you to advance to the next technology level. Also, as your research improves, you can build another city, which can then be used for trade through your Market and a Caravan unit. If you don’t research commerce quickly enough, you’ll be inefficient in your gathering endeavors and unable to use all the rewards of your gathering efforts.

For example, at one point my front lines were being obliterated by the AI, partly due to my negligence in the latter stages of research. As the enemy started flying-in Stealth bombers, I started building wonders in the back 40 of my nation. I had already built three wonders by the time I realized my library had new research options like World Government, Missile Shield, Global Prosperity and Artificial Intelligence. My fourth wonder gave me enough Wonder points to claim victory, but had I not noticed the research options available to me, it would’ve been game over for my nation.

As you build your nations, you’ll be able to create farms, camps and numerous other structures depending upon your Age. Each structure is limited to the number of workers it can have, and holding your mouse over the structure will indicate the number of workers it can hold and how many open slots there currently are. If it is full, it will not allow you to assign a new worker to that facility. In addition, there is no building behind enemy lines unless you assimilate an adversary’s city. You can only build within your national borders, which makes it very advantageous to build the additional cities at the very fringes of your borders. Plus, each city is limited to five farms and one of each type of resource-specific structure. Clearly, spending time at the Library was never as important in a game as it is in Rise of Nations.

When gathering, you’ll find your rewards to be initially of the wood and food variety. As you work through the Ages, though, you’ll gather metal, knowledge, wealth and my personal favorite, oil. The addition of oil is quite enjoyable, and once you reach the Industrial Age, you’ll want to start gathering all of it that you can. A great touch in these efforts is workers’ ability to automatically transport themselves over water, which enables you to easily build offshore oil derricks. Above all, you should remember to focus on gathering knowledge while in the Library; as it’s beneficial in the latter stages and detrimental if you lack it.

The learning curve for Rise of Nations makes it the easiest real-time strategy (RTS) to pick up and play that I’ve seen. Rise of Nations has simplified the genre without destroying any of the usual traits RTS are accustomed to. Depending on your level of expertise, you can jump into the training games first or dive right into a full-fledged fight for world domination. By using the "skill test you will learn very quickly what skill level in RoN is most appropriate for you.

What would an RTS be without units and combat? Very little, by most accounts, and when it comes to units, Rise of Nations delivers the goods. As is typical of RTS games, every unit in Rise of Nations has its nemesis. Helicopters, for instance, will wipe out squads of tanks as well as fleets of submarines, but anti-aircraft guns will make quick work of them. Another example; even in the earlier Ages where horse units are strong, they’re no match for the pikeman who can stave them off from a distance with his pikes and polearms. These unit balances exist throughout the game and make for some very strategic opportunities. Of course, if you’re the aggressive type, you can pick up the strong units and just go for it. I found that archers, while expensive, were great in destroying units at long range. Then came gunpowder… At the risk of babbling, let me just say cannons are much more fun than trebuchets.

Rise of Nations’ user interface is detailed enough to intrigue the die-hard RTS fans yet friendly enough for anyone to learn even the most complex functions of the game relatively quickly. Every unit, military or otherwise, is easily identifiable, and hovering the mouse over any unit will let you know what it does along with its strengths and its weaknesses. This feature in itself is a great training tool for those new to the RTS genre, and it can provide some excellent advantages for advanced players. Every unit, building and border is tastefully splashed with definitive colors for easy recognition that allows for easy management of your troops. My favorite control touch is grouping. The 1-9 keys can be used in conjunction with the CTRL key, as is common in most RTS titles, but now the F1-F8 keys are also at your disposal. Nice touch, Big Huge Games!

Another great feature is the automation of units as they come out of their respective factories. War unit buildings can be set to aggressive, defensive, etc., which makes building an army at the front lines much easier. Imagine units gathering where you want them instead of coming out and running after the first enemy they see. It’s a much-welcome addition, and one that I hope more RTS developers implement in the future. In addition, workers will wait briefly after creation and begin doing whatever needs to be done without you having to tell them. They won’t start building the structures you need, but they will automatically begin populating camps or helping to build something already in process.

Nice details aside, I found while playing the game that it has a striking resemblance to Risk. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; I happen to enjoy Risk. I was just looking for more out of a campaign that entails 6,000 years of history. You have armies and countries, just as you do in Risk, and the computer has scenarios for each of the other nations’ turns including diplomacy, war and purchasing actions. If another Nation declares war on you, you must either defend or offer a bribe. It’s pretty straightforward, and not always as engaging as I was expecting.

That’s not to say the "Conquer the World" campaign is a roll of the dice, however. Each "war" is a scenario of either attacking an enemy with a traveling army or defending your Nation with a home base. Even on the "easy" setting, the scenarios vary from a few minutes to hour-and-a-half battles, but they often tend to feel a bit repetitive. And oddly enough, the strength of the Nation you’re attacking seems to have little influence on the difficulty of the scenario. I was also disappointed that you don’t have the opportunity to carry over the armies you’ve amassed from previous battles. For a game focused on building an all-powerful, persistent nation, this omission is quite puzzling.

And so is the omission of the United States. I realize American history is not nearly as long as that of other nations’, but the Native Americans could easily be considered America’s first generation in Rise of Nations. They did, after all, rule an entire continent for centuries before Europeans ever "discovered" it. And the United States is modern day superpower after all!. Then there’s the little fact that the game includes a Statue of Liberty, super-conducting super collider and a NASA station without mentioning the United States. Perhaps an expansion pack is in order.

Rise of Nations’ greatest graphical feat is the introduction. I typically don’t enjoy watching the intro movies for games, but Rise of Nations did a fabulous intro piece that goes through all the ages of the game in a very seamless and interesting progression. The game itself has great graphics as well, considering it’s an RTS. The zoom feature is one function carried over from Empire Earth, and while I don’t personally use this function, many gamers will enjoy zooming in on their troops to watch them devastating the opposition.

Explosions occur in sync with sound and leave some major impressions in the ground. Launch a bombing run and watch the craters appear on the ground. The fog of war is also well done. The battle is never difficult to watch; yet you can certainly see the smoke and explosions occurring at all times. All the units are easy to identify and monitor throughout the game. As I said earlier, one advantage is the color plastered over every unit, building and borders to make it easier for you identify where you, your allies and your enemies lie.

My major issue with Rise of Nations’ graphics is the game’s long list of non-compatible video cards. If the developers want more people to enjoy the game and its graphics, it would be in their best interest to make the game compatible with more systems. To help you out, here is the list of issues (<http://www.microsoft.com/games/riseofnations/support_videocards.asp>). Be sure to check out this list if you want to get the game without having to purchase a new card.

Rise of Nations’ soundtrack is great, as you’d expect from a game for which they’re releasing the score on DVD. The music, which you can turn off in game play, is actually quite relaxing and yet somehow intensifies the fact that you are at war. It can certainly sooth your nerves while you’re aggressively crushing the opposition. If you find yourself being annihilated, just sit back, close your eyes and go to your happy place.

The environmental audio is made up of well-placed real-world sounds. While an RTS game is not really the place to look for excellent sound, it does lend itself to a delightful background. I am one to believe that if you really notice background sounds, the sounds are probably a nuisance. Rise of Nations does a great job of adding sounds necessary for gameplay and leaving out the annoying repetitions that will drive an already frustrated player over the edge. I particularly appreciate the various notification sounds when specific units are created. It makes it easy to know what just came out of the oven, especially in the heat of battle.

While the "Conquer the World" campaign may be a little less than intriguing, the variety in the solo games and opportunities for network gaming make Rise of Nations an excellent choice for time-consuming gameplay that is difficult to pull away from. I have lost numerous hours in anticipation of building back up to the Information Age and all the weapons it includes.

Rise of Nations’ ability for multiple victories also gives it an excellent edge, and its impressive AI will not hesitate to ambush a capital deep in the heart of your nation, which will keep you on your toes game after game. The adjustable difficulty levels also truly reflect the brutality and/or innocence of what they proclaim. While I may not be the quickest mouse in the West, this AI will give even die-hard, never-leave-the-room-except-for-pizza RTS fans an awakening as they struggle to protect their carefully crafted nation.

Each nation begins the game with certain advantages over others. Germans, for instance, have the Power of Industry and can build certain items for less. Aztecs have the Power of Sacrifice and receive 10 bonus resources for each enemy unit they eliminate. The special advantages boost the complexity of the gameplay while keeping it interesting.

One of the key components in Rise of Nations is the ability to expand your circle of influence by a variety of means, which further adds to the replayability. Take, for example, the assimilation of conquered cities. Rather than the typical destruction of an enemy city, Rise of Nations prevents each city’s main building from being destroyed, which lets you assimilate the city and all its resource buildings into your nation. The trick with assimilation is that you must send in ground troops to "hold the bricks" for a brief period. Although you can do this through any number of means, I personally enjoyed sending four or five aircraft carriers within range of a city and bombarding my enemy. There’s just something fulfilling about dominating the seas with these bad boys, especially in the latter stages, where Rise of Nations’ Navy units are much stronger than in many games I’ve played. Set a fleet offshore from an enemy stronghold, and before long, you can easily take control. The Battleships are particularly effective against buildings and ground troops, and while the submarine is an eight on the cool factor, it’s utterly useless against surface units and easy prey for enemy Destroyers. Which brings me back to the aircraft carrier, which houses seven bomber fighters. Get four or five carriers lined up and watch them obliterate whatever they’re attacking. Once the city’s defenses are weakened, send in the troops. It really is a blast, and you’ll seldom get tired of playing through this scenario.

Rise of Nations seems to be the next era of Microsoft’s other titles, Age of Empires and Empire Earth. You already know some of the Rise of Nations nuances if you’ve played either one. Rise of Nations seems to have carried on some of the better traits of these games and added some additional ideas, which aren’t necessarily new but add to the overall experience. Despite the fact that the campaign module is lacking, Rise of Nations has an almost infinite number of ways to design a game, from network games to just setting up a bunch of AI opponents. The only deterrent I can see is if your video card is incompatible, and you’re not interested in making a new hardware investment for just one game. On the whole, Rise of Nations is a must-buy for the RTS fans and anyone ever interested in historical progression through the ages. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to my Navy now.