Strategy Game Reviews

Settlers of Catan was bought for me for Christmas last year, by my canadian relatives. I am completely addicted, and am eager to own ALL of the expansions to the original game. It is so much fun, and if you're great with strategy, this is the game for you!

I am a big gamer. I could play games everyday all day long, and with Settlers of Catan, you can change your expansions, or buy other games by Mayfair, and still have a ball all day long!

Enjoy!

*trades a grain, an orr, and a sheep for a ... woohoo, a VICTORY point!*

I really enjoyed this game, it was a joy to play with some friends and my brother. I recommend it.

wow this game is totally awsome! i love it so much, its kinda like monopoly like its a game thats drawn out but it doesn't get boring!!! its super fun!!! try it!!

The battle chest is a great way to get both Starcraft and it's expansion BroodWar, together the make one of the best combat / strategy games. If you don't own Starcraft buy the battle chest and get all the extras. They will help you enjoy the game fully. If you already own Starcraft unless you really want the two strategy guides just buy the expansion pack Broodwar instead. Starcraft really needs to be played with the expansion; it adds more depth to both the game and tactics with new missions and new units. The basic game play is pretty easy to pick up and if you play the single player missions in order you'll quickly learn the strengths and weaknesses of each troop type. Then the fun really begins when you battle against real opponents across the Internet. After you have played the single player missions you'll have your favorite race either Terran, Protos or Zerg. You'll come up with your own tactics on how to deal with your opponents There is a huge on-line community out there defending the 'Honor' of each respective race. Buy the game and come play. This game came out back in 1998 and it is still being played now. Few games can say they have that lasting appeal. The battle Chest is 100% value for money

If, by chance, you're reading this and you've never played Starcraft before, just go ahead and skip reading this and buy it. You won't be disappointed.

If you're thinking about buying it for someone else, go ahead and buy it: I've given three Battle Chests as gifts and it was a hit every time for both kids and adults, even to those who hadn't played this kind of game before.

The Battle Chest is definitely the way to go, as you'll save money over buying it and Brood War separately and get the strat guides for free (and, to be honest, I don't think the guides are worth having unless you're completely clueless about how to beat the game, and there is information in the strat guides that is blatantly wrong as well).

I've been playing RTS games since 1997, and in my opinion, this is the best one ever made. No one has made one that's as fun, has as gripping a storyline and artwork, or depth and replayability of gameplay. It's a work of genius. I've had it for two years and I still play it at least a couple of times a week. There's even one mission left that I haven't managed to conquer without cheating, so the challenge is definitely there.

What you have to understand about Starcraft is that it's not meant to be a cutting-edge feature-heavy supergame where you can customize the behavior of your units and give them complex orders. It's meant to be more of a strategy game like real-time chess, and in this it succeeds brilliantly. It shares the quality of chess in that there are a limited number of units with straightforward abilities, but there are an infinite number of things and strategies that you can do with them. To this day players are still inventing new strategies for these units and races.

The artificial intelligence and pathfinding of the game is the best I've ever seen. No RTS game has perfect AI or pathfinding (units getting lost or tangled up on each other or the terrain), but Starcraft's is by far better than any others out there. The computer will flatten you time and again unless you're playing competently.

Multiplayer is a complete blast, and more options are offered than any other RTS game. You can play team games where you and your allies are actually controlling the same units against the computer or others, in addition to a wide range of variations like Capture the Flag, etc.

Blizzard's Battle.net service is free and at any time of day there are literally thousands of people playing. Internet play is smooth. I've played friends both nationally and internationally with bad connections and low-end computers, and it runs solidly even with the additional traffic of voice chat like Roger Wilco over 56k!

Blizzard's continuing support for the game is also excellent. They release a new map for the game every Friday like clockwork, so there are over a hundred new, well-designed maps available for download and replay.

In summary, just a solid, solid, completely fun game. You can't possibly go wrong by picking up a copy.

I borrowed Starcraft from a friend and after a few hours of playing knew that I had to get it. So, I went out and bought the Battle Chest. This comes with both Starcraft and the Starcraft: Brood War expansion pack, plus guides for each game and a technology tree map (shows which buildings are needed in order to build more advanced buildings). This is the perfect way to get started playing Starcraft. The game itself is excellent. My friends and I have spent many hours playing and plan on playing it for many years to come. Blizzard hit it right on the head with this game. If you don't have it get it right now. This truly is the standard to which all real-time strategy games are compared to.

This game is about worms picking up weapons and blowing each other up into birdfood. Features:Cartoonish Worms Cool weapons Nice battlegrounds Greatly done weather effects on weapons High pitched voices of worms You can play the training missions, the campaign,the deathmatches and the deathmatch editor. The best weapons of the game are the exploding sheep, banna bombs(put several worms in a hole, chuck a bannana bomb in there and watch them fly), and the kamikazie tackle, where a worm yells "kamikazie!",flys in the direction you are aming at and self destructs.

Only 4 words:This game is AWESOME!!(and really fun)

I love this game! It's easy to learn but hard to master ! Customizing your own team of players makes it feel personal. The multiplayer play is great! Funny! Original! Simple (and yet really complex!) Play a quick game or go for a series of wins. Don't let the cute worms fool you! This is a great game!

It isn't every day that one stumbles across an umbeatable idea for a game. But that is exactly what the folks at Team 17 did with Worms. The creators of this game took the ancient artillery style of video game (a style older than pack-man!) and added an attitude that just couldn't fit on any other game. Its great fun to watch the worms kill each other with all the weapons of the game. Plus, it is easily one of the most custumizable games I have ever seen. You edit almost every feature of the game, from weapon detailes to player hitpoints and more. Given the artillery style of gameplay, however, which is what makes all the action possible, I believe that Worms is one of those games that can only be ruined by a 3D engine.

This game is a gem, and unbeatable within its realm.

Harvest Moon 64 is a fun game in which you decide to run your grandfather's old farm and try to make a good living. It's not your blow off the monster's head kind of game. Your chracter's grandfather has passed away and you must help restore his farm back into a cheerful place that it was. All you have is your dog and a broken down farm to start out with but once you clean up everything and meet some of the townfolk you can begin your journey to a happy life. You'll have to raise animals such as cows,sheep,and chickens and grow crops to make money. The village is the place to go for crops,treats,and many other useful items.A nearby mountain just filled with Spirits and magic waits for your arrival. The local ranch sells animals and feed. The depressed vineyard workers wait for help. You must also get married. Five woman in the village can prove to be the one love of your life. Ann the ranch worker,Elli the baker,Karen the drunk or the vineyard owner's daughter I should say,Maria the Mayor's daughter who runs the Library,or Popuri the florist worker. All like certain gifts, pick one and bring her gifts everyday. There are four seasons,spring,summer,fall and winter. Certain crops grow in each season and there are festivals,events which you join in,watch, or dance. You will have a baby once your married. You must collect recipes.Milk the cows.Save the vineyard,help the carpenters,fish in the river,pupies,climb the mountain,get a horse,buy cakes,build a greenhouse,go to church,swim at the beach,plant flowers,and so much more with a game of 50 chracters and one chance for a good life.Nothing bad happens but your dad comes and judges your life after three years. Well the plants are starting to germinate and your done your work for today, now you can go to bed or stay with your wife and watch the sunrise on New Year's Day, you make the choice in Harvest Moon 64 by Natsume,Serious Fun.NOW GO AND BUY IT!

This is the best RPG Game! Everyone says "No Zelda's the best. Plus it has two games and has at least more then one world." You know what I say "shutup! " Harvest Moon is my favorite game I have played in my life! It all started in one day when my cleaning ladies boy brought it over. I fell in love with it. It's like your becoming a father in real life. You get crops and animals to get money,you have to upgrade your house A LOT, pick your babe from five different girls named Elli, Ann(the babe), Maria, Popuri, or Karen, Festivals every month and races with dogs and horses. You will love it! It's Da' Bomb!

One of the best games I have ever seen, I seriously played it for a whole 3 weeks from 7AM-9PM without being bored. You start out on a dead farm with nothing but weak tools and 300G, but eventually you will get horses and cows, sheep and chicken by just planting crops, you can get sick, your animals will if you don't feed them, they will die, you won't, your sweety will give you medicine if you are sick, if you don't have one you will just stay in bed all day, no one visiting. You will need to treat the animals or they will die. You get married by one of 5 possible candidates named Ann, Maria, Popouri, Karen, and Elli. Ann Is an orange haired girl in a barn with her brother and father, loves animals, will marry a boy named cliff if you are friends with both. Maria is a shy librarian who lives with her mother and father (the mayor is her father) she loves cabbage, marries mailman, like Ann with cliff. Popuri lives with her mum and pa in a flower shop, her father isn't in the Ville most of the year, loves flowers, will marry Ann's brother (Odd couple, a happy girl with a man who's tank is empty on social skills). Karen is beautiful face with a negative disposition toward her father, like a snot nosed punk, but they love each other once you get to know them both, she lives with father, mother, and a foreign boy at a vineyard, easiest to marry, just show her your dog over and over, will marry foreign guy, but might leave if your not nice to her, same with foreign man and cliff. Elli owns a bakery with her grandma, who dies eventually, and a man whom you THINK is the father, but like other brides, will marry him if you don't marry her, she likes milk and eggs to make her cakes, cookies, and pies. Now, I heard that the mayor can be you bride err...husband, I am not sure of that though. Well after you marry, if you are extremely nice to your wife (go to sleep at the same time as her, give her gifts each day, especially on her birthday [can't remember by heart] and don't flirt with other girls) then you can have a baby. The other couples can have a baby too. Order and sell animals and animal products to and from Ann's father, buy seeds from Popouri's mother, sell crops to a guy who looks like he lifts a lot of weights, milk, eggs, and wool too, add attachments to your farm by buying them from the carpenters. Get married by making the heart at the bottom red for the girls, buy a baby crib, and then buying a blue feather and presenting it to the fine young lady of your choice, if they accept, you are officially engaged and get married on the next Sunday. The blue feather doesn't appear until you have a red hearty and a baby crib, and I think a kitchen too. You can befriend anyone in town, even tourists, events happen, it's a real-life-farming-game. that is the basic layout of the game, an even easier layout to understand is, get rich, have a family and have friends. I myself have a copy but, my nintendo doesn't work (with tears), so I may just sell it to amazon in the near future!

I think the fact that I still play this game 10 years later says it all. Master of Orion II (MOO2) may be the best 4-X (explore, expand, exploit, exterminate) game I've ever played -- and that includes the other heavy hitter in this category, Civilization.

MOO2 is endlessly replayable. In addition to the numerous standard alien races (all of which you can play), there are nearly limitless combinations of custom races you can make. This alone allows you to challenge yourself over and over. Try a crippled race with multiple penalties and no bonuses. Or try taking bonuses you don't usually like.

And the ship-building! This could be a game in an of itself. Everything is customizable, from the size of ship, to its armament, even down to its name. You can concentrate on massive, Death Star-like constructs, or field a fleet of easily replaceable "missile boats". Or perhaps you prefer Wing Commander-style carrier-based combat? MOO2 can handle that as well (although you don't get to control the individual fighters, just the capital ships).

Add in the random events, various galaxy sizes, and Antaran attacks, and you have a game that never fails to entertain. MOO2 will still be on my hard drive 10 years from now.

This has to be one of the best strategy games out there available even for its age. Though Starcraft might be the preferred choice for many people, MOO2 is the game for those who dream of becoming a head of an imaginary galactic empire. You've got pretty much everything you desire in terms of warfare, diplomacy, and building a civilization. Many games just put too much emphasis on warfare or building colonies. MOO2 allows you to get the full experience on all matters of empire building. Another attractive feature of this game is you get to choose the type of galaxy you want to play in before the start of the game. You can choose the size of the galaxy, the type of planets, tech level, and how many empires will exist in the game (2-8). The AI is not stupid and you'll have to use your brains a lot when negotiating with aliens (whom to ally or whom to attack). Each alien race has unique strengths and weaknesses so you'll have to think and plan before you even start the game. MOO2 is far more superior in terms of game-play than MOO3. This game is a hall of famer in terms of space strategy games.

This game is great! My boyfriend turned me onto it, and I LOVE IT! It has provided me with hours of enjoyment, trying out different races and different statistics. Very cool options to build ships, research facilities, industry facilities, and farming facilities. I also enjoy the different ways to win the game--beating the Antarans or conquering all the other races. The hot seat function is great as well, because you can play with friends. Definitely a game worth playing for anyone out there that likes Sci Fi.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I have, and still am!

Golden Sun The Lost Age is the best rpg game!!! Way better than the first one. Even if your new to the Golden Sun games, get the second game first, you won't regret it. Camelot created the highly populated Golden Sun but then, they come out with another one which is even better. I'm new to the Golden Sun games but decided to buy the sequel first, and wasn't dissapointed. The way they've made it is totally incredible. The dialouge is extremely long but after the dialouge's over, the battles that you do are extremely fun. Gameplay:9/10 Graphics:10/10 Sound:10/10 Overall 9.9/10. Get this game it is a must have for any Rpg lover!!!!!!!!

having played the Japanese language version of this game, i can safely say that it will definitely blow the first game away. lots of new Psynergy (a lot of RPGs have some form of magic... GS uses psychic energy) to learn, lots of new and interesting weapons, many new places to explore, many new summons to get, and...

you can transfer data from a saved file that's on your Golden Sun cartridge. here's the main story:

in the first game, the main character Isaac and his friends Garet, Ivan, and Mia were chasing after Saturos and Menardi, two members of a northern fire clan who stole the Elemental Stars from Sol Sanctum and wanted to unleash their power upon the world by lighting the 4 lighthouses, all the while keeping Isaac's friend Jenna and the great Alchemy sage Kraden (and eventually a young girl named Sheba) hostage. at the end of the first game, your party succeeded in defeating Saturos and Menardi shortly after they lit the Venus Lighthouse. however, Jenna and Kraden are missing on a piece of land that broke off from the continent, and Sheba fell from the lighthouse into the ocean. in addition, Jenna's long-lost older brother Felix, who had been traveling with the fire clan members, jumped after Sheba to save her.
the second game starts out shortly thereafter. the members of your party are Felix, Jenna, Sheba, and, later on, Piers, a Lemurian they find on their journey. while in the first game the object was to keep the lighthouses from being lit, Felix is dead set on lighting the two remaining lighthouses. and the new foes of the game? Menardi's lil sister Karst and the strongest clansman she could find, Agatio. while they do want the lighthouses lit, they also want revenge for Menardi's death.

as i mentioned before, you can transfer data from a previous save file for the first game. you see, after the Jupiter Lighthouse is lit, you meet the 4 characters from the first game and get them into your party. that's right... 8 playable characters. and their stats when you get them are at whatever they were when you won Golden Sun (if you do not transfer data or use a passord, they start out at level 28). from there, you have a few more tasks before you can go to the Mars Lighthouse, but one thing is for sure... this is a much better game, and it it has excellent replay value. one of my favorite things is the blacksmith in a town on the second continent, who will make a plethora of weapons/armor for you from certain materials you find, making each game different since you won't always get the same items! also, the new multi-elemental summons, some of which you must defeat a game boss in order to get (and some of them are pretty tough). the final boss, the Doom Dragon, is quite a formidable opponent, attacking 4 times per round. he is humongous, can set all your Djinn on recovery, and has a special summon of his own, Ruin Crash.

i've played this game 4 times and won it twice (2 save files i'm just trying to level up for fun on). the music is just orgasmic - Motoi Sakuraba is one excellent composer, that is definitely for sure.

Golden Sun: The Lost Age, is the sequel to the highly successful Golden Sun, starring Isaac, Garet, Mia and Ivan. This game will have you controlling the people the aforementioned were chasing all of the first game. I.E., Felix, Jenna, Kraden, Sheba and an extra character, Picard. ( Although I think His name will be different). Anyway, I'm not sure of your quest, but I've seen several screenshots (50) and Camelot has certainly kicked the already beautiful graphics (in my opinion anyway)up a notch or five.
Anyways, onto part of the storyline I know.
If you played GS1, and beat it, you would have remembered the last scene of the game, where Jenna and Kraden are seen floating on an island after the epic last battle between Isaac, Garet, Mia and Ivan, and the game's big bosses, Saturos and Menardi. You also might have remembered seeing Felix leap off the Venus Lighthouse to try to save Sheba. And Alex catches up with Jenna and Kraden and shows them that Felix and Sheba made it.
Well, GS2 starts slightly before all that. You control Jenna, and find your way down to the ship you first thought was Babi's Lemurian ship (the part where the island breaks off), but it was really Saturos and Menardi's ship. Then you see that oh so familiar cutscene.
Enough of talking the game, let's talk about a rather cool feature in GS2. Remember when you beat the game and in the 'Continue' screen you saw your game and 'CLEAR DATA'. For the love of all that is good and pure, DO NOT DELETE THAT GAME!!!
In GS2, they ask you if you want to upload your old game. How, you ask, as there is no upload option in the menu screen. Well, my friend, if you press L, R, left and b simultaneously and then b immediately after, a new option appears. "SEND". YOu can either send your game by way of a link cable, or three different password. Bronze password lets you send Level and Djinn. SIlver lets you send Level, Djinn and Character stats. Gold lets you send Level, Djinn Character stats, itmes and coins. Be warned, the Gold password id six screens long.
Trust me, putting in these passwords will alter your story when you meet Isaac, Garet, Mia and Ivan leter in the story.
BUy THIS GAME!!! IT ROCKS!!!

this is the best game ever. after u visit your grandpa's farm when u were little u have take care of the same farm which has been neglected for years. u have to keep a farm going and put it back to how it was in 4 years. u can interact with difffernt people in the town and u can even get married to any of the 5 town girls:

mary:the librarian
karen:she works at the supermarket
ann:the tomboy
ellie:the sweet nurse
popuri:i dono

anyways u can build extensions to your house and add new things to your farm. u can raise animals like cows, sheeps, chickens, and a pony. u can grow many crops like vegetables and u can even grow flowers. there are also many festivals in the town like the horse race, the goddess festival, new years eve, tomatoe festival, a swim race, and lots more. u can also mine minerals like copper and gold and u can even get recipes and cook food. basically this is the best game. it may sound different but it is so fun and u will be hooked after u play for just 5 min! buy this game!! u wont regret it!!!! plz buy it!!!

This game is non-violent game (my mom is soooo against shoot 'em ups), it has great graphics, there's animals (I'm an animal lover), and crops. I think, it's probably my favorite Harvest Moon game of all. I started by seeing it at my friend's, and then I just HAD to play. Every weekend we'd get together and play, it was soooo much fun! Then, my bro got an N64 and I got that version - not as good, but it was still fun. I really recommend this, there's such great stuff to do!

Animals available:
-A dog
-A horse (yeah, only one, but you can ride it and he can jump!)
-Cows
-Sheep
-Chickens
-Foxes, Squirrels, Rabbits and Bugs are some wildlife that run around, and you can pick them up and carry them.

Stuff to do:
-Get married
-Enter contests and festivals
-Make friends with the harvest sprites
-Dig for ore and minerals
-Make crops
-Build extensions
-Talk to the Harvest Goddess
-Take a Hot Springs bath
-And more!

Girls to choose from:
-Ann, the tomboy
-Karen, the hot chick with a mind for drinkin
-Elli, the sweet little nurse who'd make a great mom
-Popuri, the flower gal pink-haired flirt
-Mary, the shy librarian

Festivals:
-Swimming Contest
-Tomato Festival
-New Years
-Sheep and Cow Festivals
-Chicken Festival
-AND MORE!

It's really alot of fun, and there's so much more to it. You also have rivals for the girls, and you can upgrade your sheep and cows if you love them tons. Go ahead and get this game, it's the best!

Insanely addictive farming fun! Who would have every thought farming would be this much fun? Harvest Moon for those who are unfamiliar with the long running franchise started out on Super Nintendo and has continued on to Gameboy, Playstation, N64, and PS2. Harvest Moon is a fun game for the whole family. The point of the game is to restore your grandfather's farm back to its former glory. You are given three years to complete this task along with making friends with the locals or the townies will run you out of town! Times flies by quickly in this game. Each year consist of four months. In these months you plant different crops and raise animals like chicken, cows, sheep, fish, a dog, and a horse if your lucky. You earn profits, play mini-games, get involved with the locals, built onto your farm and home as time goes by and if your lucky you can get one of five girls to marry you. This game will quickly become a favorite even if most of the tasks are repetitive . But you are a farmer and farmers do have to get up and feed the cows everyday. Buy Harvest Moon for your kids or just by it for yourself. Be a farmer without all the hard work.

My Step-son has this Mancala set and he brought it over from his Mom's house to teach me how to play one day and I wasn't sure exactly how to play but after playing it several time I got to remember that Mancala is also played in the Philippines but it's called Sungka there. The rules are pretty much the same but this game is awesome and teaches you counting and thinking skills even at my age it's good to brush up on those skills. I recommend this game and I'll probably buy my own so I can play with my husband bcuz he's a pro at this game bcuz he played when he was a child in the Philippines.

Mancala is a game of Marbles,take marbles out and try to be the one with the mast marbles on your side and you will win.Mancala is a game for children,teenagers,and adults,spend hours playing it with family and friends.

This is a marvelous games for young minds to learn strategy and counting with. The game is deceptively simple which makes it appropriate for fairly young kids (5+) to be able to play. However, in order to do well at this game, kids need to think ahead -- not only to set up their future moves but also to think about how to prevent their opponent from getting some easy scores.

The board size of this version is pretty much perfect. It's large enouch that the stones can't get lost yet it's ability to fold in half makes it possible to bring along as a travel game; because it folds, the game pieces can be easily stored inside. (Note: like any game with game pieces, the stones/pits can be lost. The great thing with this game is that they can be easily replaced with beach pebbles if necessary.)

This game can be entertaining for hours. And, because there is some strategy, it is also fun for adults to play. We highly recommend this game.

I played Heroes III earlier this year at a friend's house, and I was hooked. I was about to buy the Mac version when I saw that 3do was finally coming out with the expansion set for Mac. The only flaw in this game is that it sucks up your time. If you are not careful, that "one more turn" can keep you up until the rooster crows and it's time for work.

The game is a nice combination of role-playing and strategy games. I prefer turn-based games like this to real-time games like Warcraft, as it is based more on strategy and less on dexterous mouse-clicking. This game is also great for multiplayer, either online with Game Ranger, or the hotseat version with multiple players taking turns on the same computer. The only caveat is that the first player seems to have a better starting position in most scenarios.

The only critisms of this port would be the lack of the map and scenario editors which are available in the PC versions. While there are plenty of scenarios and the randomly generated maps are challenging enough, it would be fun to create your own. The other is that the manual, which should have been printed and not just included on the CD so that you can use it while playing the game, is not comprehensive and uses the tired scam of trying to get you to spend more money to figure out how to win the thing.

That said, I can't think of a better game to buy for the Mac. This one was well worth the wait.

I can't really say that Might and Magic is actually similar to this game, but if you liked the other Heroes of Might and Magic games, you should like this one. The old Mac game 'King's Bounty' was basically the direct predecessor of the Heroes games... Heroes III encompasses all the old creature names, etc., and concepts (MP, HP, Exp., etc.) Retrospectively, Heroes III is essentially a glorified version of its predecessors... spectacular animations, decent music(adding a great environment to the world) and an enhanced interface, allowing you to manipulate your heroes and empire even more. For a new gamer, it takes a while to learn all the functions; I myself am still learning new features. You can try and perfect your strategy in a Hotseat game(playing with other human/computer players on the same computer), Online Multiplayer Game(play against other human/computer players on-line), a regular campaign game, or one of the many scenarios.

This is a great game! It does get you hooked, though, so be careful. You can always save the game, however, so if you limit yourself you can always come back later to finish a scenario. In this game, you are... well... you are you. You don't have one character that's you, you are as many characters as you recruit. These characters are called Heroes. There are different types of Heroes, all having different abilities and statistics. In the beginning, you can either start was is called a campaign, where it's usually 3-4 scenarios all towards the same goal - in some you carry on your heroes to the next one, in some the first 3 are all different, and in the end you pick the group you want to use. There are more than 15 different campaigns.
For a single scenario, it's just one scenario, you complete it, and you're done. When doing this, you can either start with completely random things, or you can chose what different castles you want, what resource you want to start with, and what single hero you will begin with. There are 9 different castles, and for each castle there are maybe 10 heroes. For resources, you get to choose between gold, an artifact, or a different resource (depending on the castle you've chosen). Then you begin the game. In each scenario and campaign you have a different goal - most of the time it's to defeat all your enemies castles and heroes, but there are some where you have to kill a monster, gather all resource supplies(?), get a certain amount of gold, collect an artifact, kill a certain hero, or defend one of your castles from being captured by the enemy. When you start, it all depends on the certain scenario on what you have. Some start with your only hero, and you have to get a castle before you can really start playing - and in this game, if you are without a castle for a week, then you lose. In other scenarios, you start with one or more castles, and sometimes more than your chosen hero. In your castle, you can buy something to improve it once a day. It has barracks for different creatures to recruit, resource silos that will earn you some resources each day, mage towers that enable your heroes to learn magic spells, castles to improve the defences of the castle, and the greatest thing is the Capital, which you don't get until you get a few other things first, but once you do, it increases the amount of creatures in your barracks each week, and it gives you the mighty sum of 4000 gold per day. In your castle you can also recruit heroes, a choice of two per week - unless you recruit one, then a different one fills its place. And don't get me wrong - it takes money to recruit your heroes and creatures. You can also find money around the map with your hero, but most of the time you'll find yourself short of cash - unless it's a really long game and you've bought everything in your castle, have the limit of eight heroes, and your money is just piling up.
But enough about the castle - it's very important, but what you're trying to do is achieve your goal, and unless it's to accumulate gold, you can't achieve it by doing nothing with you hero. In any case, you have to have your hero capture resource places (ore pits, crystal mines etc.) so you have the resources to buy the things in your castle. You hero has a certain amount he/she can move each day - this increase with certain statistics you can get, or certain artifacts. There are also spells, if your hero is advanced enough to learn them and you have the right mage tower (and level) that enable him/her to transport somewhere on the map. That map in the beginning, by the way, is black, and you can only see things once you've explored there. If you have an ally, then you get to see where they've explored as well. Your hero sometimes starts out with a good army, but normally you have to wait to fight anything until you get enough troops in your castle. You hero has 8 'slots', which you can fill with an unlimited amount of 8 different creatures. There are different levels of creatures as well, and some are better than others. Your hero fights creatures around the map to get places, to gain experience (enough allows him/her to go up a level), to gather resources and artifacts, or to win the game. When you attack 'a' creature, sometimes they will flee and you can chase them (not on the map, your hero stays in one place) or let them go, and sometimes they will join you, which is always nice. You can also kill enemy heroes, but take in mind that if their army is better, you can die. You can make your hero retreat, however, and recruit him/her in the tavern in your castle. You can sort of view an enemies army by putting your mouse over them and holding down a certain key - I think it's the control key, the tap key, or the option key. Some heroes are also better than others from experience. You can also gain experience by doing other things besides killing beasts.
So now you have this very long narrative, and I still haven't told you everything about this game. Don't worry, you can figure it out yourself (I'm so nice). This is a really great game, for children and adults alike. It does involve strategy, however, so maybe you should be at least 10 before playing. It's a great game, and I recommend it to anyone who likes computer games - this version is for Mac OS, but there are Windows versions. This pack comes with three heroes games, all having many different campaigns and scenarios - as you can pick levels to each single scenario, that is almost an unlimited amount. You can also create your own map, but I haven't really figured out how to do this the exact way I want to, so I can't help you there.
I hope this review has helped, even it was really long. I hope you enjoy the game!

Well, WWII was four years long, and so could this game last! Actually, I've had this game for almost fifteen years now (oh God!), and though I haven't played it recently as of this review, I miss playing it because it gave me lot's of enjoyable, strategy filled hours with friends. I don't think this is for players under the age of 15 really, but who knows. I have to say that it's obviously turned into a "classic" over the years since I've played it, and it's good to see that it's gained quite a following (over 130 reviews here so far!).

Axis vs. Allies (US, UK, Russia vs. Germany & Japan). In my opinion the side playing the Axis has a tougher time of it in the long haul (hint: Germany must consolidate and defend before branching out), but if they can hold off Russia, and prevent arial attacks from the UK then they'll survive. It's always interesting to see what happens, and each game is different. Each side earns income from their territories, and must build land, sea, and air forces accordingly. As in Risk, the dice determine outcomes of battles, but the rules in Axis & Allies are more flexible with regards to where the forces can and can't go, and the numbers involved. It's more complex and interesting than Risk, and demands more thinking and tactical skill.

Six hours is probably a good "average" time-span for this game, although I remember keeping the board out overnight on more than one occassion praying the dogs wouldn't knock the pieces over! There should be ways to get extra pieces for this game . . . maybe there are now. All in all, I recommend Axis & Allies for learning geography, basic history of WWII, and improving chess related skills in tactics and strategy. Once you read the instructions and play the first time, the game is easy to figure out. And, as in life, the dice (i.e. the Fates, the Gods, Luck, Chance, the unpredictable whatever you want to call it) keeps each day (i.e. game) interesting and unique. Who knows, you just might re-determine the outcome of WWII! As a correllative, check out the "What If?" book series edited by Robert Cowley. There are fascinating essays by reknowned historians on such subjects as "What would happen if D-Day failed?," or "What if Hitler won the war?".

Have fun - may the dice be with you!

Axis and Allies is probably the best strategy board game I've ever played. I'd play it over Risk and Stratego anyday. Although the game if well played can take over 6 hours, I still enjoy every bit of it. It forces you to look ahead into the future and anticipate the enemy's moves. When you want to attack, the battle board organizes the pieces into a controllable force and the attack into a step by step sequence. Nothing is more inspiring than building up a giant invasion force for 5 turns then unleashing it on an enemy capitol in hopes of conquering it and taking thier money too! Unfortunately, it's most fun with the maximum 5 players but 3 and 4 will do if u can't get 5 people together. In all I'd say that A&A can save u many boring rainy days. ****(for those of you who are thinking about buying this game,i recommend you buy the revised edition with new country specific pieces, new game board and rules. this older version is good too but hey it's up to you and fun either way!)****

I first played axis and allies back in about 1985, and I most recently played it about a year ago. It's a fun, beer and pretzels strategy game. Complicated compared to monopoly, simple compared to squad leader or more serious war simulation games.

It is time consuming, especially if you play it out to the bitter end. You have to at some point admit defeat gracefully, or it will come down to one player building a horde of infantry and forcing the other players to come dig him out. Unless you really get into rolling dice, there's no need to go that far.

There are variants for A&A on the internet that will help resolve the problem that once you've played enough times you will find that the outcome is somewhat fixed. If both sides play their best strategy, the allies will win, barring a fluke in one of the first turn battles in the societ union. It's bad when you play the first turn, and declare a winner, but experienced axis and allies players should be able to do that.

Once you have mastered axis and allies, look into the pacific version, or "Swords of the amurai" formerly sold as "Shogun!"