This innovative but dated real-time strategy game from Ubisoft puts a martial-arts twist on the usual fantasy/sci-fi theme. Released in 2001, Battle Realms quickly won a reputation as one of the most complex and sophisticated RTS games ever released. For the time, it also had impressive graphics, especially in the combat sequences. Battling units perform a wide variety of fighting moves, which, unfortunately, are out of your control. You simply issue movement and attack orders, and the AI chooses when to use units' special abilities. This tends to make combat very difficult. As for gathering and spending, you'll need to master a tricky rice-based economy. You create fighting units by converting peasants to warriors and running the warriors through other buildings, such as dojos and alchemist huts, to produce various upgrades. Rally points help automate the process. It's all pretty complicated, but the game's loyal user community can provide help if you need it. A few die-hards are still hanging in there, and who can blame them? Battle Realms' samurai swords haven't lost their edge.DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD
