Description: Civilization: Race of Nations is an Android game that shares a number of similarities with a certain PC game franchise many of you might be familiar with. In Civilization: Race of Nations you develop your nation throughout the ages and try to avoid being crushed by your opponent, using a card system to effect the direction of your Empire, there are some great mechanics at work here. You can also play Civilization: Race of Nations either online using Google Play Games, or pass a smartphone or tablet between yourself and three friends to enjoy local multiplayer. With oodles of content and mechanics to give even the most ardent strategy fan their fix, let’s see what makes Civilization: Race of Nations so special.
How it Works: Civilization: Race of Nations is just a short download away from the Play Store and when you start the game you’ll see the main menu interface.
The menu UI is fun as well, requiring you to press play and then an icon to select which game mode you want to play. Starting with the Tutorial is obviously a good place to start for new players to the game.
The tutorial mode does a very good job of introducing you to aspects of the game and thankfully, it doesn’t take too long to complete at all.
Key details like how to gain resources are explained easily in the tutorials.
When you start a new game, you’ll be introduced to things and when in history you’ll be starting.
When you first start a game against the computer or one of your friends online, you’ll be introduced to the card system. You take a number of cards, and these determine what your empire can do and they come into play later on as well.
Cards can determine what sort of buildings and such your empire is capable of and I really enjoyed the card system on the whole.
The card system and dice roll systems come into play when you’re in a fight with another player as well. I appreciated that this was easy to wrap my head around, as some of the mathematics involved in these games puts me off, but not so with Civilization: Race of Nations.
While things start off slow and simple, like the below shot illustrates, things quickly pick up and there’s so much depth here that I’d have to write to some serious length to cover it all.
Opinion: Civilization: Race of Nations has impressed me, quite a bit for someone who doesn’t really like strategy games, yet really likes Sid Meir’s Civilization. As you might have guessed by now, there are heavy similarities between Civilization: Race of Nations and the PC franchise, yet this does still manage to be its own game and while I felt like I was playing something familiar I didn’t feel like I was playing a copy. What Civilization: Race of Nations does is bring familiar gameplay to Android in an accessible, yet deep manner that should satisfy hardcore strategists as well as more casual gamers. It runs well, features local multiplayer which I really appreciated and it has some interesting mechanics like the card system. An altogether pretty great strategy game this is a really good solution on Android.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Civilization: Race of Nations ran fine on my Nexus 9 and the pacing is very manageable, too.
- Features (5/5) – With all of the right boxes ticked, including some really good online multiplayer, there’s little stopping hardcore strategy fans playing this and finding that gap for strategy on-the-go filled.
- Theme (4/5) – The graphics are decent enough, and while I wished for more animations, this is a well put together game.
- Overall (4.5/5) – A solid homage to the PC franchise and its own game, Civilization: Race of Nations is well worth taking a look at if you crave some sort of strategy on the move.
Pros
- Works well on Android tablets, making an excellent traveling companion.
- Familiar to players of the PC franchise, but also fresh enough to deliver a new and unique experience.
- Card system is easy to get to grips with and the turn-by-turn pacing puts an emphasis on strategy like their should be.
- Local multiplayer is an excellent addition, and something that I can see myself making great use of while traveling.
Cons
- Card system could be better explained in the first tutorial.
- More animations would help liven things up.
Conclusion: Civilization: Race of Nations is a game that strategy fans as well as those just looking for something fresh to sink their teeth into will both enjoy. It’s not made by the developers of the PC franchise of the same name, and while it does share a lot in common, Civilization: Race of Nations is its own game and one that really gets the job done. The mechanics, well thought out multiplayer and strategy are all great and well worth a try.