First off, lets get the silly acronym out of the way. This is a 4X strategy game, which means "eXplore, eXpand, eXploit and eXterminate". There aren't too many 4X strategy games out there, it's a niche that caters to a more dedicated gamer who is willing to put in the hours to master what tend to be very sophisticated and deep simulations. In fact, ever since Civilisation2 and Master Of Orion these games have gotten ever more complex to satisfy an ever-narrowing niche of hard core strategists. The concept of leading your nation into a bloody future of conquest and empire is intoxicating. I just wish these games were a little more accessible to the common man and thankfully Armageddon is a little quicker to play and easier to learn than most.

The standard 4X game has the player controlling one of a handful of new nations struggling to build their population, expand territory and grow technologically. You spend your time exploring your neighborhood, exterminating or absorbing anything you find, researching technology and building ever more impressive armies. These games often have a tendency for one side or the other to snowball into some kind of massive empire, unseen until the last minutes of the game, a leviathan that squashes everything in its path. When you are the one being squashed after 5 hours of careful nation nurturing then this can be a very painful experience. Armageddon Empires follows this mould, but has a clever card based system (think Magic the Gathering) to help keep things balanced.

Each faction starts with a fixed number of cards and no matter how many resources are controlled, you can never field more than the cards in your deck. The result is usually an end game where everyone still has a chance to come back from the brink. The enemy may well be fielding some uber titan or super stat wielding hero, but once those units (cards) are defeated then they are gone for good. It makes you think very carefully about when and where to field your units, as they are quite precious. Yet another benefit of the card system is a reduction in game time. We're still talking about ~3 hours a game, but compared to some 4X titles that take a week to complete one run through, that's very quick. You can't just sit farming resources and growing huge armies, you have to win with the cards in your deck and once they're gone that's it. Even using the same card deck, each new game can play out quite differently depending on the order you draw out cards and how quickly you can play them. It gives the game great replay ability even before you start designing your own decks.

A further brake on any possibility of run away empire building is the game's reliance on action points. Each round, every faction throws a few dice (yes, you can actually see the dice rolls) and this dictates the order of play and how many action points each faction gets. You might have an endless supply of resources and the best hand of cards you've ever seen, but if you don't have enough action points then you won't be fielding them. To ease the reliance on dice rolling chance the player can choose to spend some of his precious resources to "buy" more dice and push up his odds. Choices like these litter almost every action, a healthy balance of dice rolling chance and the considered use of precious resources and cards to tip the odds.

The game's tabletop roots are openly exposed with visible dice rolls for almost every action, a nice touch but it does cause quite a lot of button clicking as you initiate dice rolls for all factions. In combat each side fields an army consisting of up to 8 unit cards with heavy hitters in the front row and artillery, mobile repair and your "general" hero card in the rear row. Units take turns to pound each other, but each unit card can contain a number of rules that bring an extra strategic dimension to the battle. Some units can prevent an enemy from returning fire or provide other bonuses that make order of play significant. Special tactic cards can brought to bear and "fate points" spent to shift dice rolls. Although you can feel the "Risk" dice rolling ancestry this is a much more strategically rich dice combat.

The game is written in Adobe Director, which is a little unusual and it does sometimes chug even on my 3.4GHz Pentium. It also runs at a single fixed resolution and the user interface is somewhat confusing to say the least. The real problem lies in the genres general complexity and this specific game's lack of tutorial or intuitive interface. Armageddon is one of the easier 4X games to grasp, but it still comes with a 60-page manual so that isn't saying much. I'm not sure how many people will be willing to put in the time needed to get to grips with the basic game, never mind deck building. Please, make the effort. It's worth it! I found a guided walk through to be essential in learning how to navigate all the strategic decisions you have to make. This hefty five-part play guide is excellent, but still only covers the basics! Here's the first part: Bill Harris - Dubious Quality - AE Play Guide Part I


Graphics
The card artwork is fantastic. A number of professional artists have helped give each deck a unique feel. The game itself is presented as a hex tile board game so consists mainly of menus and buttons, which are well done. This isn't a 3D tech demo.

Sound
Sound effects are functional, but few. The classical music is extremely well done and I just wish there was more of it.

Game play
Three years in the making and it shows. It's a wonderfully balanced and deep game that presents endless meaningful choices to the player. I'd have loved to play it with a few friends, but sadly there's no multiplayer.

Value
It'll take you a few hours just to work through the well-presented manual, never mind mastering the game itself. What about building your own deck? Then there's the free add on "cults of the wastelands" due out soon. Not forgetting playing through the game with each of the 4 factions (they each have unique card decks).

Concept
Wonderful. Imagine Civ2 mixed with Magic and then set in a Mad-Maxian post apocalyptic world.

Fun
Fans of card games like Magic and fans of the 4X genre will love this game. I'm not sure how many of those people there are, hopefully enough to justify a sequel.

Overall -
There are a tiny number of excellent indie 4X strategy games catering to this hardcore niche: Galactic Civilizations, Space Empires V and Sins of a Solar Empire. Armageddon Empires is a worthy addition to the canon. If you love 4X games then just buy it now. If you've still no idea what 4X means, but you're intrigued and have a few evenings free then give it a try.