Highly underappreciated title. Like a breath of fresh air.
At that time, the animation was like nothing i've seen be4. Instead of creating a unit that comes with a mount as you would in any other RTS, here, being elaborated, you have to train a unit, tame a wild horse and then have your unit mount it. And you don't just plant tesla coils all over the place. As you would expect from Battle Realms, you'd build a watchtower and then you send a unit to occupy. Paying attention to small details, the unit doesnt just pop up at the top of the watch tower; you will see your archer ascending the stairs one step at a time. It may not sound like much now but back then it was really cool.
The setting is like a fusion between japanese mythologies and tokkien's fantasy. Once again, it differentiates itself, deviating from the orcs and the elves, the tanks and the guns. Battle Realms has a lore that, in my opinion, worthy of a book, which is kinda disappointing because the campaign doesnt delve deep enough into the it. That's not to say that the plot isn't good, it is good enough to keep you playing, wanting to find out what happens next. But you just wish they'd let you in a little more. Because of the setting, the game plays out largely on the same hilly terrain with huge patches of green and bits of rivers/puddles (The expansion Winter of the Wolf would introduce some variations). The terrain however, plays a significant role in the gameplay. Being on a higher ground grants advantages in battle, and also improving the range of sight of your units. The rivers and rice fields are not there simply to vary the terrain either. They represent the economy of the game - rice and water. You send your peasants to harvest rice on the field and over time the field grows thin. The field will replenish itself, albeit at a slow rate. You can quicken things up but sending a peasant to water the rice field. Once again, this illustrates my point about the game being elaborated, with the animation and gameplay working hand in hand.
In any other RTS, you would most probably go to the barracks and click on a soldier icon to CREATE one. In BR, the only unit that is ever created is the peasant. These feeble looking beings form the core of your army; they are the 3rd economy of the game: manpower. Peasants are churned out from a hut with decreasing frequency as your population grows. In order to get a fighting unit, you would have to build training structures where u would send your peasant to become a better man. If one steps inside a dojo, he comes out a spearman, into a range he steps out an archer, into a bathhouse he mysteriously turns into a geisha. !! You get my point. You can also cross-train them to get completely something else.
While there may not a minor sync issue, for the most part audio of the game is terrific. A sound that you will really familiar yourself with is this distinct GONG that signals the start of a battle somewhere on the map. Simultaneously a tiny round swords crossing icon pops up in the main interface. Clicking it would instantly bring your attention to the battle. You would also notice the fluttering of the birds when your army steps into the forested areas, the splashing of water when someone treads on it, the clanking of swords, the sounds of arrows and the distinction between which when they connect with structures and when they connect with units, the galloping of horses, etc. These itsy bitsy details add up to make the game all the more outstanding. There isn't an extensive soundtrack but thankfully what little music it offers isn't annoying. The pieces have an asian feel to it, and they play lightly in the background without ever being intrusive.
Battle realms really stood itself out from the rest of the RTS. Even now, after so many yrs, i find myself gettin hooked again. The graphics may be dated but if you know your stuff, gameplay is what makes a game. And Battle Realms does it particularly well, at the same time complementing it with so much tiny details that you can really feel the effort that is put into it. Give this a game a chance. I am certain that it will charm you the way it did me.