"Enemies of the Emperor, DIE!"
User Rating: 8.8 | Praetorians PC
As a history buff and fan of ancient Rome, I was delighted to see that they have made a game about warfare back in those days. The whole ancient Rome theme didn't pick up until after the movie Gladiator. The only movies before that was Spartacus and Ben-Hur. The AOE: Rise of Rome was a flop, and this game was what we wanted. I was tired of playing games like Starcraft where you try to rush the guy or get rushed so early in the game, you haven't even researched level 2 armor yet. What's the point of having so many in depth options when no one even uses them? And units moving around like they're lost, all scattered and undisciplined. Well, in this game you don't have to worry about resources or rabble-like groups, because they are held in formations automatically. This move was very welcome and the ability to command various Roman units was a first. You have to give this game credit for what it accomplished. Of course, now there's RTW, arguably the best strategy game out there, but you have to take into account that Praetorians was several years before RTW and set the marks for which we love. The terrain and importance of formations and special units was good. You can actually hide and ambush enemies this time, unlike the claims that Starcraft made about hiding units under the shade of a tree, you had to be half-asleep not to see the unit hidden there. The missions where you hold off or assault defenses are nicely included. In many ways this is RTW on a smaller scale and without the strategic implications. Great game, would recommend this highly. 
