The Glade 4.0

is way more awesome than a historical game has any right to be.

Not only is it preposteriously complex and deep, but it's hardcore nifty for European history buffs. I mean, hell... there are in-game wikipedia links for dynasties and characters!

I'm afraid this game will devour my soul, however. Or, at the very least, a vast majority of my free time.

My only gripes thus far are some interface clunkiness, but given the staggering amounts of information the game has to convey, perhaps some of that can be forgiven. Except the army-linking interface. That **** needs a patch.

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

Huh, interesting. I see shades of Kingmaker (the old board game) and Civilization (which I recently had a strong urge to start playing again). But, is it real-time, or turn-based? If it's turn-based, I could give it a shot, but I can't handle the real-time thing.

Of course, I don't think I have a machine that can handle it, either, so I'd probably have to settle for the first one.

Edit: Ah, OK, it is a "real time grand strategy", according to Wikipedia. Dang. Looks cool, though.

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This cold and dark tormented hell
Is all I`ll ever know
So when you get to heaven
May the devil be the judge

It's "pausable real-time." Which means that the days tick by (and you can adjust the speed from "1 day per second"-ish to "15 seconds per day"-ish), and you hit space bar to pause at any time. Major events will pop up messages that will pause for you, too.

So, really -- you play it like it's turn-based with *really* dense turns (so actions take lots and lots of turns to resolve; building improvements to your holdings takes 6-months to 2 years), but when you've got lots of waiting (for troops to travel, combats to resolve, money to be accumulated, etc.), you don't have to hit "next turn" constantly.

_________________
"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades