Interview: Grand Ages: Rome

Written by: Darren Cartledge Posted: 26th January 2009

Grand Ages: Rome is the sequel to last year’s city building strategy game Imperium Romanum. We spoke to Haemimont Games designers Boyan Ivanov and Lyubomir Iliev about the games development and the improvements it makes over its predecessor.

Firstly lets talk about the persistent character Grand Ages: Rome introduces for the player, why was this done and what benefits does it bring to the playing experience?

The persistent character was introduced as a means to allow the players to create their own style of playing the game. Each of the five different families brings important differences and options that have to be taken in to account. In multiplayer, the clashes and alliances between differently developed characters provides innumerable combinations of different player strategies.

Speaking of multiplayer, how will Grand Ages: Rome support this?

The game offers 6 different multiplayer modes based on achieving military or economic dominance. Cooperative and competitive team play is fully supported.

An important new feature is the "Team City" option, which allows several players to share control over the same city.

Getting back on track, how historically correct is the game, and was it important for you to make it so?

We have always tried to represent the events and individuals in our games as historically accurate as possible. The campaign in Grand Ages: Rome is based on one of the most turbulent periods in Roman history and we did a lot of research as we wrote the story for the missions. Player’s will have the opportunity to witness key moments in Roman history such as Spartacus’ Rebellion, Caesar’s civil war, the crossing of the Rubicon, and finally the rise of Octavian to emperor.

The combat system in Imperium Romanum, I felt wasn’t the best how has it been improved in the sequel?

Based on a lot of player feedback, we decided to completely remake the combat system. In Grand Ages: Rome players will command their armies using a standard RTS control. Orders are issued with a right-click, there is a drag-selection which allows players to select multiple groups and so on. The player will still command entire squads and not individual soldiers. We have also added warships and naval warfare.

So how much has fan and critic feedback had in influencing the development of Grand Ages Rome?

Fan and critic feedback had an important influence on our general design goals. Both players and journalists remarked on the simplistic combat system in Imperium Romanum. There were also concerns about the economy of the game and the lack of a stronger story in the campaign. Based on this we decided to remake the battles and the economy of the game altogether. We also designed the campaign with a single story line in-mind, instead of a different story for each mission.

What advantages will be gained by the economic enhancements that are being implemented?

The gameplay has become much more robust with the new economics system. The player now feels the effects of his actions almost instantly. He is able to concentrate on his long-term strategy for winning the scenario or the multiplayer clash, since he is not as dependent on deliveries and stockpiling resources.

The new economic model allowed us to introduce a larger number of new resources and game mechanics.

Apart from hordes of Barbarians and the economy what other problems will players have to overcome when developing their city?

Because of the large number of interdependent mechanics in the game, even the simplest tasks may prove a challenge - for example to construct a Forum the player must secure an initial supply of raw resources, but to gather these resources he needs to build worker homes and satisfy the basic needs of the citizens.

Additionally, negative city states, such as Plague or Famine, will trigger depending on the player actions, and can significantly challenge him, if not resolved quickly.

On the battlefields the player will be able to face both barbarian foes and Roman enemies.

I found when playing through the scenarios in the original game they unfolded to quickly and the challenge they offered was lacking some! How have the scenarios in Grand Ages: Rome been improved on from those of Imperium Romanum?

Grand Ages: Rome features a 40 mission campaign which tells the story of a young Roman patrician (your character) and his or her rise to power. The campaign is non-linear – players can choose which missions to undertake and when. Some missions are entirely optional. Each mission also offers bonus objectives which if completed offer additional rewards, but increase the difficulty of the mission. Players who prefer to tackle bigger challenges can try to win every mission with all bonus objectives.

Finally, what do you consider the most major advancement in Grand Ages: Rome to be?

The sheer number of different features in the game is immense, so it is really hard to pick a favourite. The character development, the new economics and military models, and the non-linear 40 mission campaign are amongst the significant achievements of the game.