Empire Deluxe

The Good
Empire Deluxe (ED) is a fantastic wargame that I remember playing on the Atari ST. My best friend kicking my ass as I frantically tried to understand tactics and flanks.

ED is a turn-based strategy game that holds it's own against today onslaught of RTS games.

There is no backstory to drive the game. It doesn't need it. You start with either a random world or scenario, or a pre-designed world/scenario. You start up and then start building up your armies.

Basically, then the game begins. Build Fighters, Bombers, Carriers, Transports, etc. ands unleash them aganst your opponent(s).

A few features make this stand out from other TBS games I've played.

1 - When ever you build a new carrier, battleship, submarine, etc. the program picks a random name from a list. A simple way to make it more personable.

2 - You can customize the advangates/disadvantages for each player. Lets say that you're a master wargamer, and you are playing 2 novices. You can easily set the game up to give the novices a production and Combat advantage to give them a fighting chance against a seasoned veteran.

3 - Custom Map Making/Scenario making is a great tool for those who like to make maps. With a little finesse you can re-create almost any battle from the modern era.

The Bad
The game's control aspect is a bit tricky. The right mouse button alternates from the "Orders" to the "Survey" map, and If you don't pay attention to the top right corner button (it shows which map you are looking at, i.e. Production, Survey, etc.) you can get confused very easily.

Another thing that should have been included is an actual progressive campaign. In this day and age of RTS campaigns, this game sorely needs one. Although I believe that if someone takes the time, you can create a fantastic campaign for this game.

The Bottom Line
This is a fantastic Turn-based strategy wargame. It's a no-frills game, with a no-holds-barred attitude. It a pure wargame. Side A vs. Side B and let the best wargamer win. Or at least the one with the bigger advantage :)