Praetorians

by Eidos

Product Features

• DEATH OR GLORY?  Your destiny awaits on thebattlefield. Product Information Set amidst the reign of Julius Caesar, Praetorians is an epic troop-basedstrategy game from the creators of the award-winning, best-selling Commandosseries. As a Roman General on a quest to forge an empire, you will be transportedback to the dusty battlefields of Egypt, the frozen lands of the Gauls, andfinal

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000068VC5
• Item Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: March 18, 2003
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #17,454 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

DEATH OR GLORY?  Your destiny awaits on thebattlefield.Product InformationSet amidst the reign of Julius Caesar Praetorians is an epic troop-basedstrategy game from the creators of the award-winning best-selling Commandosseries.As a Roman General on a quest to forge an empire you will be transportedback to the dusty battlefields of Egypt the frozen lands of the Gauls andfinally to the heart of the Empire itself Italy. Your quest will be no easytask as the lands you seek to conquer are heavily defended by thousands ofpowerful troops.Feed your insatiable hunger to rule the empire with this combat-heavy adventureinspired by the historical battles of Julius Caesar. Command the forces of notonly the Romans but also the ferocious Gauls and the religiously fanaticalEgyptians. Your road to victory depends on strong strategic skills – learningto combine units and exploit the enemy’s weakness is key.Played out in jaw-dropping 3D visuals – from the immense scale of thepyramids right down to the individual centurion – Praetorians is stunning inits detail scale and beauty. Incredibly intuitive Praetorians allows skilledstrategy gamers and beginners alike to fully immerse themselves in the storywith absolute ease.This epic troop-based strategy game is brought to you by Pyro Studios thehighly acclaimed developers of the award-winning Commandos series.Product HighlightsUnique CivilizationsCommand the forces of three civilizations each with a unique set oftroops and tactics: The Romans exhibit disciplined behavior in the battlefield utilizing organization and flexible formations as a means of overthrowing the enemy. Gauls possess the power of raw strength more flexibility of movement on different terrains and are very well suited for guerrilla war and skirmishes. Egyptian priests utilize a combination of religious fanaticism and science to complement their range of military units.Diverse Un

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An RTS game with style is still an RTS game, April 10, 2003

By 

Taylor Rand "samuraijack" (Florida, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Praetorians (CD-ROM)

Praetorians is a real-time strategy game in which you command companies of troops (Romans, Gauls, Egyptians) rather than individual units and it concentrates on battle with almost no resource gathering (you must "recruit" troops from captured villages.)

There's plenty of cool stuff like legionaries that can form the Roman shield wall ("testudo"), birds that fly out of forests alerting you of approaching enemy troops, ambushes in grasslands, desert battlefields, elevation effects, 3D graphics (with a limited camera angle though), scouts with hawk/wolf spotters, catapults, ballista, axe-throwing Gaul infantry, Nubian archers, Balearic slingers, camel archers,etc.

However, as much as I'm enjoying both the campaign and skirmish mode, I have to point out this is not a wargame. There is little time (in the skirmish mode particularly) for thoughtful maneuvering: you must attack at once! It's fun, but I never feel as though I was really a general or consul or whatever the term is. It's still RTS and if you're enjoying watching your archers shoot down a Gaul warrior company from the safety of a hill, you're probably wasting valuable clicking time.

This is not Medieval: Total War in which you can maneuver companies like a general. It's a bit closer in spirit to Empire Earth or Age of Empires in combat terms - only here you fight with companies rather than mobs of men.

I'm really enjoying it for lighthearted quick gameplay, but I wish it were a little less frantic, a little less like Age of Empires and a little more like Medieval: Total War.

The skirmish mode is fun (unfortunately we get only about 20 different maps), multiplayer could be cool (haven't got my friend to buy it yet), and the campaign is decent (only played 5 missions so far). The AI appears to be strong and doesn't seem to cheat by unfairly building faster or by being able to see all your troop locations. It may appear that way but I've saved the games and watched the replays and it just seems to play better (than me anyway). It organized its units better, captured more villages, recruited more troops, scouted intensively (and didn't notice when I captured a village unless its scouts saw me - it's troops marched past out of sight).

(I think it's a bit harsh of one reviewer to say this game is only for kids or newcomers to RTS games. If you realize that Praetorians is not trying to be a realistic wargame but rather a light-hearted RTS then you're more likely to enjoy the game on its terms.)

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best tactical game of all times!, March 16, 2003

By 

Alex94040 "alex94040" (Seattle, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Praetorians (CD-ROM)

Guys, I have to admit - I'm not a big time tactical strategy fan, but this game totally got me on the hook. I like Starcraft, Warcraft III and Age of Empires, but couldn't imagine that a game like Praetorians can grab me and never let me go.
I've been playing the multiplayer skirmish demo since it came out - I've never played a demo version of the game for more than an hour!!! It's AMAZING. Plain amazing. The strategy is beautiful, all the terrain tricks, everything you could expect from a real battle. ... - the troop building model there is so beautiful that I can hardly type these words now, I want to get back to the game. I love it!!! If you love any kind of RTS games, this is a MUST in your collection!

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great strategy game!, May 22, 2003

By 

Alessandro "klimablu" (italy) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Praetorians (CD-ROM)

I had experience of RTS games (Total Annihilation, Age of Empires and Empire Earth) and after I bought Praetorians and played the first time, I found it very very interesting.
It's not the typical RTS game where you have to produce a lot of units and simply attack the enemy (like for example TA kingdoms or others) but you have to think in a strategic way before moving and attacking the enemy. In this game, mission by mission, you learn how to balance your troops and how to move in the territory. It's important the fact that troops can interact with territory (hills, woods). You can hide your troops, you can stay higher than the enemy and then attack you enemy suddenly (for example,if your bowmen are in a higher position they will hurt more seriously the enemy). In some missions you have to lay siege to a fortess with war machines.
To sum up, I think it's a good game, if you want to enjoy yourself and live the experience of "De Bello Gallico"!