Geryk Analysis: Rise of Legends: Bruce Geryk couldn`t Caylus
Brooski - Features - Comments - 06/01/06
Rise of Legends depends on this whole alternate mythology where the Aztecs taught the Russians how to space walk, and Leonardo da Vinci invented Mechwarrior. Bam, the end. When you play, it doesn’t really matter. Sun jaguars mean I need fire elementals. You need sand spires because the mine upgrades are crucial, as are the glass bolts if you’re zerging with desert walkers. Sure, there’s probably some story in the single-player campaign I’m never going to play, but good game design can’t depend on some ancillary play mode. And – mechanically – it doesn’t. But that’s less than half the battle.
There are a bunch of different ways to play the Alin. You can go all merchant with the bumblebee caravans, or research up whichever track you guys thought of when I asked you at the beginning of this article. You have to build magus districts to do that second thing. In fact, one of the biggest decisions I’ve had to make was whether to build a third merchant at my capital, or build a magus district that would give me an extra research point when I leveled up to large city. Small decisions, large impact. As you go on, you make a lot of choices. Rise of Legends shows a lot of sophistication in game mechanics. Maybe Brian Reynolds should design boardgames.
Computer games have so much more potential than boardgames, yet they keep blowing it. Rise of Legends is exhibit 1. When I open the Caylus box, the gameboard is fixed. It’s made out of cardboard and has some artwork on it. Because I’m not insane, I don’t blame the designers for limiting my possibilities in this way. Rise of Legends has no such constraints. Role-playing gamers have complained for years about the inability to permanently alter their environment based on game choices. Here is a strategy game where the game mechanics have been specifically designed to produce different results based on the choices, but the game itself doesn’t reflect them in any tangible way. If I choose a mercantile strategy, why can’t my civilization show that as it develops? If I go all land lore on your ass, can’t the appearance of the game world change? Real-time strategy games have the reputation for requiring fast mouse-clicking. It’s amazing to me that a game which attempts to introduce serious strategic choices built on fundamental game mechanics doesn’t represent this in some way that is obvious to the players. How many bumblebees do I have? I shouldn’t ever be squinting at that number I had to go and enable in the user interface. It’s as though the designers are embarrassed about players having to make choices. Guys, mature game design has already been mastered by Reiner Knizia. It’s your job to extend this, what with the demon art and whatnot.
You know how I said Caylus wasn’t about building a castle? Well, it is. There actually is a game about building a church, but it’s designed by someone else and called Keythedral. Yes, it’s a dumb name. But so is Rise of Nations Rise of Legends, to be honest. Seriously, if you’re going to make a game about something rising, you really need to stick to one thing. And develop your milieu a bit more. Why waste so much potential? After all, each time I lose, I can’t see what specific amazing strategy Tom is using. All I see is the fruit.
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