Setting

Oriental Empires is a civilization building game set in the world of Ancient China. You guide the fate of one small city state or tribe, and starting from the dawn of recorded history, attempt to build them into a mighty empire or dominant civilisation. You can play either as a settled farming nation, or a roving nomadic tribe.

Play the grand historical campaign, or face the unknown challenge of a randomly generated scenario.

Map

From the Mongolian grasslands in the north, to semi tropical jungles in the south, the game is played across a beautifully rendered map that brings to life the diverse landscape of the region. Extend your power across the mountains, forests, deserts and plains of the land. From the foothills of the Tibet in the west, to the flood plains of the east, the game has it all. Play on a realistic map of China, a randomly generated map.

Zoom in close to see your peasants farming the land, or to review your military forces, or seamlessly zoom out for a broad strategic overview.

Development

Develop your lands by clearing forests, and building farms. Send your settlers across the map to found new towns at strategic locations. Improve your cities by adding buildings, and protect them with great walls. Exploit the surrounding landscape with mines, ports and shrines, and link your empire together with roads and trade routes.

You must also develop your soft power by improving your technology and culture. Develop a myriad of famous Chinese inventions including paper, the compass and gunpowder. Explore the ideas of Eastern thought, from shamanism and ancestor worship, to the great philosophies of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism.

As your civilization develops, you must balance the demands of both nobles and peasants, against those of the central state. Raise taxes, regulate your army, and pass laws and regulations by issuing imperial edicts. But beware, annoy either group to much, and you will face disobedience or outright revolt.

War

Conflict is inevitable for any major civilization, and in Oriental Empires it is brought to life in a unique way, with huge battles unfolding before your eyes right on the game map. Raise armies of hundreds or thousands of men, arrange their formations, make battle plans for them, and then watch as they fight it out. Zoom in to watch soldiers fighting hand to hand, or zoom out to see the pattern of the battle unfold.

You will need to stay current with the evolving techniques of warfare. Start with simple infantry, then developing chariots, crossbows, horse archers and cataphract cavalry. Later still you will develop guns, rockets and cannons. Winning in battle will require cunning tactics, skilful use of the terrain, and employing the right units against the right enemies.

Of course siege battles are depicted in glorious detail right on the map too. Batter your enemy’s walls and towers with giant trebuchets, crossbows and cannon, then send your men to storm the breaches.

Victory

You can play to win either by military might, or more peacefully by developing a dominant culture. You can also play a limited time game, scoring victory points for significant achievements, both military and cultural.

Multiplayer

Oriental Empires is designed to give a full flavour multi-player game with minimal waiting time. All players enter their orders simultaneously, and the pre-planned battle system means that battles play out the same as the single player game, without long wait periods for players who aren’t involved.