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Preview of Seven Kingdoms II
Remember last year’s real-time glut" It seemed that every game company produced at least one lackluster RTS title, and to no one’s surprise, the only really big winners were Starcraft, Total Annihilation, and Age of Empires.
And that’s a bit of a shame, because at least one other RTS game deserved to be a enormous hit—that game was Interactive Magic’s Seven Kingdoms. The brainchild of Hong Kong-based Trevor Chan, Seven Kingdoms was one of the biggest and happiest surprises of last year. It had more depth that any of the aforementioned “build and bang” games–you actually could take over enemy empires through sabotage or diplomacy or economic means, and fighting battles was often the least effective way of achieving one’s ends. Plus you got to fight against monsters (the weird and enthralling fryhtans) and occasionally employ a deity to rain hell upon your enemies. In many ways, Seven Kingdoms was the “Warcraft meets Civ II” game that many hoped Age of Empires would be. After a somewhat slow start, Seven Kingdoms eventually became a great critical success, and then a substantial popular one, with over 120,000 copies sold. It even spawned an expansion pack. A sleeper hit, the only thing that kept Seven Kingdoms from superstardom was probably its graphics, which were considerably more average than the rest of the game.
So I was interested to see what I-Magic had in mind for Seven Kingdoms II. Would it be just another expansion pack" Would the dated graphics remain" Well, let me tell you, while at Interactive Magic, I got to see some of the early builds of the new Seven Kingdoms II, and, no kidding, I’d buy this game for the graphics alone. It looks stunning, miles better than anything Interactive Magic has done before. I was shown the game by Lissa Curlee, a vivacious “media relations specialist” who, unlike many “media relations specialists,” was way into the game. Her office walls were covered with gorgeous pictures of the new game’s buildings and sketches for fryhtans, and as we watched the 3D-supported build on her computer, we’d both ooh and ah at just how cool the game looked and played. The new building tile sets are detailed and in keeping with the region they come from—Northern Europe, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, or the Far East—and the terrain is very much-improved. No more flat green terrain; now rolling hills and valleys are incorporated as well. One of the handiest additions to the game’s graphics was the “ghosting” effect that appeared when units would wander out of view behind buildings—instead of losing track of them, the building becomes translucent, allowing you to find them quickly.
Besides the vastly improved new graphics, gameplay will also include many new elements. In Seven Kingdoms II, a role-playing element will be introduced. You’ll be able to hire heroes whose abilities will increase as the game proceeds, and who will accrue magical items as well. There will be four new races—the Celts, Carthaginians, Romans, and Indians, and besides the four regional building tile sets, each race will have one unique building and a unique seat of power. New combat unit types are also in the works, and if you add to this 15 new types of Fryhtans, and the ability to play them, well, it’ll be a while before you get bored with the game. The game’s replay value will also be enhanced by a random campaign generator and multiplayer support.
Combat will also be improved; Lissa hinted that formations may be included (putting to rest the “mob rush” tactics of most RTS games) and that you will be able to build walls to protect your hard-won cities. Espionage and spying will play a larger part as well.
To sum up: the next edition of Seven Kingdoms, an already terrific game, will include improved graphics, improved combat, more units and maps, and more gameplay options. I was mightily impressed by what I saw of Seven Kingdoms II—so much so, in fact, that as a diehard strategy fan I can’t think of another game I’m anticipating as much as this one. The game is tentatively scheduled for release in May or June of 1999; and with Age of Empires II (its most obvious competition) bumped back until late next year, Seven Kingdoms II might have the field to itself next summer. Unless someone drops the ball somewhere, SKII stands an excellent chance of being Interactive Magic’s breakthrough hit.
-Rick Fehrenbacher
Contact Rick at: fehrenba@uidaho.edu [footer1.htm]