Rise of Nations is a legendary real-time strategy game that, while not overly complicated or complex, manages to deliver a highly enjoyable and addictive experience. Its approachable mechanics and captivating gameplay keep you hooked from start to finish, and the phenomenal soundtrack adds an extra layer of immersion.

One of Rise of Nations’ greatest strengths is its accessibility. The game strikes a perfect balance between depth and simplicity, making it easy for newcomers to pick up while still offering enough strategic elements to keep seasoned RTS players engaged. The gameplay revolves around building a civilization from ancient times to the modern era and the seamless integration of different historical periods adds a unique twist

The soundtrack, composed by Duane Decker, perfectly complements the game's epic scope and historical theme. The orchestral scores are atmospheric and they set the mood but also adds a sense of grandeur to every decision you take.

Overall, while it may not be the most complex strategy game out there, its fun factor and engaging design more than make up for it. For anyone looking to dive into a good RTS that is also entertaining, Rise of Nations is a must-play.

The strategy game that really introduced me to the genre. I loved this game growing up, so my bias will shine through in this review. The visuals are very much in line with stuff like Age of Empires and other historical strategy games of the era. The gameplay is very much Real-Time Strategy Civilization, with the various playable nations having unique bonuses, buildings, and units, and each game progressing through the eras of history towards a set of victory conditions, either military, science, or diplomatic. There's not much originality here in terms of mechanics, but that doesn't mean those mechanics are lacking.

The management of resources is very barebones, in-line with how a lot of RTS games streamline the economics in favour of the more action-packed combat between units. There is some room for tactics here in terms of unit counters and positional micromanagement, but this isn't Starcraft; the appeal is more in the bombast of using historical units to take cities and territory. In that sense, the game delivers in spades.

On paper, the game is probably lacking in a lot of ways that I can't properly elaborate on, with limits to skill expression compared to other, more intense strategy games, but this game has a charm to it that really can't be quantified. Whether it is playing against the AI for fun, or doing the few built-in campaign modes to add a layer of metagaming to the individual showdowns, Rise of Nations is a solid strategy game all around, that was only improved upon with it's expansion Thrones and Patriots, expanding the gameplay greatly. I will always love this game for the casual RTS fun it delivers.

One of the best RTS games ever made without a doubt, Rise of Nations was legendary and foundational to the genre. RoN combines Age of Empires style gameplay and resource management with a Civ-like city/territory system in which building or conquering cities expands your borders, economy, military strength, building area and trade routes. You can choose different types of government that come with their own benefits, setbacks, and hero units, all against the familiar backdrop of an age race to get the best technology fist.

Though this series is dead, you can see its mechanics used in later games like Empire Earth III, Cossacks and more. And it was re-released on Steam with achievement support and functional matchmaking so it's still current.