Imperator: Rome

Ghoastus: Actually, that quote is from Hans Gruber in the (non-Roman) film Die Hard, and I’m pretty sure he pulled it out of his arse. But if there’s one thing Ghoastus can appreciate, it’s a rhetorical flourish. Hail Imperator, Ghoastus’ favourite game of 2019 so far! Ave!

A good game with a lot of depth – just what one would expect from Paradox.  Play it through once or twice just for fun, then grab one of the strategy guides that will be popping up to more fully appreciate the mechanics.

A brilliant grand strategy game full of squabbling nobles.

But even with that little niggle, it’s hard not to be very impressed with what Imperator: Rome has to offer. The feel of the game is exactly what Paradox promised: a true test of management of early civilisation on the brink of modernisation. You can develop your nation and expand to your heart’s content – but like the mighty Romans, you must constantly look outwards to your neighbours and inwards...

Imperator: Rome feels like it’s yet another step in Paradox’s attempts to make the perfect grand strategy game. It pulls bits from Paradox’s storied past in the genre and adopts it for the ancient era. Because of this, it doesn’t feel like past releases where the game does one thing fantastically and falters in the rest of the mechanics but instead refines past mechanics into a marble bust of ...

For a while now, Paradox Interactive have been the masters of diplomacy when it comes to 4X strategy games. Other strategy mainstays may have them beat when it comes to combat (Total War) or civic development (Civilization), but there really is something to be said for the kind of diplomatic depth that allows you to crush your foes with the pen, as well as the sword.

The amount of detailed, strategic stuff crammed into Imperator: Rome is equal parts impressive and daunting. It can come across at some times as rich and rewarding, and other times as crowded and chaotic. I suspect I’ll still be discovering new things about it even a hundred hours in, but it’s a testament to the strong warfare and politics, and to the outstanding map, that I’m eager to play anothe...

As Imperator grows in scale from its Clausewitz cousins, so too it grows in depth and ultimately in unwieldiness. But there's a grand strategy with aeons of play in it for you.

A very Paradox game, in both a good and bad way. It has all the hallmarks of a good game, and I look forward to seeing continued development as time goes by.

Imperator: Rome is a grand strategy game developed and published by Paradox, and released in full on the 25th of April. Like its name implies, the aim of the game is to run your empire and expand it through diplomacy, trade, and warfare. You can choose to play as Rome, Egypt, Carthage, Macedon, Seleucids, or Phrygia, and each nation comes with its own perks and challenges.