Real Time Strategy games have always been quite a fascinating genre for me. Even though they tend to fall in a same-ish formula of set up, train units, go at the enemy, the mechanics let the player feel like a general, spending the next minutes, or perhaps hours preparing for the clash of titans.
OOOOOOOR you can just be that one cheeky bloke who spams towers in the opponent’s base and whom everyone hates. I am not one to judge 🙂
Back in the olden days, almost 20 years ago, we had Age of Empires, an up and coming historical RTS series. As Ensemble Studios decided to focus on the medieval sequel, the classical original was left in the dust. And so, Wildfire Games was born, aiming to create something more on their own inspired by AOE, and let everyone freely play it.
And so, 0AD was born. An incredibly ambitious project, to say the least.
10 years ago, it officially became opensource, and many flocked to help with development. Some brought code, some brought art, many stayed.
As of the day of the review, it is still in development, waiting for the day of its official release. Nevertheless, the game is more than playable in its current state.
0AD is roughly centered around the years 500BC to 500AD, where you take command of one of the famous civilizations of the time, complete with unique rosters, bonuses and even Heroes! Build up your humble base into a powerhouse, prepare your vast armies and unleash your might on the enemy!
As you strive to do so, you will utilize various mechanics, classic and unique. And believe me, there’s a lot to talk about in that regard.
For starters, the civilizations you get to choose from. As of the writing of this review, there are 13 of them. Let’s go over them, shall we?
Known for their powerful navy and their democracy, the Athenians are great for defensive and navy-minded players, being able to build walls and Triremes quickly, as well as group their men into a Phalanx, turning their spears into hell for the enemy!
Britons, most famously known for Boudicca’s revolt against Roman occupation, pride themselves in their close combat skills and unique farming methods. A Briton player wants to get up close and personal, with powerful druids behind them for support.
Carthagenians, the people that brought up Hannibal and a trading empire spanning far and wide. Their walls, mirroring the ones defending Carthage, are incredibly powerful, making sieges a long and costly affair for the enemy. Their trading empire gives them much gold, but also many allies from the various peoples of the Mediterranean.
The people of Gaul were innovators in their own right, with advanced metalwork, inventions like the rotary flour mill and their druids who helped spur on such advances. Woe to the ones who lose their buildings to them, for the Gauls know how to benefit most from what they obtain!
The people of Iberia, mysterious and peaceful, metallurgists and horsemen. Their towns are always ready for defence, boasting walls erected at the very start of the game. Behind those walls may stand many Skirmishers, throwing Javelins set ablaze!
The Kingdom of Kush. Another lesser known, yet a power in its own right. They are blessed with aboundant metals and War Elephants, and are able to quickly and reliably spread their influence whenever needed. Act quickly, before the map is dominated by their many pyramids!
The ambitious Macedons, scourge of the Persians the Hellenes, the people of Alexander the Great. Known for innovative tactics, such as the Syntagma formation, as well as incredibly powerful infantry in general. Fear the Macedon forces, for they toppled empires, boasting shields made of Silver!
Mauryans are many, powerful and loyal to the teachings of the Buddha. Their skills of archery are to be feared, as well as their mighty Elephants! Passionately religious, their temples are home to much and easily attainable knowledge.
Persians are also many and varied, their empire efficient and their trade prosperous. Their horsemen will be many, backed by the notorious Immortals, the elite troops of the empire. Invincible, or perhaps just quickly replaced?
Ptolomeic Egypt, the breadbasket of the Ancient World. A Greek dynasty ruling one of the oldest civilizations with an iron fist and a prosperous economy, mustering many powerful mercenaries and farming prowess to make the world envy the harvests of the Children of the Nile.
There cannot be a game about the Ancient times without the Romans. Eventually they would dominate the ancient world, with armies organised in effective Turtle(Testudo) formations and cleverly employing Divide et Impera tactics to get enemies to join their cause. Their men are loyal citizens, quick to the battlefield and ready to defend their lands to the death!
Seleukos took the Lion’s share of Alexander’s former empire, and grew it into a powerhouse rivaled only by the greatest. Seleucid military colonies spread quickly, backed by the best Persia and Macedon can offer, or perhaps reformed for the better? Watch out for surprise Elephants!
The militaristic Spartans, masters of the spear and the Phalanx. Trained from a young age, Spartan men will be veterans in combat, fierce in battle. The women are also ready to fight to the death, and ready to erect walls if need be.
All the civs feel quite unique, boasting various unique units and technologies. This ensures that players will have varied choices as for what to play.
The game also boasts many unique mechanics, some of which are rarely seen in other RTS games. For some of these, some might argue “for good reason”…
As soon as you start the game, you will notice a variety of starting units. Believe it or not, all of them can gather resources. Most land units can gather all resources, while mounted units can hunt. What this means is that you can, and should, use your military for economic purposes if not fighting. This delivers a radical change in the game’s dynamic compared to other RTS games, where military units are almost always exclusively used for combat.
If you’ve played Warcraft 3, you likely remember the Undead having to spread Blighted soil on which they place their buildings. A similar mechanic exists here, with every building providing a “Zone of Control” within which you can build. This leads to an interesting map control dynamic over securing valuable new bases and resources, as well as…
Building control! In 0AD you can wrest control of any building using any of your military units, letting you use it as if it were yours from the beginning. This can make for interesting back and forth securings of important spots, or simply disabling them for the enemy, thereby reducing his potential. This also works for Civic Centres, and can immensely cripple the opponent if successful. This also gives the player a choice over whether to destroy a building or simply take it over, due to the necessity of map control to not lose it.
0AD also adds unit formations into the mix, like the aforementioned Turtle and Phalanx. Alongside many other classic formations, you can carefully craft your army and position them for best effect, letting you feel like those famous generals of the past, organising your men. I am glad to see that those men can organise and move in formation much more reliably than in most RTS games I’ve played(looking at you, AOE1).
Speaking of Generals, 0AD also introduces Heroes, which represent the famous leaders of the time. Incredibly powerful, they boast abilities that synergize well with your civilization’s strengths. Caesar, Hannibal and Alexander among many others.
There is so much more that the game offers, but that I leave for you, the reader, to explore, or perhaps create?
The game features a fully functional AI that delivers a solid challenge for the less experienced, and if you’re feeling confident, hop into the official multiplayer for matches with real people, including a competitive scene.
0AD is an incredibly ambitious, massive project. Some might say overwhelming, and I would have to agree to some degree…
The complexity is generally welcome to see, as it makes the game quite unique, but it also makes the game incredibly difficult to learn at a good level, not to mention that the UI leaves certain things to be desired. Batch training is so annoying, and managing idle units is a chore.
What also needs to be said is that with many mechanics come many ways to break the game. Also, the balance and designs of some civs can be quite questionable at times. It’s better than one might expect for a product in Alpha, if anything, but having stuff like “Macedon does 10% more damage to Persia and takes 10% more damage from Rome” is very poor design in my honest opinion.
Look forward to lag in the mid-late game, the engine has a hard time working with a bunch of units. Even at lowest settings it’s prone to dropping to around 15FPS late game, from my experience using an average laptop. The engine needs further optimization.
0AD knows how to deliver a wonderful ambience. The graphics are quite stellar for an RTS game, clearly visible, finely detailed, always eye-catching. Seeing my armies assembled for battle, placed in formation, was truly satisfying. The devs also paid very good attention to detail for each building, to make them both beautiful and authentic. Truly a passion work done right!
The music is original and distributed freely for everyone to listen. Excellent on its own, even better playing in the background of an intense game. Sands of Time is my personal favourite, if you’re curious 🙂
Remember, as this is a FOSS game, it is completely free to play, and available for Linux and Windows! You can download it at https://play0ad.com/download/
At first glance, 0AD might seem like just another AOE clone with little redeeming quality. Look past that, and you will see years of hard work and passion, resulting in a very rough, sometimes awkwardly cut, yet beautiful flower, that blossomed into something unique, something fascinating…
0AD has a long way to go before it gets to Version 1.0, but the road to it is something to look forward to with enthusiasm. I keep coming back to it even with all its annoyances, and for damn good reason. Perhaps you will too.
And now, shall we meet on the field of battle?
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