Imperator: Rome

Very good game. P.S. To Snazgak. To bypass the launcher: 1. Right click on the "Imperator - Rome" icon on the desktop. 2. Properties. 3. Replace the path "Target" with: "C: \ GOG Games \ ImperatorRome \ binaries \ imperator.exe" 4. Apply Ready. The game will start bypassing the Launcher.

It's an incredible game, great complexity with the strong writing that Paradox is known for. Yes, it was bad at launch but Paradox was very quick to release the first Hotfix ''Demetrius'' that changed a great lot for the better. Give it a try if you are fun of Victoria, Crusaker Kings and Europa Universalis, if you want the best of these three games into one, beautiful game and if you are looking for an excellent alternative of Civ series.

Disclaimer: I had not played this game prior to the Marius update. Having previously played and enjoyed CK, EU and Victoria I was sorely tempted to try out Imperator, even though the frequent bad reviews that appeared while searching for more information on the web made sure that the decision was not taken too hastily. In the end I purchased it and played it a couple of days after the Marius update and.... have not stopped since :) The game differs from other Paradox titles that I have played in that this is very much about empire-building and conquest of large amounts of territory is much easier and actively encouraged (in fact it has been proved that it is possible to conquer the entire map). However, this is not a wargame and there is plenty of empire management (trade, culture, finances, religion, government etc), to take your attention away from conflict. The key ingredient for me is definitely there: you are able to adopt vastly different strategies and have very different games as a result on subsequent playthroughs. The biggest downside in this case is that the game definitely feels a bit unfinished, there is definite focus on the Hellenic world, with most other regions not having much of its own flavour. However, there is still enough variety in the game as far as I am concerned to keep coming back to the game as soon as the previous campaign is done. It is a huge shame that Paradox have stopped the development in 2021 (yes, I would not mind buying more DLCs!), but I hope that new converts will persuade the company to come back to this rough, unpolished diamond. With 500+ hours already sunk into it I will keep hoping

I just bought the game in a bundle, and hadn't seen the rough start of it, just heard about it. So my review is based upon the actual, available version, with the new UI. I played with Rome and Carthage so far, and especially the latter playthrough was extremely enjoyable and fun. Previously I had played Victoria 1-2, Rome SPQR, Crusader Kinds 1-2 and EU3 from Paradox, and this title is equally great. Compared to other their games, I think Imperator Rome's mission system is very story-rich and drives the game. Also, the POPs (like in Victoria games) are detailed, realistic and provide ways of dealing with cultural or political issues. The military system is more advanced compared to Rome SPQR, just look at legion management. The music, the visals are also good. I cannot comment much on monuments yet, just built two for Carthage. There is still a lot to discover there. Besides the mission system, I think the political simulation and the various factions are nicely modelled. In terms of religion, I found it interesting to adopt new gods. The tech tree is just 4/5 from me, sometimes it's hard to find what I'm looking for, despite the textual filter. The military traditions are welcome additions, I like that you can mix them. Overall, I don't know how the game performed on release, but now, in this form, it's great.