Pretty much Kalypso Media and Haemimont Games make titles that look like they'll be a ton of fun, but then they turn out to be utter crap. The tradition started, for me, with Tropico 3, continued with Legends of Pegasus and Tropico 4, and still stays alive with Omerta. I've given up on buying anything else from these publishers.
The game Empire Earth came out after games like Age of Empires made building empires from primitive beginnings to a more glorious age was fashionable. The scope of the game is massive, including at least 20 ages (or I think the game called them Epochs) ranging from the Stone Age to a futuristic Nano Age. All along the way you gather resources, build units, enlist heroes, build wonders, and advance your way through time. However, the game was just tedious to play. While the scope of the game was great, the AI was just too determined to hang in the game. If there was enough money for 1 town center, they'd build it and rebuild. No matter how many units you send scouring a map, it's incredibly difficult to eliminate a computer from the game. While I enjoyed the game for the most part, the game just ended up being lackluster for me. If you like RTS games that can take as long as TBS games, then Empire Earth is the game for you!
I got the original (non-deluxe) version of the game in 1996 and when I played it, I didn't know what the hell was going on. 17 years later, I'm more mature and now that I've played it again, I still don't know what the hell is going on. ^_^ But it's still a fun game and I love every minute of it!
