Freeverse Software is well known to Mac gamers as a publisher of original Mac games , but at a time when many biz publishers are cutting back their efforts to port PC games to the Macintosh , Freeverse has stepped up to the plate . Its first endeavor is a conversion of Slitherine’sLegion Arena , a real - time strategy game that puts you in mastery of armies during the time of the Roman Empire .
If you ’re a fan of History Channel do about ancient Romans and how they battled to forge the greatest imperium of their day , you ’ll find yourself instantly immersed in this game . Legion Arena puts you alternately in command of Roman and Gaelic legions , staging conflict , command from the study , and better your host — both in terminal figure of recruiting new soldiers , equip the ones you have and training them .
basically you ’re go your path up the social status , starting as a commander of a few squad of men and cavalry , but nothing else . hurl into the political intrigues of ancient Rome that unfold through a series of interstitial motion picture that are narrated by a voice worthy ofI , Claudius , you gradually gain magnate and influence as you and your men face ever - large enemies .
On the battlefield , each of your squad take in experience as they fight back . This experience locomote toward pull in them better soldiers and can be parlay between battles to add young skill . For good example , reserves can get a line duck and parrying techniques , javelin throwers can become marksmen , and so on .
Your superiors honor you withdenarii(money ) and fame upon successful mop up of a battle . you’re able to sell some of your fame down to replenish your troops when they suffer casualties on the field of honor . And you may spend your money on more troops or better equipment for the one that you already have — such as flush , helmets , good weapon system , and so on . All these add to your soldier ’ acquirement on the battlefield .
The game has an incredibly simple full point - and - clack interface ; it takes only a few minutes to learn enough of the basics so that you ’ll be off and running . ( A prompt tutorial will help oneself you bet through the basics . ) Everything is controlled from the screen except for tv camera drive , which are handled with the black eye — if you have one with a scrollwheel , you could zoom in and out of the action , or use the keyboard if you do n’t .
Once you ’ve outfitted your soldier ( you’re able to even customize the look of their uniforms — a surprisingly handy feature film that helps you severalize New recruit from veteran oldtimer in the warmth of battle ) , you fight . To that end , you ’re move to the Deployment Screen , where you could actually position your units on the field of battle and give them orders — commission , rise , apply for a short sentence , or go around your opponents .
You ’ll need to give nigh care to the terrain and your opposition during these time — boggy primer will slow down your men down dramatically , for representative , while wooded areas may aid mask reserves who can then burst forth and surprise the enemy . Over clock time , as you and your man build skills , you ’ll unlock new formations and novel type of unit — heavy foot , elephants and much more .
Once you ’re done deploying , you tap the Fight button and see the struggle unfold . Depending on how well you ’ve set up up your troops and how well - trained they are , it ’s potential to be completely passive and just watch the battle play out . But it ’s better to remain a hands - on leader , commanding your units hither and yon , send resources where they ’re needed . For exercise , if your skirmisher have already sent their foes in high retreat , you may tell them to fall back and regain — or you may send them to the attention of your reserves , which is still in the heat of conflict .
Graphics are satisfactory , though I did comment some really curious OpenGL - related texturing weirdness when it come to objective like rivers . ( As I wrote this review , Freeverse tell me it ’s a bug in the PC code that the ship’s company was waiting for the original developer to fix . ) Music and sound upshot help set the step — the score is appropriately cinematic and triumphant , and the battlefield profound result are chock full of men screaming and battling .
Multiplayer capability are handled through Freeverse ’s own Gamesmith on-line game matching service , which is kind of wonky — you’re presented with different chat rooms filled with players for dissimilar games , as opposed to being shuttle somewhere specifically for Legion Arena . you’re able to also host your own games on your Local Area connection ( LAN ) if you need .
Freeverse has n’t had the Mac edition of Legion Arena rated by the ESRB , but the PC version scored an MB rating . It ’s tearing , but more than that , after you unlock the Celts there are “ Naked fiend ” that scare opposing teams with their….well , you know . It ’s not vulgar or obscene ; in fact , it ’s historically accurate , more or less , but it ’s enough for the M seal .
Legion Arena ships as a Universal Binary , by the way , so it ’s good to go on Intel - based Macs . A playable demonstration translation of the game is useable for download fromFreeverse ’s connection situation , so if you ’d wish to give up the tires before place down your money , give Legion Arena a guessing . It measures a hefty 227 MiB , so verify to have a immobile connection — or a lot of longanimity .
The bottom line
Just the thing for armchair general , Legion Arena brings you back to the gloriole days of the Roman Empire for a good old - fashioned bloodshed .
This story was updated at 9:40 a.m. on July 26 , 2006 , to admit information about Legion Arena ’s gratuitous demo .
