BlueSmoke - Preview : Battle Realms

		Date	: Jul 30th, 2001
		Genre	: RTS
		Developer	: Liquid Entertainment
		Author	: Jin-Ning Tioh

Ever since the inventor of the real-time strategy genre Dune was released, many other games of the same genre have followed, among them the Command and Conquer series, Starcraft, Ground Control and any number of others. Although the games kept getting better and more refined, there have not been many innovations in the field. At this year's E3 however, a real-time strategy game made its debut - an RTS game that will truly shake up the gaming industry as well as taking the genre to a whole new level. We're talking about a game that was shown to select members of the media behind closed doors. That game, is Battle Realms, a real-time strategy game set in a story-driven fantasy world in the ancient Orient, filled with ninjas, samurai, geisha warriors and werewolves. Players play the role of Kenji, a prince of the fallen Serpent Empire. After being exiled for seven years, Kenji has returned to his land, only to find it being torn apart by the war between the untamed Wolf Clan as well as the sinister Lotus Clan. As players complete goals and achieve victory on the battlefield, they will unfold an intricate storyline filled with rich character development, honor and heroism. Will you work for the noble prince Kenji, or fulfill either the Wolf Clan or Lotus Clan's dreams of conquest? It is up to you to decide.

Founded by industry veterans and ex-Westwood employees Ed Del Castillo and Mike Grayford, Liquid Entertainment is currently developing Battle Realms. Ed was a producer at Westwood Studios for the original Command and Conquer as well as all the subsequent add-ons, including Red Alert. Mike on the other hand, was a programmer for Lands of Lore 2 and Blade Runner. A powerful combination, to say the least. "We wanted to create something truly different," says Ed Del Castillo, "We wanted to redefine the RTS genre. When someone plays Battle Realms, right from the start they will know this is nothing like anything they've played before." Hey, don't get us wrong folks, we've seen our share of groundbreaking titles, especially in the RTS genre, but I'm telling you, from what we've seen and heard, these guys really know what they're doing.

Each clan has over twelve unique units, although this could still change in the future. Units range from your basic Samurai troops, to that of your well-trained Zen Archers. The attacks and other moves executed by your troops are fascinating. Ninjas vanish in a puff of smoke, Monks can flip and do summersaults from insane heights, and Archers can shoot down a bird while blindfolded. Coupled with Liquid Entertainment's incredible artists, the end result is mind-blowing. But the developers didn't stop there. But these guy didn't stop there. Oh no. They just had to put in the extra effort. "In addition to making the units cool looking, we wanted to give them unique idle animations as well," says Ed Del Castillo, "and we wanted these idle animations for more than just show, we wanted them to effect the units in a specific way. For example, if a swordsman is just standing around waiting for an order, he'll start to sharpen his sword, this in turn will increase the amount of damage they inflict during battle." Talk about innovations. Ed continues, "when idle Geisha girls start dancing for the soldiers, all the soldiers watching the girls dance will get their hit points increased by a little bit, just because their happy watching the girls." As you can see, the level of unit development in Battle Realms will be like nothing that you've ever seen.

As if this wasn't enough, each unit in Battle Realms has its own distinctive combat AI. This means that each unit will react to a change in terrain, opposing forces or even distance. For example, the Mounted Samurai will first attack with their black powder rifles from a distance before drawing out their Katanas to close in for the kill. Archers will also move in closer to hit their target if they realize that they are too far away to fire effectively.

Players can now also take over another side's horses. If you manage to knock off a mounted horseman, that horse is now available for you to mount and use in your forces. If you tell a mounted samurai to go to a specific point and along the way his horse gets killed, your samurai will still continue to make his way to that point. Little nuances like this is what makes Battle Realms truly spectacular.

Heroes play an important role in Battle Realms. Besides having increased stats and skills, heroes are essential to increasing the effectiveness and skill of the forces under their command. If your troops see your hero consistently fighting and winning battles, then their power and abilities will increase as well. In another move, players will periodically come across magical items and weapons, which they can equip their heroes with.

Now comes the best part. Remember all those forests in other RTS games that you couldn't walk through? Well, now you can. In Battle Realms, forests can provide a serious tactical advantage to both you and your enemies, as whole armies could be taking cover in them. But, not to worry, all is not lost. The team has rigged up a sort of early warning system. If a unit were to run full tilt into the forest, his actions will startle the birds in the trees and make them fly away, which in turn will alert enemies to your presence. This just goes to show how thoroughly the team over at Liquid Entertainment has thought out the game. Hell, even the world is truly a living, vibrant land. Peasants will go about their daily chores of gathering food and chopping down trees while an old sensei will be smoking his pipe outside his dojo while warriors train inside. The amount of realism is remarkable.

But wait, a real-time strategy game wouldn't be complete without some form of resource management now, will it? The creators of Battle Realms have created the first living resource system. A living resource system is dependant on how a player manages his resources in Battle Realms, as this has a direct impact on their tactical decisions in the game. This system makes gameplay richer and much more challenging. For example, if a player uses peasants to grow rice, the town's economy will increase therefore more options for troop armament and technological advances will open up. Unfortunately, there is a price to be paid. The more peasants you have working in the fields and farming, the less units you have available to train into warriors. Players will also be able to store their resources in their respective villages. This opens up opportunities for enemies to invoke sabotage scenarios to cripple your economic stance.

Graphically speaking, the artists over at Liquid Entertainment have outdone themselves. Special effects, such as soldiers being spilt in half, or villages catching on fire, makes the playing experience that much more involving. In addition to the rising and falling of the sun, players are treated to several weather effects such as thunder, lightening, and fog - even the shading of the buildings and units change with the weather! The individual character animations are also top-notch. Even the animation in which a horse is killed in battle looks like the real thing. "We wanted the game to feel alive," explains Ed Del Castillo. They certainly did that and then some. If these indications are anything to pin our hopes on, then we can't wait for the game! It's definitely apparent that Liquid Entertainment has something extraordinary baking in the oven. Keep it up fellas!