New Stuff

While the focus on the Colonial era, the inclusion of the Home City, and the new graphics engine are the most glaring additions, there are other new features that are worth talking about.

There are random treasures scattered throughout the map, all of which are guarded by a neutral enemy such as a grizzly bear, a band of pirates, a pack of wolves, and so on. You need to take them out to uncover the treasure, which could be something simple like a bag of gold or some wood but might be something much more powerful, even free units.

Trade Routes are also a cool feature which, while not as exciting as building a crack army, is no less important. The routes are permanent features on the map and when you build a trading post on a trade route, your nation generates a steady stream of experience points. These trade routes may be upgraded as you progress to later ages and will turn into stagecoaches and even trains. The benefit, aside from the experience points, is that you generate resources at a much faster rate.

The game is coming along extremely well, and even this limited Alpha is an absolute blast to play. Microsoft plans to release it on November 1st, which is going to make for a very long September and October for strategy fans.