After the surprising amount of realtime strategy (RTS) at the last LAN party, I'm spending some time boning up on some modern RTS games. For the most part, I find RTS games a pain. Becoming skilled generally requires a lot of experimentation and math, which is dull, or going to read a FAQ, which is cheating. It's basically the same reason I don't play fighting games much.
One that I played specifically because we didn't play it at the party was Rise of Legends. Rise of Nations is my favorite RTS, mostly because it has the best features for managing my empire. Being able to simply hit the tab key to cycle through all buildings with upgrades available lets me know I'm never neglecting anything. Rise of Legends isn't quite as simple, but it's got robots.
Age of Empires 3: Asian Dynasties is kind of the opposite of Rise of Nations, despite the fact that the same company developed both. Everything feels like it's in the wrong place. I can't garrison troops. I can't put a gate in my wall, so I have to just leave a gaping hole the enemy can run through. There's a card collecting and deck building component which seems really bizarre. Plus I have to split my attention in the crucial early stage of the game between establishing my economy and using my explorer units to grab treasures. I guess that's to encourage more recon, something many beginning (and sometimes intermediate) players neglect. But it felt like a hassle.
I think I've about petered out on Twilight Princess. I just finished the Sky Dungeon, and while I appreciate the design of the Twilight Dungeon, it's boring to play. I had the same problem with Ocarina of Time, quitting in Gannon's castle. I think Link to the Past and Wind Waker are the only Zelda's I found fun enough to finish.
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