by P.L. Hubble

Created on: January 23, 2009   Last Updated: January 31, 2009

I found this an easy game to learn and play immediately. A very good tutorial will let anyone who can read get a quick start in this game.

First, there are many different buildings you can erect. Huts for the workers, scouting camps for the scouts, barracks for the soldiers, towers for defense, workshops for research, hunting camps for hunters, and archery ranges for archers are just a few of the constructions. I played the tutorial, so this was as far a I managed to get before the hour ran out.

The game begins by introducing the hero, a female tribal member. She explains what the goal is for the first island that your tribe will be on. You also begin with 3 workers, who are the backbone of your tribe. The first task is to build 3 huts in order to increase your population. Each hut can train 3 workers, if one dies, the hut will generate another to take it's place.

On each island there are certain goals you must complete in order to continue advancing through the story line. There are rune stones, or guideposts, scattered about the island to provide you hints and tips. I found these to be very useful. There are also gems scattered around the island which you can pick up and put in your tribal treasure chest. Each island also has some minor quests to complete involving other treasure chests.

I believe that there are literally thousands of islands to explore, keeping the game play exciting for many hours of fun. The graphics on this game were excellent, and a lot of detail could be seen. The sound wasn't lacking in quality either. This game scores high in creativity, even though at first glance it seems to be a Virtual Villagers clone.. I did think the story line was rather simplistic, but the rest of the game more than made up for it. Is it innovative? Certainly. Enkord used an old idea and completely reworked it into an exciting and unique challenge. Unlike Virtual Villagers, there is in-game help through the guide posts, leaving less room for the frustration that sometimes overwhelmed me in Virtual Villagers. I would give this game an overall rating of 4/5. I believe this is a game which is playable for ages 8-80.

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