I bought the PC game Empire Total War. This game is much like the other games in the series. Gameplay is satisfyingly sophisticated, and yet not overly complicated. Combat including the all new 3D naval warfare element is clearly the main focus, but a surprising amount of progress can be made by employing less violent tactics such as diplomacy, trade and technological achievement. Gamers have the ability to lead one of the main powers of Europe through the entire 18th Century and leaders of all nations have to consider the ramifications of both war and peaceful decisions. Infrastructure and government as well as alliances and expansion all have to be balanced with technological progress to ensure a balanced and effective expansion across the globe. Gameplay is very similar to Empire's more recent predecessors. Some of the mechanics have been tweaked others changed but the only two major changes are the addition of sea battles and research.
Battles on the high seas with fleets of ships offers a whole new gameplay experience. Ships play very differently from land units, they have to be manoeuvred with the wind in mind, they fire massive broadsides at right angles to their direction of movement. Battles usually determine how regions are won and lost, but diplomatic relations, economic strangleholds, assassinations, and many other subtleties must be tweaked and considered at each turn, and they have noticeable impact as the years progress. If this sounds overwhelming, or if you're an american history buff, you'll want to check out the Road to Independence campaign before jumping into the grand one.
Unit control is similar enough to that used in the land battles that you don't have to learn a whole new system but with enough differences to present its own challenges. Which is we'll be honest a way of saying that we weren't very good at them but had fun anyway. Unit morale is still a factor in naval battles, however as ships may surrender if too many casualties are taken or may try to flee the action if they catch fire. Theoretically fleet engagements are relatively simple affairs. Unit costs have changed for both multiplayer and single player.
Players can send up to twenty ships into battle against an opposing navy. You're given an impressive amount of control over individual ships in addition to managing their speed and angle of approach you can also manually fire the ship's port and starboard cannons and select from three different types of ammunition. Players vie for a place at the top of the rankings and join leagues and ladders for even more gameplay challenges. Players must consider friendly fire and cover positions as they orchestrate their symphonies of destruction. By decentralizing cities the game thankfully avoids becoming a repetitive siege sim like in Medieval and Rome.