DomiNations - A Review

You would think (well, I did) that in-depth real-time strategy games like the Civilization franchise would only ever work on the PC. DomiNations shows this to be far from the case.  I was delighted to see a game following in Civilization’s gigantic footprints had been released and was available on my Android device. A little dubious, but delighted.

    DomiNations starts off in the Stone-Age. You start with primitive troops, primitive buildings and primitive resources. Starting with a few houses (to house your builders, of course), you are tasked in bringing resources in to your settlement in order to build it and, in turn, upgrade your town hall, catapulting you right in to the next era. DomiNations resources can be gathered in a variety of ways, the primary three being:

Hunting: Various wildlife frequently wanders in to your settlement. Bunnies, foxes, stags and boar can be hunted for resources, often dropping fur, food and bizarrely, gold.

Mining and Farming: Gold can be earned by mining (additional mines can be bought to speed things up) and food by picking fruit from trees (again, fruit trees can be purchased using gold from the store).

Fighting: You can use troops and units that you train in the barracks to launch attacks on other player’s settlements or in the lengthy campaign mode.

As you fight, mine, farm and hunt your way to a full food store and have gold coffers busting at the seems, you will be presented with an option to upgrade your town hall and take your empire to the next civilization.

  Another great thing about DomiNations is the fact that you can choose which nation you wish to lead to victory. The choices are some of the greatest nations in human history and are as follows:

The British: Choosing to lead the British will result in gaining more loot from enemy camps and in having a better attack when invading enemy bases (the longbow- units make sure of this). However, they have a weaker defense when being attacked.

The Chinese: The Chinese are the most balanced of the nations and gain you an extra civilian. Perfect for a player that wants a nation that has a bit of everything.

The Germans:  A bit of a strategist? This is the nation for you. Quicker Rally speeds the rally timer up while Rally Speed speeds up your troops movement speed.

The Romans: The Romans are the nation for you if you like to fight in numbers. Their strength is recruitment, but also their weakness as more soldiers equals more resources.

The Japanese: The Japanese are often talked about as DomiNations’ best nation as their sheer strength and rock-solid defense make them formidable opponents.

The French: The French are the nation to chose if you wish to build your armies up quickly. Their unique unit -the Chevalier- has true potential to dominate (no pun intended) enemies if used properly.

The Greeks: Thanks to their amazing economy, the Greeks have the ability to build bases much quicker than all other nations. The best nation if you want a big base, quick.

I would highly recommend DomiNations to any fan of RTS games, especially Civilization as this game mirrors it in many ways. Be prepared for lenthy waiting periods as your resources are replenished or buildings are built as these can take some time. Have fun, and happy gaming.