DESCRIPTION

For generations, peace held sway over the mythical kingdom of Darien because of the strong and heroic leadership of the First Mage Emperor Garacaius who was responsible for the restoration and tranquility of this chaotic world. He divided the kingdom equally between his four children, two sons and two daughters, and ensured continuity by bestowing a sacred relic of great power and immortality on each. Unfortunately, Garacaius disappeared under mysterious circumstances and now, several hundred years later, peace is grinding to a halt as his offspring bicker and fight among themselves for control of Darien.

In Total Annihilation: Kingdoms, four equal but dramatically diverse factions vie for supremacy as they strive to conquer the Land of Darien through the use of magic, armed aggression and real-time strategy. The elementally-based protagonists include the lands of Aramon (earth), Veruna (water), Zhon (air) and Taros (fire). The two forces representing good, earth and water, are aligned against the evil forces of fire and air.

Total Annihilation: Kingdoms includes both single-and multi-player maps and missions. The game features an innovative single-player campaign approach in which the player actually changes allegiance and experiences gameplay as all four civilizations during the 48 missions. Multi-player action is free at the Cavedog Entertainment Boneyard Internet site. Periodically, the designers will offer free downloads of new units at the site as well.

The game ships with Cartographer, a map, mission and scripting editor, for fans eager to expand gameplay by devising and creating new missions and scenarios. The world of Darien is vast and consists of many varied 3D environments such as swamps, forests and hills to name just a few. Resource management in Total Annihilation: Kingdoms centers on the commodities of time and mana. As a real-time strategy game, both elements come into play and affect results of conjuring new units from the more than 100 available.

The interface is almost entirely mouse driven with some keyboard shortcuts available. Gameplay includes features such as fog of war, where units can only "see" units and structures within their line of sight, darkened maps that are revealed slowly as units explore territories and battle maps shown in overhead 3D perspective. Other game components include a system of unit advancement that relies on experience, divergent units postured with offensive, defensive or passive proclivities, dynamic mana generation and a large contingent of more than 50 monsters and non-playing characters. ~ Michael L. House, All Game Guide