Oriental Empires is a fantastic option for seasoned RTS fans that are looking for something new and a little different. While this might not appeal to those that are either not excited about Asian culture or those not as familiar with strategy games due to the confusing menus and somewhat unclear “hints”, this certainly has its place in an RTS fans library especially at virtually half the price of other games of a similar nature.

Oriental Empires shall surely frustrate some players, though that really boils down to his or her shortcomings, not the any of the title. You shouldn’t be upset about historical accuracy: plagues happened, bandits are terrible, and — who would have thought — peasants hate building things for their oppressive overlords because they’d rather be with their families. Sitting down and learning how to be a sovereign to the people and not just field marshal to armies will open players up to a superb experience in the genre. The foundations of other efforts in the genre may show, but ultimately, Oriental Empires builds upon them anew, just like real life.

Oriental Empires is a very well made strategy game that allows you to get through a campaign in a few hours instead of having saves that span days, though that is an option as well if you wish. Despite its smaller scope focusing on Ancient China instead of the globe, the stakes actually feel higher due to the limited resources and high number of factions fighting for them. While some of the systems require a lot of getting used to Oriental Empires is well worth persevering with.

Oriental Empires is a solid, detailed first effort from Shining Pixel Studios that fans of the 4X strategy genre will enjoy. Unfortunately, newcomers and veterans alike might be disappointed by the unwieldy UI, unpredictable systems and lack of in-game tutorials or explanations.

The game does have strengths. The visuals are quite pleasing. The historical elements are interesting and the overall setting is quite refreshing. There’s a lot of depth here for people willing to put in the work to understand the controls and the dynamics. Hero units can help inspire your troops and if they die their heir can take up their cause (at a slight cost to status quo). For the casual gamer I would probably give it a miss though as it’s not interested in holding your hand while you find your feet.

Oriental Empires combines the ideas from Civilization, Europa Universalis and Total War, making a very interesting game based on Chinese history. Unfortunately, its balance is not great, but the game definitely has some potential.

A solid 4X strategy for fans of Chinese history, which, despite the decent craftsmanship, sometimes its mechanics and content stay behind the competition. However, the poor combat system is what drags the game down – and you can´t avoid it.