Travian 4 Review
TRAVIAN Review
Publisher: Travian Games
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History was one of the more favored subjects during my educational experiences, and although Travian does take place in an imaginary world of the same name, a fair bit of historical insight is offered.
Created by German software company Travian Games, and originally only offered in German, the game has grown to great lengths in terms of popularity with millions of players and hundreds of servers all over the world. Combined with a required use of imagination and tactical expertise, players are given a fascinating experience in this Browser Real-Time Strategy game that features a variety of aspects for any player to enjoy in terms of not only RTS standards, but in terms of the vastness of the games world.
Travian offers a large, spacious world for players to explore, settle, develop and even conquer. There is a strong presence of community felt within the game, giving some added depth to the games intrigue and providing further enhancement of the games knowledge and techniques.
At the start of the game, players are given the choice of representing the Romans, Gauls or Teutons, and as this is the strongest historical aspect implemented in the game, it does precede a realism appeal. Each player is given the choice of starting on one of four sides of the Travian world, this can help if people are starting up together and also with the formations of alliances. Allegiances are quite a heavy aspect of the game-play, as they can help your level of success, or failure. The level of partnership and cooperation between players can be quite extensive, as resources can be shared and traded, and even troops can be sent to reinforce another players regime or village. As no player is fully capable of surviving alone, alliances become essential for all players, not only for resources, but for the strength in military and defensive operations. There is a lot of strategical and economical benefit to teaming up with other players, so it should not be overlooked by any player.
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Not only does the game offer a strong economic basis for players to divulge themselves into, there is an enduring political involvement within the game-play that creates further intrigue and distinction. The economic and socioeconomic aspects of the game does coincide the alliance factor, so adding some politics and foreign affairs heightens the overall prestige of Travian. The depth of this aspect broadens the overall stratagem and enticement of the game. There is a maximum of people allowed in an alliance, thus creating the need for further political development. Alliances can form up into coalitions or met-alliance as they are known in game, and even non-aggression pacts can be given and confederations can be formed. Much information can also be shared between members and amongst of an alliance, even as far as recounting military, economic or resource information. These are some of the benefits to this major fragment of the game. As the military itself is another major aspect within the game, there is a lot of variations that can be developed. Not only can one use their own resources, but they can send troops to steal resources from enemies or neutral parties with a raid feature. There are buildings that can attempt to counter the raiding, but the aspect still remains.
Another interesting aspect within the game is that of the Heroes. A the start, one Hero is given which is a character that represents the player in the game. There are a few options for the Hero to perform, one of which is the adventure option. Sending a Hero on an adventure can help gain items and recruit troops. When the hero is not on an adventure he can be helping to work at a high production rate for the villages benefit. Heroes can also build mansions later that can be used to occupy an oasis, which will help to increase the production of all resources.
It terms of the palpable layout and design of the games mechanics/engineering, there is some sense of reliance of the games automation, but again, there is much left for the player to imagine. At first it can be a bit tricky in terms of finding all the different information out that needs to be understood, but the game takes the players through several tasks as a form of a tutorial is given. Each of these tasks are quite simple, but they are essential to fully understanding the games vastness. This partial tutorial occurs during a players beginning stage within the game, where they are given a sort of protection for an allotted time length. All of these tasks throughout the game give rewards for completion, but furthermore it is the knowledge given that provides insight. In terms of insight, you are shown how to develop the land within your village, how to handle your resources, build and upgrade buildings, create a military and trade. All of which are important for any player to avoid being wiped out of Travian swiftly.
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There are a wide variety of buildings throughout the games world, each having their specific influence on the operations and advancement of a players village. Essentially the beginning has many limitations, but as the game presses on, research and development enhances the capabilities of building ones village. There is a main building, mimicking a town centre of sorts, with rally points, barracks and further along stables being built. These are only a few of the many buildings that are offered to each player. Each building has its specific purpose within the game, but each having certain requirements before construction can be completed.
Near the end of the game Non-Player-Characters (NPCs) are released throughout the game to try and increase the intensity and excitement of the game. The NPCs are fairly barbaric so there are best to be avoided as they can become military nuisances within the game. Sometimes though, avoiding them is not an option, and this is when an alliance can come in handy to help ward off the swarm. There are other aspects that have been implement that are common among RTS and other strategy games, one of which is a wonder option, which can give players a better chance of winning a game. The games held on servers are consistently running for a long time before a game comes to an end. They usually last around eleven months in total, which is a long time. Most of the game is done with real time building and movement, but there is an option to speed up that time as well as further economic and developmental benefits from an option of purchasing Gold within the game. Gold is one of the currencies within the game and it can offer players many benefits, from directly influencing game mechanics to the Travian Shop.
System Requirements:
Internet access, Web Browser
- Game-play: 8.5
- Characters: 5.0
- Story: 7.5
- Visual: 7.0
- Audio: 4.0
Overall: 8/ 10
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