Rise of Nations- Thrones - Patriots Expansion Pack Description:

Rise of Nations: Thrones & Patriots Expansion Pack review:
4 stars (Expansion value for kids) - Firstly, I have already reviewed Rise of Nations; it is excellent and the expansion pack makes it better. If you don't have either RON, or if $$ doesn't matter then go for Gold and get the best.



However, my situation is that I bought the expansion pack as an 'extra' for my children (who love RoN) and for them this expansion pack was NOT good value. Other expansion packs we have bought (notably age of empires and age of empires II) have added to the game play in significant 'game changing' ways.



The RoN expansion does have new nations and new unique units; as one reviewer says if you are a 'thinking man' these new subtleties are an interesting nut to crack. But if you are a 'thinking child' the differences are too subtle (or complex) to fully grasp. The senate is comprehensible; the distinctions between the different generals really isn't.



The biggest disapointment was the campaigns. In age of kings each new campaign had introduced my children to a piece of history with which they became fascinated. RoN does have a good campaign system which I raved about before. However the expansion pack is really just the same thing with the countries relabeled. There are a couple of new tweaks but nothing in the campaigns themselves to render them as immersive as the AOK versions.



All in all, the expansion pack makes a brilliant game better. But viewed as an expense almost equivalent to a new game, I cannot recommend this UNLESS you have a deep and thorough grasp of the underlying subtleties of the original version.
4 stars (Great game, the six campaigns need some work) - Ive played this game a lot over time and have found it to be a very fun game. Good battle graphics and realistic aspects to running your nation. However, the 6 newer campaigns have limited scenarios and are too simple. The normal campaign doesn't have enough regions to conquer. Despite these downsides, the campaign is still loads of fun, especially the new world and cold war campaigns. Another downside is the limited power of war elephants, who dont dominate the battlefield like they should. However, they are still a strong asset to your armies. Another upside of this expansion is the added resources. The original didnt have campaign map resources, but the expansion has doubled the variety.
1 stars (Chock full of bugs) - I absolutely loved the original "Rise of Nations". Fantastic RTS game. Also extremely stable; this will be important in a moment. I "upgraded" to this expansion after about 6 months of Rise of Nations. It immediately transformed my gaming experience from one of delight in a deep, complex, and endlessly replayable RTS game into one of unbridled frustration. The expansion causes the game to crash constantly and without warning (although I often get an amazingly helpful "Exception!" window afterwards). It crashes during loading. It crashes during saving. It crashes at the start of the game. It crashes 3 hours into a game. It crashes when 100 units are fighting. It crashes when a single peasant is walking. It will even, in something I've never seen before, crash in the middle of crashing. It is without doubt the least stable game or expansion I have ever played, and I've played Temple of Elemental Evil. I regret the day I bought this expansion because it has so colored my view of the game that I don't even like playing the original anymore because I half expect it to die with every move. The nominal benefits of the expansion (4 new nations, a few new campaigns, and tweaks to some old nations) are SLIGHTLY outweighed by the fact that you have no chance in hell of playing or finishing any of them. Avoid this expansion at all costs.