2 Rome itself turned out not the same as the previous parts of the series. It has become much more complex , much more serious and beautiful order . Along with this project came damn raw. Numerous patches significantly corrected most of the problems Rome 2 , followed by a second “Rome” finally secured the title of the best strategy in 2013 . And now the game was finally the first major addition , called “Caesar in Gaul .”
Once Creative Assembly have tried to crank a similar trick . Then , during the time of the first ” Rome ” appeared addition, allowing repeat the path of Alexander the Great . That time came pretty mediocre , so from such ” historically accurate » DLC abandoned a long time – until ” Napoleon .” Now this concept back again to tell the story of the famous war of the great Julius Caesar – the most famous person in the history of ancient Rome and one of the most popular historical figures at all.
At first glance it looks quite compact campaign : it lasts only seven years and covers only the territory of most of Gaul , Britain and a small piece of the Roman province directly . Do not be deceived by volume , this campaign is not inferior to classical . Gallium presented in such detail that fits here as an impressive amount of large cities and towns , and crossing it from one end to the other will take more than a dozen moves.
With a time period all the more interesting. Each year is here as much as 24 moves . This means that the game is back seasons and all sorts of non-seasonal conditions . Is not entirely clear just why spring starts here in January , fall in July , and the winter in September. Be that as it may , all decorated really impressive . Seasons significantly affect gameplay . So hot, dry summer can seriously affect the harvest and early winter – seriously confused plans for an offensive. Generally winter here – a very unpleasant thing. Even short winter transition can turn a significant loss for the army . That’s why when cold weather to really like Caesar try to finish things quickly and put the army in winter quarters . Thanks to all this seasons really affect gameplay , and current policy.
Moreover, now all very nicely decorated . Global map , and without which looked just gorgeous , has become even more beautiful. Watch tiny Gaulish village and moving water mills can be very long . Above ground can be seen in the summer heat haze , winter can be a light snowfall and spring rains poured raging storm, and in the fall when all the yellow card in the forests are seen falling leaves . Looking at these charming scenery, it is not believed that this is a fairly hardcore and not particularly friendly to newcomers strategy . On the tactical map , incidentally, also reflected the seasons , although it is not so noticeable.

The basis for the campaign , obviously, became a seven-year campaign of Caesar in Gaul. It was he a key figure here , so the narrative and description of the technologies being away from his face . Clicking on a particular tribe city , we get comments commander about it. Interestingly, the addition simply replete with quotations from his ” Notes on the Gallic War ,” which apparently served as the main source of inspiration for developers. Since the text itself is very entertaining , it is recommended that in parallel with the passage of his campaign read. In this case, the already exciting campaign will be an order of magnitude brighter and clearer . Very interesting that the political situation in the game and side quests , no, no , and push us to the very decisions that Caesar himself and famous leaders of the barbarian tribes . Although, of course , to campaign just so no one makes . Freedom is rife.

In addition to the Rome and Caesar available here three barbarian factions. First, it is , of course, Arverni , led by Vercingetorix , which, recall , managed to unite almost all of Gaul to fight against Roman rule . Secondly, sveby – ferocious Germans, who came from across the Rhine into Gaul to expand their holdings in the west. And, finally, nerves – Belgium, which in the original game to take control was impossible. It’s kind of the Spartans against the barbarians , known for their ferocity and asceticism .
Playing for the local tribes is very different from that with which to face Roman. In the first case we will actively nasedat neighbors who do not want to share power with someone , and at some point in Rome send to storm our fortifications such force that just does not seem enough . If we decide to repeat the victorious campaign of Julius Caesar , here we await other hazards. Constant rejection of Roman culture induces galls literally attack from all sides, with extreme reluctance to go to any diplomatic relations and constantly try to capture or burn any village superior force . Generally Romans almost always fight in the minority, however, resistance training and legionnaires sometimes help to win even the most seemingly hopeless battle. For example, just a couple of cohorts of heavy infantry capable of holding the gates of a whole crowd of barbarians.
Toward the middle of the campaign diplomacy finally ends: begins full-scale war . Analogue civil wars here are widespread uprising barbarians. If regain control over the territories somewhere at the front would not be so difficult, the uprising in the rear of the commander can create a lot of problems . Moreover, at this point all remaining barbaric state forget old feuds and unite the Roman territory began attacking from all sides. Survive is pretty hard sometimes even goes so far that the same settlement for one stroke enemy stormed by 5-6 times. After a three-hour marathon of this feels about as the army itself , housed in a miserable city – broken and damn tired.

Generally , like the original game, “Caesar in Gaul ” absolutely not forgiving and makes us constantly keep in mind the huge number of variables. Slaves captured in two villages in a row? Get homebrew Spartacus in the heart of the province. Forgot to build the temple of Jupiter in the next wilderness ? The population will start to rebel after a couple of moves. Carried away by the accumulation of welfare ? Get food shortages . Hired additional army to protect the expanding borders? Welcome to the era of economic crisis. The game requires maximum concentration and attentiveness. That’s the Rome 2 , so do not be surprised if after a couple of evenings spent in Gaul , you will feel like a squeezed lemon .
On the other hand , a similar number of parameters allows you really feel like the ruler of the state, which depend on the decisions of all aspects of life : political, economic , cultural, military, religious … In other words , for all the complexity and intensity of the gameplay it is a real pleasure , and so captures that a few hours of continuous play pass completely unnoticed .

Among other features worth mentioning additions political system in which against you at least do not speak their own general , as happened with Caesar and his best legate Labienus . Branch of development here is also quite specific. With the help of political improvements can be , for example, call for help of Mark Antony and pay bribery of politicians in the Senate. DLC also added a decent amount of units as barbaric and Roman (including several types of auxiliary troops and mercenaries ) . Something added in the main campaign . For example, with the addition of the opportunity to lead the tribes boyev and Galatians . Also, ” Caesar in Gaul ” – a great opportunity to try out a joint campaign for two players. Due to the compact size will interact much more comfortable here than on the usual global map.

Icing on the cake , you can call the new historical battle – ” Battle of Alesia .” It can be safely name the culmination of all the Gallic campaign Caesar and his confrontation with Vercingetorix . Then commander besieged the city of Alesia , in which gal refuge with his army , but soon came to Arverne reinforcements in a huge number of sympathizers uprising barbarians. Caesar had to withstand the onslaught of the Gauls on both sides , and if they were able to replace the tired fighters Recently , the Romans into force imposing perimeter fortifications could depend on a small number of soldiers . On that day, the Roman army had a VERY hard. Just as hard , and you will have when you try to win this historic battle . There are a lot of enemies , and sometimes there is a feeling that the hordes of barbarians , coming from all sides, never run out . Oppose them will only have a wealth of experience of the Romans and the ability to quickly make the right tactical decisions .

“Caesar in Gaul ” – an exemplary addition to a great game. There is a new global map of the changing seasons , reliable historical campaign generals Julius Caesar and Vercingetorix and concomitant weight content like new units and factions. All fans of Total War, the history of ancient Rome , and indeed it is strongly recommended strategies .