Chronicling the exploits of Phillip of Macedon (Philip the second) is no easy feat.  His multiple marriages, military campaigns and cunning use of social warfare are sources of legend.  Along with those historical bits of fame, Philip was also the father of Alexander the Great.  With that being said, Longbow Games from Toronto, Ontario, Canada have done an exemplary job of recreating the fantastic military campaigns of Philip of Macedon.  The span of the game covers the conquering of Greece and the defeat of the Persian invaders.   This RTS is unquestionably well put together, very long, and incredibly fun.

Facets of Hegemony have made game play interesting, more so than other RTS games I have played.  I am a big fan of the Total War series but I am not a big fan of load screens when I want to wage a battle.  Hegemony takes care of this gracefully.  Instead of loading when a battle takes place, you are able to scroll down from an overall map directly into a battle that is being waged.  This feature is a highlight for me because it allows easy movement from multiple battles I might be waging, as well as seeing potential changes in the situation based upon terrain and proximity to other resources.  I can siege a walled town, have a naval battle with an invading Athenian Trireme, and capture farmland for a potential future move, all easily done with the scrolling feature, and done simultaneously!  The game can also be interrupted with the standard pause feature, which you can set to automatically happen upon food outage, enemy sightings, or being attacked.  Now that feature sounds great, but I have found it at times to be a bit tedious, especially when I siege a walled city and enemy troops file out to try to rout my armies.  Setting supply lines is also a large part of the game.  Trying to make sure you have enough food going to the front, all the while making sure mines have supplies and your Villas that house generals have supplies is quite challenging.  Cities can only have so many supply lines based upon the markets in a city or the presence of a maritime dock.

I enjoyed some of the other tactical options in Hegemony as well.  Drafting soldiers or workers is based upon the amount of Macedonians available at any time, as well as availability of income.  An important note about excess gold income is that it does NOT accumulate, which makes plotting a bit more tactical especially when an attacked city is not paying taxes and a loss of income means wages are not paid, thus lowering morale.   When the number of Macedonians conscripted is at its maximum that is it! The only other option is to hire mercenaries, which also have a maximum.  The main difference between the two is that Macedonian soldiers can level with experience, while mercenaries cannot.  This is an incredible asset late in the game when mercenaries are much more easily routed than Macedonians.  However when a unit is routed they return to their home city, or in the case of a general their Villa.  One thing stops this though: getting caught during escape.  When a unit is caught during escape units are captured, thus turned into slaves, or executed.  I have noticed that slaves are invaluable; they work mines, carry food, basically anything a conscripted worker will do but without being paid.  Another benefit is that the unit they were from is lost, thus causing attrition to the enemy, or yourself if that is the case.  Another tactical bit I enjoy is the importance of season.  Starting a campaign at the seasonal opportune time is essential.  Sometimes it is better to hole up in a fortress that guards a city as the enemy fruitlessly crushes itself on the walls. Essentially the tactics are well thought out, from supply line breaks, to mountain blockades, sieges, or morale factors, Hegemony has some of the best tactical simulation I have seen.

One of the few things that doesn’t directly relate to the game play that should be noted is the lack of DRM.  Longbow Games has not installed any DRM in this game.  I find this refreshing in a company.  The price point is very reasonable, $29.99, on their website www.longbowgames.com.  Their support is very approachable; many of the forum posts I have seen were answered by the lead designer. Finally I want to point out the in game historical reference guide is available, which I found quite helpful.

I could continue on for quite awhile about the assets of Hegemony, but I am going to instead sum it all up.  Buy Hegemony: Philip of Macedon.  This game is worth it.

	System:	PC
	Genre:	Real-Time Strategy
	Experience:	Finished the game

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites