Developed by Oxide Games and brought to you by Xbox Game Studios, ‘Ara: History Untold’ is probably my first dive into controlling miniature people and towns since probably The Sims. Not being a specialist in games in the likes of ‘Age Of Empires’ or the ‘Civilisation’ franchises, I was scared, but Oxide Games have made a game very accessible and seriously addicting for newcomers to the genre.

The narrative is catered to how you want to play out and evolve through time your way whether it be peacefully or tyrantically dominating the lands. Playing through 3 acts, you progress and develop through technological advancements and history. Is it a unique concept? Not really, given it’s a resource-managing and strategy game. Do I still think the concept is cool? Of course. Carving your way through history has never been more interesting, and treating the nations around you as friends or foes has never been more rewarding.

The gameplay in this title is immense. There is so much to learn and so much to do. The Singleplayer Campaign opens up with you deciding which country and ruler through history you would like to be. These come in a range of political celebrities and world leaders through history and eras, From Xerxes to George Washington, and Catherine the Great to Joan of Arc; there are a lot of hard ballers, each with their own game-changing stats. It will then pit you against 5 other factions who will be your enemies, or allies if you play your cards right, with each act eliminating nations that haven’t advanced enough to progress.

How might you play your cards right? Well that all comes down to strategy once you dive into the map, and this is when the real ‘Game Of Thrones’ begins. Typical of any other Real Time Strategy city building game, you are given your basic beginnings on your little plot of land at the start. The twist is that this is not an RTS but a TBS. Yes, that is right, you must develop your civilisation over a distinct Turn-Based Strategy system, stacking improvements in areas in your section of the map, with some resources and buildings taking many turns to develop or build. Even moving legions of troops can take a few turns, and this can be hard when an enemy is deep in your territory, meaning you may have to manage your time and resources to fund projects and synchronise battles.

These might initially be building hunting camps, farmlands or even logging mills. You can expand your territory and claim more land with other resource nodes as your city gains improvements, earning it a rating and adding to the prestige of your leader. You can also focus on a range of improvements that increase in technological advancements through stages in history, starting with basic stone tools of the Neolithic period, all the way up to robotic mechs and hovering vehicles in a Technological Singularity era, somewhat reminiscent of my favourite sci-fi, ‘The Fifth Element’. If you make milestones through history you can even build monuments, called Triumphs, such as ‘The Effiel Tower’ or ‘The Acropolis,’ increasing your flexing prestige and buffing your nation with things such as knowledge, production, and strength, etc.

Much like most civilisation-building games, there is a tactical side to it too. You will, at times, be invaded or need to smoose with other nations to form allyships. Will you sacrifice precious resources with them to become friends, or will you raise a mighty army and charge in? History is up to you.

The graphics are a little hit-and-miss. The top-down landscapes are decent, especially when it is filled with different structures, and each minute piece of terrain has its purpose. The environments that don’t have anything on them could have been more detailed though, with deep woodlands/jungle biomes, cascading rivers, and even traversable mountain peaks. It is just a little barren at times. The cutscene characters, looking great in their distinct cultural attire, look very dead in the face and eyes, leaving a very muppet-like appearance.

The music is very orchestral and well-produced, which is soothing as you ponder through what feels like millions of menus, drop-downs, and tabs, and the sound effects of battle, such as trebuchets flinging boulders and arrows whistling through the sky, are a nice touch. I do find, though, more often than not, I didn’t zoom in enough to notice them, or I’d whizz away from the action to manage another town. Unless I’d arrived at a standstill point where I had no room to build, or I had built everything needed. At this point, the game does slow down to a standstill until you can reclaim some more land.

With Multiplayer to boot, where friends can join via a friend code, even on Xbox, ‘Ara: History Untold’ was a very polished and pleasant surprise. I found myself turning minutes into hours easily as I threw my feet into Sennacherib’s, the Assyrian leader’s sandals and maniacally conquered all the lands. Yes, I am that type of leader. This is one fabulous dive into the history you created and perhaps even destroyed…

Written by: Stacey