Ikariam review
Ikariam is a very cool MMO browser strategy game with beautifull graphics. The game is set in a world trying to resemble classical Greece, with players starting as leaders of a small town which they must lead and expand. The game is developed and run by Gameforge AG, and it uses the same business model as most browser based strategy games. In Ikariam you can buy extra features for the game using something called ambrosia which you have to again buy for real money.
What I really enjoy with Ikariam, apart from the beautifull graphics, is the way the world is set up with lots of islands. Most browser strategy games only uses ground units, but in Ikariam you have a whole set of naval units in addition to the standard combat units. I also enjoy the way battle in Ikariam goes over several rounds instead of just being finished in an instant showing the result in a battle report. Big battles can go over several overs, with lots of players bringing in reinforcements on each side.
Another good thing for casual players in Ikariam is that farming isn’t as heavy as in most games of this type. You can attack other players, but the number of ships that you have severly limits how many resources you can steal. There is also something called the bashing rule stating how many times you can attack a neighbour within a given time frame. Overall Ikariam is one of the best massive multiplayer online browser games in my opinion, and you should definitly check it out.
Comments
One Comment on Ikariam review
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Eigir on
Wed, 7th Apr 2010 8:11 am
Just a warning to those who are curious on this game: Do NEVER ever spend real money on it, unless you spend time to make sure you know every little intricate detail of the game rules.
My story will tell you why:
A group of 5 people at work decided to play the game “Ikariam” (also from Gameforge) together and we formed an alliance. During a lunch break, we figured out that we should help one of our colleague by sending him some materials. And so we did. All of us.
Some days later, 3 of us got permanently banned from the game because we had co-operated while sitting on the same network (behind the same firewall). According to the game rules, this is illegal. If we had done the exact same thing, but from our home-networks, it would had been legal, according to the rules Gameforge had created. Everyone reading the License Agreements on all applications and games they play, please raise your hands now.
Getting banned is one thing. We also lost a lot of money. Gameforge do not reimburse the money we had left on our account when they decided to ban us. This make me question their ethical values…
So 3 out of 5 was banned. What happened to the other 2? They did the exact same thing from the same network, why didn’t they get banned? I don’t know, but they have not heard a thing from Gameforge.
And the dumbest thing, according to the “support” people: We can create new accounts and then spend more money on those… yeah right. :-/
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