Er det en serie undertegnede har brukt mye tid på så er det uten tvil The Settlers-serien og med to spill på tur - det ene til Nintendo DS og det andre til PC med tittelen The Settlers: Rise of an Empire, ja så er det mye godt å vente på. I dag har vi fått vite når sistnevnte vil bli lansert og datoen alle Settlers-fans skal merke av på kalenderen er 28. september.
Her er noen keynotes fra utvikleren selv:
* A very special Settlers atmosphere in a lively medieval game world!
* The primary objective of the game is to create large, lively medieval towns.
* The settlers interact with each other in a completely natural way and have wants and needs of their own.
* Female settlers appear for the first time in the series: Men and women fall in love with each other and marry.
* The lively, detailed game world is rich in animal and plant life.
* The settlers' busy life is presented in lovingly rendered animations that show what is going on in a transparent way.
* The world is divided into four climatic zones with changes of season and weather which influence expansion and resource gathering.
* The best Settlers game of all time, featuring the best from previous games and lots of gameplay innovations!
* The game's instant accessibility and gentle learning curve ensure long-lasting fun; even in advanced game missions, new features are introduced.
* All interventions by the player are reflected in the behaviour of his subjects and made transparent through the animations in the game world.
* Starting with a small settlement, the player builds up flourishing towns, maintains trade relations, and claims land and villages. This requires diplomatic skills.
* Mining, gathering resources, and food production result from wise planning and the various occupations of the settlers.
* Goods transport is optimized through skilful road planning.
* Upgrading buildings step-by-step improves the effectiveness of the economy and towns.
* By hiring travelling entertainers and organizing fairs, the player acts as a matchmaker by enabling male and female settlers to get to know each other.
* The player can build walls to protect his towns from enemy attacks. In military actions, the player must prove that he has built up his empire in such a way that it can defend itself effectively.
* Missions featuring noble knights with various skills accompany the player through the epic storyline penned by Jeff Grubb.
* Included in the game: dynamic single player campaign, freeplay mode with a multitude of maps, numerous multiplayer options via LAN and Internet, and a map editor.