The first campaign came to a
less-than-glorious ending. Imagine sharpened poles littering the landscape with
bodies impaled upon them. That was all that was left of the kingdom.
But there will be other days, other
campaigns to be fought and won or lost.
That is part of the charm of Evernight,
an on-line strategy game from VR1. Evernight is capable of playing of either a
Macintosh- or PC-based system, inside either Internet Explorer or Netscape
browsers. It is turn-based, with players having to make moves during a day, and
then all moves are actualized at night (early morning) as the game “ticks.” The
next day you will see what your moves have cost or gained you.
The actual game is sort of like Risk,
with the element of magic thrown in and some specialized rules pertaining to use
of magic, building and attacking.
Graphically the game is simplistic.
The game board is rendered as a flat, two-dimensional segmented map, with areas
of control represented by various colors. Fortresses and temples appear as
silhouetted structures against the map board. Should you cast a spell at the
temple, and conjure up a special ally (like a dragon) that is superimposed over
the structure.
Except for the cries of outrage and
self-mockery from game players, there is no sound. Controls are accessed through
buttons in sidebars along the game board. There is a tutorial for players not as
familiar with the special rules, but if you find the right level game, you can
jump in and go with little training.
So what is there to really recommend
the game? It’s the actual playing wherein lies the charm. A game doesn’t begin
until it is full. That means quite a number of other humans, all out to
accomplish the same thing – rule the world. How do you do that? Conquer
neighboring countries, gain treasure, build up your forces (lessers), employ
magic (but only after gaining enough fury), and form alliances of convenience
with neighbors. In an alliance, the idea is to gang up on the rest of the world
(you communicate through in-game e-mail), and then battle it out when your
alliance is all that’s left.
Of course the downside is that the
e-mail system is often overlooked, and you may form an alliance with someone,
who in turn has formed an alliance with several others, only to find yourself
under attack from the surrogate alliance members because they don’t know about
the alliance. Now, in all fairness, the alliance may have been communicated, but
since no actual terms were discussed with others, they were free to attack when
lulled into a position of false security.
The human element is definitely what
makes this program sing. There is intrigue, strategy, some backstabbing (though
not if a pact is in writing, a player can be severely ostracized for something
like that), and unexpected consequences. Miss a couple of ticks and you are in
deep trouble. (Ticks in the review game were at 2 a.m. Monday through Friday
mornings.) Commit yourself to a game, and you had better schedule 5-10 minutes
each weekday to make your moves. Some games can last more than a month, so be
prepared for some time commitment.
The game only allows one account per
player, so you can’t have more than one character in a game, though you can
compete in several different games simultaneously.
There is a cost for playing the game,
and you can download the software from the site. There are games for any skill
level.
Evernight is a solid strategy game. It
succeeds because of those playing it. Those involved, at least in the review
game, were intense, polite and helpful. No, they won’t give you a break, but
they will share information. No, Evernight won’t charm you with its graphics,
but it will worm its way into your brain.
Install: Easy.
This is a quick download from the
Internet site.
Gameplay: 7
It is turn-based strategy that is slow
because it ‘ticks’ once a night. However that gives you all day to think about
your moves. This is a cerebral exercise, not a game of quick reflexes.
Graphics: 6
Ok, they are not the best, but they do
provide the elements that propel the game along nicely. And the player interface
is nicely designed.
Sound: N/A
There is no sound in this game.
Difficulty: 8.5
The player interface and game rules are
not that tough to understand, it is the variety of skills brought by the other
players that make this challenging.
Concept: 7.5
This may seem like a simple game, but
only because it is well designed.
Multiplayer: 9.5
This is the strength of the game. Because
it is browser based, anyone with a connection to the Internet can play it.
Overall: 8
Evernight is exactly the kind of game the
pure strategist online game player will find enjoyable. The conquest is number
based, but it all comes down to alliances, territory gained and how you deploy
units. Sitting back and waiting for the enemy to attack is a poor strategy, but
then so is attacking without a plan.
