PC Gamer Hands-On

[Gobalopper]

Davo sent me a scan of May's PC Gamer issue that has a "hands-on" report of Emperor. The writer got a chance to play one of the Houses, doesn't say which, for a few missions. Although this certainly isn't a review it is stilll an opinion of the game, check it out below:

While it's been in development for almost two years now, Emperor wasn't even a far-off blip on our radar until quite recently. I just had a chance to sit down and play through the first several missions of the single-player campaign. From a strict gameplay standpoint, Emperor is very much rooted in C&C - and more specifically, Red Alert 2. The primary difference, as far as I could tell, is that you'll be battling it out for different zones of control instead of following a set storyline. After each mission you'll be given a choice of moving into any adjacent enemy controlled zone each with a different mission objective. Reinforcements are sent from time to time if possible, and zones can be lost and won without disrupting the overall flow of the game, making it feel like you're engaged in a real war.

While I played only one of the three available houses, it was clear that the sides are quite varied in their unit types and style of attack. Also, because you'll have the option to pair up with two of the five sub-houses as you progress through the game, strategy runs deeper in Emperor than in most of Westwood's past efforts. The chance to play with a buddy through the single-player campaign - each of you taking control of a house - adds an extra dimension to the gameplay options. Needless to say, we're excited by the depth of possibilities in this fine-looking 3D RTS.

There is also an image, but it isn't the best quality.