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Very, very few games achieve the sort of balance that Lords II does, and seldom is a computer AI in a strategy game really up to the task, but on all accounts Lords II is totally engrossing and achieves a very impressive balance between strategy and action battles are real-time, but start out paused, allowing each player to survey the battlefield prior to the battle for strategic locations and terrain. Despite the stiff competition offered by Westwood's Command & Conquer series and Blizzard's Warcraft line, Lords of the Realm II eclipses both and easily gets my nomination for strategy game of the year.
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The full version of this game is nothing short of awesome. Virtually everything is improved this time around: gameplay, graphics, siege and battle engines, audio and, well, everything. That's not the case in Sierra's sharp update to 1994's medieval strategy award-winner Lords of the Realm.
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Strategy games tend to focus on either micromanagement or massive battles, and no matter which one the game tends to focus on, the other almost always suffers.
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