Europa Universalis: Rome vs Ultima Online
Europa Universalis: Rome
Europa Universalis: Rome brings players back to the ancient ages where Roman, Celtic, Greek, Egyptian and six other civilizations reigned dominant across the game's 53 different factions. Set in between the years 280 B.C. and 27 B.C, you'll get to not only rule but also guide the growth of your very own nation from being a fledgling into a country that the world will need to reckon with (if there are any nations left that you have yet to conquer or brought under your rule). The game retained much of what made the Europa Universalis franchise such as a success, including beautifully deisgned 3D topological maps, historically-accurate figure and events, as well as an insanely in-depth political landscape where you can forge an alliance as easily as you break one.There are also plenty of exciting changes and new features in this installment though. The important characters in the governance of your nation, for example, will develop new traits on their own through their interactions with other people in the game, much like how a human would, giving the game more of a challenge due to all the unpredictability. The military AI used here has been completely revised as well. In addition to the usual 32-player co-op, you can now play competitively against other players... up to 32 of them!
Europa Universalis: Rome is a decade old and as such, you may need to tap into some of the mods made by the game's community to help bring the game to a new level. That said, it's still a really good buy at the current discounted price and if you're a fan of grand strategy games, you should definitely get this one.
Ultima Online
Ultima Online is one of the most legendary MMORPGs of all time. In fact, if you were to trace the entire MMORPG genre back to a single game, then you’d probably end up at Ultima Online. Being one of the longest running MMOs has its fair share of perks - a ton of updates to keep the gameplay fresh as well as a solid and loyal player base, and of course, downsides... there is only so much of the game they can update and graphics is, unfortunately, not one of them. That's actually great in some way since the game still retains its classic looks and charm.Ultima Online is a massive game and as you might expect, you can spend years in the game and still be pleasantly surprised to discover new parts of the game that you may not have known before. Aside from exploring the land, you can even set sail on your very own ship and make your mark at the seas as well. Character building is equally as impressive here mainly because you are free to mix and match over 50 different skills to come up with a build you feel comfortable with. However, if you're looking for a casual PvP experience, you won't find it here since your stuff can be looted by your opponent if you were defeated in combat.
As amazing as it is, Ultima Online is not a free-to-play game. That said, the game does offer a 14-day trial for players who would like to try the game out and who knows? You might just end up paying for the game for the sake of being able to fully experience the "founder" of modern-day MMOs.