Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs is the new expansion pack for the best-selling real-time strategy RTS title of 2005, Age of Empires III from Ensemble Studios and Microsoft Game Studios. Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs will engage gamers of all ages and types in epic warfare in the Americas where they will lead the proud, playable native civilizations to expand their empire and fight for control of the Americas. Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs is the latest installment in the award-winning Age of Empires franchise and continues Ensemble’s stellar track record of delivering innovative RTS games experiences. Features:Playable Native American civilizations. Lead one of three proud Native American civilizations, including the Iroquois Confederacy and the Sioux Nation, to expand their empires and fight for control of the Americas. Each Native American civilization will have its own unique units, led by the powerful WarChief unit, buildings reflecting each culture’s architectural style, and a distinct approach to their Home City feature.Gripping new single-player campaign. Age of Empires: The WarChiefs will introduce a new single-player campaign that continues the saga from Age of Empires III. Play through 15 new missions with a rich story and a cast of characters that interact with real historic figures and events.Enhancements to European civilizations. The expansion pack will also provide exciting additions to existing European civilizations, with new Home City content, new units including new mercenaries, and new ways to look at your card deck.Extended gameplay. Gamers will experience more of everything, including new random maps in unique locations in the Americas not featured in the original Age of Empires III, additional native allies and units, more statistics tracking, and new ways to play.FeatureProduct FeaturesTechnical detailsPlatformPC Media types supportedCD Compatible operating systemsMicrosoft Windows XP GenreReal Time Strategy DeveloperMic

In a nutshell:
The most popular historical real-time strategy around gets another update, as you’re put in control of the natives rather than the colonials in an attempt to fight back against the conquest of America.

The lowdown:
One of the few major complaints levelled at the original Age of Empires III was the odd way that Native Americans were handled in the game, where they played only a minor supporting role. Apparently they were saving themselves for this expansion pack, which includes three different tribes: Iroquois, Sioux and Aztec. Each has a very different set of units and buildings, both compared to the European factions and each other. The expansion also includes new hero units for everyone, new minor tribes (for a total of 16) and a new victory condition called Trade Monopoly where you have to take control of your opponent’s trading posts.

Most exciting moment:
The most unusual of the three new factions are the plains dwelling Sioux, who are master horsemen and do not need to build houses in order to create more troops. This makes them a highly unpredictable enemy and perfect for hit and run attacks.

Since you ask:
One of the most interesting new features for the European faction is to call for a revolution. This stops all your production for the rest of the game but instantly upgrades all your military units and turns all your civilians into soldiers. It’s a big risk but often the only way out of a tight spot.

The bottom line: A solid expansion to one of last year’s best strategy games.-HARRISON DENT