The Ultimate Strategy Game on Land on sea and Online! (Settlers III Quest of the Amazons (PC))

Member Name: 150983

Product:	Settlers III Quest of the Amazons (PC)
Date:	22/07/01 (150 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: game, addictive

Disadvantages: too addictive

Introduction
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Settlers 3 is the third instalment of the popular strategy game from Bluesoft. It has sold well over a million copies now and it is clear to see why as I will explain. Like the other Settlers games, Settlers 3 is a strategy game where basically you play God. You control a tribe that is coded by colour and you control what they do in the game. The idea is to grow by populating and spreading out by gaining land, thriving by building an industry and economy and also conquer the opposing teams.

Where Do I Start?
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Well if you are new to this game, I would advise you to take the tutorial. In the tutorial, it will teach you how to do what is needed in terms of the basics such as the woodcutters house and also food supplies and how each person in the game is managed etc. The tutorial gives you a step by step guide of what to do and is very helpful to help you get started. I would advise this for first timers!

What’s Next?
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Well the worlds your oyster! Well not really, just the land that they give you is yours for the taking as long as the enemy doesn’t get there first. The first level of the game is fairly easy and as each level progresses, it gets harder so be warned!

The Contents
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The game has a story line, which basically is this, there are three gods, the high god is dissatisfied with the three gods and orders them to build a new economy but really only one god will be triumphant! The god therefore set out to complete the task they first must decided which person of their tribe is best suited to take the role of leader to govern the people in the one last chance they have to ‘straighten up’. The three tribes are categorised by three different races, they being the Romans, the Egyptians and the Asians. Each of these races or ‘campaigns’ are categorised by a colours and each have different cha
racteristics and skills as well as their housing although all the same in purpose are different in shape and style.

The Characters
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There are about 30 characters in the game and here are some of them along with their job.

*Carrier – As the name suggests, the carriers carry varying objects such as tools and wood to other places basically where they are needed.

*Digger – Again as the name suggests, this character digs the foundations to the buildings in order to level out the ground.

*Woodcutter – The woodcutter will cut down wood from the area and will distribute them to the nearest woodcutter’s hut to be picked up and transported to the sawmill.

*Forester – This character has the job of replacing the trees that have been cut down by the woodcutter, it is essential you use the forester or otherwise you will run out of wood and wont be able to build anymore.

*Stonecutter – Along with his pick, this person breaks up stone for use on the buildings, again a vital job to be done to maintain enough stone for buildings

*Builder – With his hammer, the builder will build what you want, remember that the more builders, the quicker the job will be done.

There are many other characters in the game, these include the Spy, miner, farmer, geologist, gold and iron smelter, tools and weapons smith, water worker, miller, baker, pig farmer, donkey breeder, butcher, fisher, rice farmer, wine grower, distiller, brewer, shipbuilder, navigator, charcoal and gunpowder maker, healer, swordsman, spearman and last but not least the bowman.

Gameplay etc
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This game is truly addictive, the game is really easy to pick up and play. The tutorial is a good way to begin the game as you find it a much more enjoyable game if you take the time first to learn the basics, they do say that good things come to those who wait and this
game is no different.
The graphics on this game are superb and it is very bright and colourful, the music is also good and the background sounds such as the birds, sea and action such as digging also makes the game more realistic.
There are other things which the game can do, as well as going through the levels as a single player, you also have the choice of going online and battling with other players which is a great idea and makes this game a truly interactive one at that!

Tips and Tricks
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1. Take the tutorial! I cannot stress how useful this element is in understanding what to do in order for the game to become more efficient.

*The Advantages of the Roman Settlers:
Balanced use of building materials they being stone and wood
Less space needed for building
Rapid increase in manna with few resources
Divine intervention: convert the barbarians

* The advantages of the Egyptian Settlers:
Their building materials are obtained quickly because they are of stone
Their fighting strength is doubled by gems
Divine intervention: Bowmen to Bordermen
Divine intervention: fish to meat

* The Advantages of the Asian Settlers:
Lowest needs for resources when wood and stone are counted together.
Sacrificial offerings count double.
Very low need for building stone, as most buildings are mostly made of wood.
Divine intervention: stone to iron helps to save coal resources.
Divine intervention: stone curse can also be a blessing, especially if in need of stone as a building material.

Specifications
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Minimum Specs:-

IBM PC or 100% compatibles
100 MHz Pentium®
32 MB RAM
Windows® 95, Windows® 98 or Windows® NT 4.0
200 MB free hard drive space
2X CD-ROM drive
2 MB graphic card
Mouse
DirectX® 6.0 or compatible

Recommended Specs:-

166 MHz Pentium®™
32 MB RAM <
br>Sound card - DirectX® 6.0 compatible
2 MB graphic card
28.8 modem for Internet gaming

Verdict
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This game is one of the best strategy games I have ever played! It is sometimes too addictive as you can find the time whizzing by whilst playing this game and in no time, you have spent 3 hours playing the game! I have since stopped playing this game now not because it got boring because it never will but because I spent too much time on it! I think that you do require some patience and skill when playing this game and it is a good idea to be aware of that. This game is a great game, I have had a lot of enjoyment out of this game. Highly recommend!

This game is great and now there is a newer version Settlers 4 which includes new additions to this game. You can also acquire 2 other add-ons to this game these are the mission CD where you can create your own map and Quest for the Amazons a new tribe the Amazon is available. Look out for the opinions on them soon.

Summary: