Roman Empire on X-Box

[Kegluneq]

The "armor" looks like something out of starship troopers lol. And gotta love the Saving Private Ryan-style "storm the beaches!!" scene. Puke.

It would be pretty amusing to see a game depicting the daily life of a Roman soldier in realistic situations. Would there be a prologue level of trying to find someone to vouch for you so that you could join? Would the tutorial be you vs a wooden post? Would you and your buddy high-five each other when you unlock the "your section of the camp trench is done" achievement?

A twenty mile march in real time! Minigames in which you replace bootnails and grind grain! Lots and lots of armour polishing! The possibilities are endless!

Honestly that does actually sound pretty cool if handled right. Snippets of life like you describe could be handled in flashback sequences (or as tutorials...), and there's no reason why they'd have to make for dull gameplay. Basing a game entirely around EPIC BATTLES isn't necessarily going to be a great idea, since developers are going to be pressured into putting HUGE EXPLOSIONS and DECAPITATIONS in every few seconds, and Rome's real campaigns often have modern political implications (sack the Temple of Jerusalem! Commit genocide against the Gauls!).

However, a game based around your activities as a beneficiarius, a frumentarius, or a centurion of the region would enable more of an adventure game kind of story. Imagine an open world adventure in which you could travel to regions across the empire and explore towns or authentic landscapes, fight in skirmishes against bandits or pirates, and take on missions through letters (papyrus or wooden tablet) sent through the cursus publicus, or through personal appeals from concerned natives. RPG elements could see you develop your skills in literacy and language (opening up social connections and enabling higher level missions), pimp out your personal armour and horse harness with new armour types, materials, and military honours, or even (controversy!) recruit or buy slaves/freemen/mercenaries/soldiers to help you in battles, run your household, and administer any distant businesses you may run.

Narukami: Modern consoles are certainly capable of running games like Rome: Total War, but there's still the problems of input and fine detail. Controllers are never going to be as smooth as a mouse for dragging and selecting units or navigating complex menus, and not everyone is going to have a 46" TV they sit 4' away from. There would have to be a lot of concessions to make it work, but I agree I don't think it should be ruled out entirely.