Rise of Venice: Gold Edition (PC) Review

Real-time strategy games are a dime a dozen. One of the easiest genres to port to and from mobile, RTS titles can be simple yet addictive, and can usually run on almost any device. Newcomers to the genre, however, might view them as being all alike. Rise of Venice does a good job setting itself apart. It isn't a run-of-the-mill RTS, since where many are focused on things like building towns or fighting battles, this one instead puts players in the shoes of a lowly merchant trying to work his way up in the world of trading and politics.

The most noticeable feature is how unhelpful everything is - for instance the tutorial will explain what to do but almost never how to do it. There is a simple how-to video on the menu, but there's no scrubber, so it has to be watched in its entirety. Once things get going, the action amounts to little more than shuttling up and down the coasts, buying goods from one town just to sell them in another, eventually earning enough reputation to call a meeting and ask for votes to rank up.

While the focus isn't on combat, this is one area Rise of Venice gets right. Naval battles are cumbersome, but in a way that makes them realistic; players can't just blow opposing ships out of the water, they have to take sailing into account. Ships must be positioned properly to attack each other, and careful placement will be the deciding factor in victory.