Rise of Nations Extended Edition

Rise of Nations: Extended Edition is the Steam re-release of Big Huge Games' all-eras real-time strategy game, bundled with the Thrones and Patriots expansion and updated for modern hardware. The signature design choice — that a single match spans the full sweep of human history, from a starting city in the Ancient Age through to Information Age societies with tanks, battleships and bombers — is intact, along with the territory and attrition mechanics that gave the game its strategic identity.

Eighteen nations each carry their own special abilities and unique military units. Over a hundred military unit types operate across land, sea and air, from Hoplites through Frigates to Helicopters. Two dozen-plus buildings carry upgrade and technology trees that move your civilisation forward, and fourteen Wonders of the World — the Terra Cotta Army, the Taj Mahal, the Eiffel Tower among them — grant unique long-term bonuses to whoever builds them first. The Conquer the World campaign chains dozens of linked scenarios into a strategic meta-layer above individual matches.

The Extended Edition adds improved textures and water, full-screen anti-aliasing, full Steamworks integration with ranked multiplayer (ELO), achievements, trading cards and Cloud saves. Map types range from the Amazon Rainforest through the Himalayas to the Nile Delta. The core game has aged well — its territory-based borders, supply lines and explicit national strengths are still distinctive — and the Steam release is the version most players reach for when revisiting it.