East India Company (video game)
Encyclopedia
East India Company is a real-time strategy
computer game developed by Finnish
company Nitro Games and published by Paradox Interactive
. It was released on July 31, 2009 in North America with an August 14, 2009 scheduled release date for Europe.
The game is based on the history of European conquest of South Asia
and Southeast Asia
by means of their East India Companies
. In the game, the player takes on the role of the Governor Director of the East Indies
. The task is to conquer the East India and establish a trade empire
to rule over all others.
The game features real-time naval combat when enemy ships engage the player's fleets, and real-time land combat when the enemy tries to invade one of the player's colonies. East India Company combines trading, naval warfare, and management. Players can create a fleet to conquer the enemy with powerful warships and privateer
s.
, France
, The Netherlands, Portugal
, Denmark
, Sweden
, Holy Roman Empire
and Spain
. Tasks may be given by the company or the crown to do various missions including diplomacy, war, and trade. The game is mainly based in India
and actual Pakistan
.
, sloop
, brig
, East Indiaman, frigate
, and ship of the line
.
. IGN said that "players who are interested in the concept or the period will definitely find a worthwhile game here, but the appeal wears thin long before it should have". IT Reviews agreed, stating that the game was "a fun short-term challenge, just lacking the depth of play to ensure a lengthy shelf life". Total PC Gaming
magazine called it "an enjoyable trading and strategy experience, let down by lacklustre combat" (Issue 23).
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
computer game developed by Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
company Nitro Games and published by Paradox Interactive
Paradox Interactive
-External links:*...
. It was released on July 31, 2009 in North America with an August 14, 2009 scheduled release date for Europe.
The game is based on the history of European conquest of South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
by means of their East India Companies
East India Company (disambiguation)
The East India Company, also known as the English East India Company and the British East India Company, was a historical English, and later British, company, founded in 1600, and chartered with the monopoly of trading with Southeast Asia, East Asia, and India.East India Company may also refer to...
. In the game, the player takes on the role of the Governor Director of the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
. The task is to conquer the East India and establish a trade empire
Empire
The term empire derives from the Latin imperium . Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and peoples united and ruled either by a monarch or an oligarchy....
to rule over all others.
The game features real-time naval combat when enemy ships engage the player's fleets, and real-time land combat when the enemy tries to invade one of the player's colonies. East India Company combines trading, naval warfare, and management. Players can create a fleet to conquer the enemy with powerful warships and privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
s.
Features
There are eight playable nations to choose from: BritainGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, The Netherlands, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. Tasks may be given by the company or the crown to do various missions including diplomacy, war, and trade. The game is mainly based in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and actual Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
.
Ships
There are 11 ship types in the game, including the schoonerSchooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
, sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
, brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
, East Indiaman, frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
, and ship of the line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
.
Designer's Cut
The Designer's Cut was made available for download on October 27, 2009. It offers several additional features.Reception
The game was greeted with mixed reviews, registering an average of 67% on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. IGN said that "players who are interested in the concept or the period will definitely find a worthwhile game here, but the appeal wears thin long before it should have". IT Reviews agreed, stating that the game was "a fun short-term challenge, just lacking the depth of play to ensure a lengthy shelf life". Total PC Gaming
Total PC Gaming
Total PC Gaming was a monthly magazine published by Imagine Publishing, launched in 2007 it ran until March 2010. The magazine featured videogame industry news, game reviews, hardware reviews, and sections dedicated to fans of retro gaming and Massively multiplayer online games.-Staff:The staff...
magazine called it "an enjoyable trading and strategy experience, let down by lacklustre combat" (Issue 23).