STAR WARS™ Empire at War - Gold Pack Review Summary

Mods enhance gameplay significantly: The game benefits greatly from its active modding community, which introduces new dynamics, visuals, units, factions, and campaigns. Mods are seen as essential for extending the game's lifespan and keeping it fresh and enjoyable.

Best Star Wars RTS experience: The game is highly regarded as one of the best real-time strategy games set in the Star Wars universe. It captures the essence of Star Wars and is recommended for both RTS and Star Wars fans.

Enjoyable and fun gameplay: The base game offers enjoyable and fun gameplay with a decent amount of strategic depth. Players find it entertaining and recommend it for its engaging strategy elements.

Excellent space battles: The game features spectacular and impactful space battles that are highly praised. These battles are considered better than land battles and add a unique tactical element to the gameplay.

Forces of Corruption expansion: The Forces of Corruption expansion is well-received for adding new factions, gameplay mechanics, and a fine single-player campaign. It is considered a valuable addition to the base game.

Ground combat lacks quality: Many players find the ground combat to be mediocre, lackluster, and not as enjoyable compared to other aspects of the game. It is often described as janky and poorly developed.

Outdated graphics and engine: The graphics are considered bad and dated, with the game engine being described as obsolete. This affects the overall visual and technical experience of the game.

Gameplay is basic and glitchy: The game is often seen as simple and limited, with occasional glitches and bugs. Some players find it basic and not the best in terms of overall gameplay experience.

Game balance and difficulty issues: The game can be very difficult at times, with questionable balance and clunky mechanics. Some players find certain moments particularly challenging.

Base game is boring: The base game is described as quite boring and just okay, with some players not being huge fans of it. It is seen as aged and problematic.

Extensive Modding Support: The game is highly mod-friendly, with a massive modding community that offers a variety of mods, enhancing and extending gameplay significantly.

Space and Ground Combat: The game includes epic space battles with various ship types and ground combat, offering unique and fun tactical experiences.

Star Wars RTS Game: The game is a real-time strategy (RTS) set in the Star Wars universe, featuring both space and land battles.

Commanding Armies and Fleets: Players can command massive fleets and armies, including iconic Star Wars units like TIE fighters and Star Destroyers.

Galactic Conquest Mode: Features a Galactic Conquest mode with turn-based strategy and real-time combat, along with other modes like Instant Action and Skirmish Battles.

Mixed graphics feedback: Players have varying opinions on the graphics, ranging from criticisms of dated visuals and an obsolete engine to appreciation for recent updates and decent quality.

Occasional crashes reported: Some players experience game crashes, which can occur occasionally or during specific scenarios like long battles.

Low system requirements: The game can run on low-end systems like 'potato PCs' and basic modern laptops, but higher graphics settings require better hardware.

Performance varies: Performance can range from lag-free to experiencing lag, depending on the system and specific conditions like using certain mods.

Lacks multicore support: The game is not optimized for multicore processors and needs multithreaded support for better performance.

Enhanced experience with mods: Many players suggest using mods to enhance the gameplay experience. Specific mods like 'Fall of the Republic' and 'Thrawn's Revenge' are frequently mentioned.

Recommended for Star Wars and RTS fans: The game is highly recommended for fans of Star Wars and real-time strategy games. It is considered a must-have for its engaging gameplay and challenging experience.

Desire for a remake: There is a significant desire among players for a remastered or new version of the game with better graphics. Some suggest a remake for future years like 2025-2026.

Highly recommended purchase: The game is strongly recommended for purchase, especially for those interested in Star Wars and strategy games. It is seen as worth the price and a valuable addition to any game collection.

Other mods and games: Various other mods and games are mentioned, such as 'Awakening of the Rebellion,' 'Republic at War,' 'Covenant At War (Halo Mod),' and 'Knights of the Old Republic,' indicating a rich modding community and related games.

Community fair range: $18.00 - $20.00.

Game completion: 50.0h.

Story completion: 15.0h.

Session length: 2.0h.

Endgame: 100.0h.

The game has an initial learning curve that can be overcome with tutorials and practice, after which players can enjoy the strategic depth and freedom it offers.

Reported time to anchor: 1h.

Mod-Loving Strategist: Enjoys complex strategies and mod-enhanced gameplay. Motivation: Strategic depth and modding community. Stance: buy.

Star Wars Strategy Enthusiast: Enjoys strategic gameplay within the Star Wars universe. Motivation: Love for Star Wars and strategy games. Stance: buy.

Beginner-Friendly Mod Enthusiast: Enjoys beginner-friendly gameplay with mod enhancements. Motivation: Accessibility and mod-enhanced content. Stance: sale.

The game performs well on high-end Windows systems with sufficient VRAM.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: positive. Reports smooth performance at 4K resolution with high-end hardware.

Steam Deck: The game has a mix of positive and negative feedback. While it runs well with Proton Experimental and offers hours of fun, it suffers from stability issues such as frequent crashes and glitches. Additionally, the outdated mechanics and UI can be a barrier for some users. The overall experience is marred by these technical issues, requiring some tinkering to enjoy the game fully.

Linux and Proton: The game runs well on Linux using Proton Experimental, with no notable issues reported.

Monetization: Reviews explicitly mention no microtransactions.

Alcohol suggestion in game: Some players suggested consuming alcohol to enhance the gaming experience, indicating a potential issue with the game's entertainment value or engagement level.