Five Roman-themed video games to ease the wait for the release of ‘Gladiator II’

‘Gladiator II’ is one of the most anticipated films of this year, set to be released on November 22. It is the sequel to the mythical ‘Gladiator’ (2000) starring Russell Crowe, although he will not return in this second part. To liven up the wait for its release date, at Meristation we have decided to compile a brief selection of video games set in Ancient Rome, a historical scenario that is surprisingly not very common in this medium.

Expeditions: Rome

Expeditions: Rome is a role-playing and strategy video game set in the last days of the Roman Republic prior to the beginning of the Roman Empire. In this adventure the plot has great weight; we guide a young Roman patrician whose father has been murdered, victim of political intrigues. Our protagonist eventually becomes a Legacius, a Roman General, and takes charge of his own legion.

Imperator: Rome

In Imperator: Rome we will see the birth of the Roman Empire, with a map that covers from the Iberian Peninsula to India with a brutal level of historical recreation. It is a pure and simple strategy video game in which we can manage all aspects of our empire such as economic, political, social, cultural, or religious. All of this uses real historical events as background that give variety to events like Spartacus’ Rebellion. Of course, in addition to managing the Roman side we also have a multitude of nations and tribes at our disposal, so we can create our own alternate history if we wish.

Praetorians

Praetorian is a real-time strategy video game developed by the Spanish studio Pyro Studios, also creators of the Commandos saga. It differs from other titles of the genre in the fact that it focuses more on military strategy and tactics than on resource management or the construction of an empire itself. This title includes reenactments of many real historical battles such as Julius Caesar’s campaigns in Gaul and Britain or Crassus’ battles in Parthia. In 2020 it received a remaster in high definition which has gotten mixed reviews, but luckily the original can still be purchased on Steam, so if these criticisms do not convince us to move on to the current version, we have the classic there.

Rome: Total War

Rome: Total War is one of the most representative video games with a setting of ancient Rome. It is a title that combines real-time strategy with turn-based strategy in which we can control and manage territories and participate in massive battles with our hosts of brave legionaries. The game’s story takes us from the rise and fall of the Republic of Rome to the first decades of the Roman Empire. In 2021 it received a remaster called Total War: ROME REMASTERED, which is essentially the base game but remastered in 4K resolution and with many visual and gameplay improvements.

Ryse: Son of Rome

Ryse: Son of Rome was one of Microsoft’s big bets for the launch of the Xbox One. This revenge story set in the first decades of the Roman Empire puts us in the shoes of General Marius Titus and begins at the end, narrating the rest of it as flashbacks. The plot will take us to places as diverse as Rome itself or Roman Britain. Marius is an expert warrior who faces all kinds of dangers, and can destroy his enemies in very savage ways. Yes indeed, historical fidelity is not the strong point of Son of Rome, since there are several explicit fantasy elements and in essence, we are facing an “alternative version” of ancient Rome. To highlight its overwhelming technical section that holds up well even today and the high production values of the video game, which make us at times feel like we are watching a big-budget film.

Spartan: Total Warrior

Spartan: Total Warrior deserves an honorable mention even though it is not a title available on current platforms. Luckily, finding it second-hand is not difficult and it is not especially expensive, so if we are too bitten by the ‘Gladiator II’ bug, it is a highly recommended option. This spin-off of the Total War saga is a fantasy story that gives us an interesting perspective of the Roman Empire: We play a Spartan warrior who must defend ancient Greece from an invasion by Caesar’s legions. Throughout the different levels you not only manage to repel the invaders, but eventually take the fight to Rome itself. This action title takes a lot of the rich Greek and Roman mythologies.