Empires & Allies (2015 video game)

Empires & Allies
Publisher(s)	Zynga
Platform(s)	Android and iOS
Release date(s)	May 5, 2015
Genre(s)	Simulation, RPG
Mode(s)	Single-player with multiplayer interaction

Empires & Allies is Zynga's combat and strategy game, launched in twelve languages on May 5, 2015 via Apple’s App Store and Google Play. ^[1] The game is a freemium game, meaning there was no cost to play but players had the option of purchasing premium content. While the game carries the name of the former Empires & Allies Facebook game, it isn’t a remake. Instead, the game is a modern experience, taking players to the near future, where they’ll have access to advanced technologies in a war for domination. ^[2]

Invading and Defending

Unique to Empires and Allies is the option of player versus player combat. Players can optionally attack other players in order to gain resources, medals or prize tokens.

The "Battle Blitz" mode has the same effects as the invasions of neighboring empires. However, the player invades other players who are on the same level as them. A player who claims an invasion zone in Battle Blitz gets five prize tokens, which could be used to spin the wheel for prizes. And this mode can be triggered by winning three rounds in the row.

Units and Combat

Combat is initiated whenever a player either attacks an AI commander during a campaign, attacks another player's area, or is repelling an enemy player's invasion of his/her area.

Units

Players establish four tiers of production buildings, including HQ, Troop Tarmac, Supply Drop, Steel Factory to create sea, land, and air units respectively. After being produced, the player can deploy them on his or her archipelago to defend their buildings from invasion.

Most of these units speed ups require purchase of gold with real-world money through other methods of payment.

Campaign

Like other "Ville" games such as FrontierVille and CityVille, Empires and Allies has a common narrative that directs the player through the game's "story." Although Empires and Allies is an open ended game, it has a mission progression system that leads the player through features in the game, introducing new units or otherwise encouraging certain tasks, with rewards provided for completion. The game also contains a wider story arc which is progressed mainly through defeating enemy commanders on the "world map" which the player can access at any time. Ultimately, the player's goal is to finish the campaign and defeat the boss in each area.

Resources

The player must additionally manage resources on their island. Resources come in four types: fuel, supply, steel, tech and energy. Resources are a general item for purchasing most in-game buildings, and are gained through building upgrades. Fuel is harvested by oil wells. Supply is harvested by supply drops. Steel harvested by steel factory. Techs is harvested through tech factories. Golds are real-world currency used to speed up certain elements of the game and assist in others (such as providing an extra ally during an attack or purchasing a power-up,) they can also auto-complete missions and fill seats in buildings. There are also experience points, which level up the player.

Tradable resources can be produced from those buildings above which the player can build. Depending on the level of advance resource selected each operates with a different production efficiency.

References