Warrior Kings is a very good 3D real-time strategy game that could have been great. The underlying design is excellent, and it adds some interesting complexities to the standard structure of the typical real-time strategy game. But Warrior Kings' creativity is also its biggest shortcoming. The developer, Black Cactus, produced a great premise, full of unique units, an interesting economic structure, and mystical elements that lead to powerful units and spells. However, this premise is the stage for a campaign made up of linear puzzle missions that require very little strategy and a whole lot of patience. The multiplayer mode doesn't have these problems, but since there's no skirmish option available for playing the core strategic game against the computer, the game's appeal is a lot more limited than it might have been.

A strong economy makes for a strong military.

Warrior Kings takes place in a world torn between religion and technology. There are two primary factions, the imperials and the pagans, each with unique units and divine powers. Both factions can incorporate renaissance elements, such as siege engines and gunpowder, but by doing so, they sacrifice access to their most powerful units.

The single-player campaign follows the story of Artos, exiled heir to the throne. After seeing his father ambushed and betrayed, Artos flees his homeland to gather forces and plot his revenge. The campaign lets you follow several paths, and it branches based on the choices you make at a few key moments. For instance, in the second mission, you must choose whether or not to execute your enemy once you have him cornered. Kill him, and you'll follow the pagan path, which lets you command huge beasts and strange magic. Spare his life, and you'll move down the imperial path toward religion and fanatical righteousness. Later, you'll have the option to stay on a pure pagan or imperial path or incorporate elements of technology, again altering the campaign. It's great that the campaign goes in such different directions based on your choices--you won't just get different units, but an entirely different game with unique missions.

While the branching campaign is an interesting idea, the actual method of branching is disappointing. Instead of letting you choose your path through a strategic decision, you simply answer yes/no questions at predetermined points along the way. The choices you make come without warning, occasionally at the end of a mission and other times at the beginning. Unless you have some luckily timed saved games, you'll undoubtedly need to play through large chunks of the game to try different paths. Essentially, it makes the first few missions of the campaign one lengthy options screen you must play through again and again to try the different factions.

Battles can involve an impressive number of troops.

The missions themselves are full of numerous objectives and challenges, but at times you'll feel frustrated that you never just get to play the game. The campaign is full of puzzle missions, and many give you a set number of units with which to accomplish your goals. You don't get to do much town building, especially in the early missions--the designers seemed to consciously try to avoid the standard real-time strategy formula of build a town, build an army, destroy your enemies, raze their town. It may seem like a good thing that Warrior Kings bucks the trend, but it's strange that the single-player game seems so shy about letting you explore the more innovative features, like building a huge civic center or invoking the benefits of your chosen faction. Most of the time, your town will be built for you--then you just build standard units and go attack your enemy.

Even if you won't see it often in the campaign, the basic structure of the game is excellent. You must build a town, starting with peasants to harvest food and lumber. Carts transport the basic commodities to your civic center, and they provide an interesting strategic element, since they can be waylaid and stolen by the enemy. Certain buildings can be built only near your civic center, and the walls that surround this vital area expand automatically. Based on your faction, you can build huge siege engines or powerful religious units. There are numerous military units, ranging from standard spearman and archers to holy knights, soldiers, and enormous monsters that breathe fire.