A great game for a way to small group of people stunt by the fact that there never came a sequal of the game.
Like the Civilization series you can set different different options to create your random maps. Or play in the real america. Also you can choose 4 different nations, english, france, spain and the dutch they all have different skills. With each country you will have to play the game different to get the max out of it.
The game sets off in the new world where you have to build city's where you produce luxery goods to sell to europe or natives that live in now called America. The natives will help you thrive but if you over use the land they will eventually get hostile. You can also conquer their and loot their villages. You will find treasures all over the map and have to bring them to europe to get loads of money from them.
On the docks of europe will arive emigrants that would love to work under your controll. The more religion you have the more emigrants arive at the docks. You get religion from building a churge in a city and get even more if you put 1 or more priests in there.
The longer people will work for you the more liberty they will create. The higher the liberty in a town is the harder your people work. Liberty can be increased with a statehouse where a statesman can work, or by propaganda with news papers. Eventually you will have enough liberty to get independent and have to fight a war against your mother country.