A cunning combination of Warcraft and Civilisation, I shall call it Warvilation and together we will rule the world! What's that? It's already been done? Ah well, back to the study...
Ben Morris

Ever since the heady days when Dune 2 kicked off the whole real-time strategy genre, there have been a vast number of imitations and subtle improvements. Despite this, the underlying idea of resource gathering and unit production resulting in the defeat of an opponent has remained much the same.

The second Seven Kingdoms game improves upon the innovation of the original. Instead of simply harvesting resources and buying an army to achieve your goal, a thriving economy must be carefully constructed. Independent villages must be absorbed into your civilisation and nurtured to provide research and conscripts for an army.

Although the number of units available to each race (there are some 12 to choose from) is limited, this largely reflects the emphasis away from fighting. Combat is still important but the ways in which it can be carried out are far more interesting than a standard RTS. Of course, the old, faithful 'run over and whack him with hundreds of men' method still works, but there are other, more successful ways to win a war. A careful attack on your opponent's economy can ruin him, preventing new units from being trained or technologies from being researched.

The most insidious route to victory is through a skilled army of spies. Civilian spies can be trained and released into your opponent's territory. Feigning rebellion from your own empire, they can walk freely into his villages and spend time lying in wait. When the time is right they can incite disorder and animosity. More dangerous still are the military spies. Again joining your enemy's ranks, they can attempt assassinations on enemy generals or bribe enemy soldiers to join your ranks.