Those who played Empire Earth will remember it as a vastly ambitious title. While its sequel is being developed by a new company (Mad Doc Software, the people who did the original expansion for EE), none of that ambition has been lost. The graphics have been improved, but the premise remains the same. The game covers a time span of 10,000 B.C. to 2300 A.D. split up into 15 Epochs. It has been improved with extra tutorials to make it easier for beginners to pick up. There will be 14 civilizations, each with unique art, buildings, and units. An innovative feature being added are extreme weather hazards, which are random environmental events that could slow down or lay waste entire armies. These hazards change according to the landscape, so sandstorms occur in desert environments and monsoons in tropical areas. The environments are also destructible. Players will have the option to build or destroy bridges to change the landscape of the game. The streamlined multiplayer system is amazing, and sure to set a trend for all RTS's to follow. A tactical planning map allows allies to easily coordinate attacks without having to type loads of text into a window. By marking areas, allies will know where to send their forces. In addition, there is a picture-in-picture feature on the lower left hand side of the screen, which shows hotspots across different parts of the map. Players no longer have to scroll everywhere just to check up on what's going on. Also, to shift focus more on combat and to make gameplay simpler, a city management feature has been added. Players no longer need to build hundreds of citizens just to gather resources. For players who enjoyed the original Empire Earth or more recent titles like Rise of Nations, Empire Earth II is definitely a title to keep an eye out for.