Age of Gladiators II: Rome

About

Age of Gladiators II: Rome is a single-player strategy game set in the Roman Republic, where you manage a gladiator school, recruiting and training fighters, managing their morale, and equipping them for battle. As your gladiators gain experience, you will allocate their attributes and focus their abilities to build a successful ludus. The game features side missions, research, and the chance to increase your wealth and reputation.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

67%

Audience ScoreBased on 176 reviews

gameplay4 positive mentions

graphics4 negative mentions

The game offers a fun and addictive management experience with a lot of depth in character development and resource management.
The turn-based combat system adds a new layer of strategy compared to the previous game, making battles more engaging.
The developer is responsive to feedback and actively works on updates and improvements, enhancing the overall experience.

The game suffers from severe balance issues, making it frustratingly difficult, especially for new players who may feel overwhelmed.
Combat mechanics can feel random and unbalanced, leading to situations where high-level gladiators can be defeated by much weaker opponents.
There are numerous bugs, including save issues and UI problems, which detract from the overall enjoyment of the game.

gameplay
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
68%
14%
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of appreciation and frustration, noting engaging visual and audio elements alongside a unique blend of strategy, real combat, and RPG mechanics. However, players criticize the rapid cap on the fame mechanic, the underutilization of good and evil choices, and poorly explained mechanics, which detract from the overall experience. While the game becomes more enjoyable and addictive as players progress and unlock new features, issues like unbalanced combat mechanics and a lack of strategic depth in battles remain significant concerns.
- “Love the gameplay and the visual and audio elements.”
- “An excellent game with a unique gameplay that combines strategy, real combat, and RPG elements all together!”
- “The game can be hard and unforgiving when you first start, but once you get past the first few months and begin to appreciate the game mechanics and find a winning strategy, the game really opens up and becomes quite addictive as you unlock new buildings and invest in more fighters and staff.”
- “There is a fame mechanic, but it caps out stupidly fast, especially after I was able to start buying properties.”
- “Lastly, a lot of mechanics are not explained at all in the game, with limited places to find answers online.”
- “This game has some flaws and is missing some expected mechanics, features, and other things that have become somewhat standard in this type of game.”
graphics
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
56%
25%
The graphics in the game are generally considered basic and reminiscent of older titles, with many reviewers noting a lack of detailed animations and visual polish. While some improvements have been made, such as a new camera angle, the overall presentation is seen as underwhelming, with numerous graphical errors and outdated visuals. Despite these shortcomings, some players still find enjoyment in the game, suggesting that graphics may not be the primary draw for all gamers.
- “Better graphics than previous games (though don't expect too much).”
- “The graphics are nothing special but not terrible.”
- “This game is definitely not for everyone, but if you're okay with management style games that don't have a lot of flashy graphics, give it a try.”
- “The graphics and animations leave much to be desired, but for some reason I keep coming back to this game and loving it.”
- “The graphics look like something from the 90s.”
- “Bugs, poor design, terrible combat model, terrible graphics, one boring soundtrack.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be overly tedious and frustrating, particularly as it stretches on for hours after the early game. While some appreciate the concept and the potential for reputation building, many feel that the constant resource management and repetitive tasks detract from the overall enjoyment, leading to a sense of burnout.
- “Good concept, but unnecessarily hard and grindy.”
- “The fighting goes from tedious to frustrating.”
- “If I have one complaint, it's that once you've stabilized out of the early game, the game feels pretty much won, but there's several hours of grinding through more cities to go.”
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
33%
50%
The game's story is enriched by event chains, character backgrounds, and alignments that influence gameplay, allowing players to engage in missions that reflect their choices. The quest system encourages decision-making, leading to varied outcomes and fostering a sense of personal narrative. Overall, players find that the ability to craft their own story is a standout feature of the game.
- “It is easy to get lost in creating your own story, and that is where this game shines brightest.”
- “In the end, it comes down to income vs. outgo and well-placed bets and missions to get you over that initially brutal first few months.”
- “A in-game quest system allows for decision-making choices which may or may not have positive influences in the long term.”
- “You have storylines based on background, you have alignments and missions.”
replayability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
20%
60%
Overall, while some AAA games struggle with replayability, many players find that certain titles offer high replay value through varied quests, random events, and extensive progression paths, making them worth revisiting.
- “Replayability is high.”
- “Most AAA games don't have that level of replayability to warrant that many hours.”
- “Some questing and random events for variety and replayability.”
- “Plenty of replayability and lengthy progression paths.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game shows significant stability issues, with frequent bugs leading to freezing during save game loads and problems with gameplay mechanics, such as ending the day in ironman mode and executing attacks. While it has great potential, these stability concerns make it difficult for players to fully enjoy the experience.
- “Not recommended because it freezes when trying to load a save game, making it useless.”
- “Great potential but super buggy... can't end the day in ironman mode and sometimes can't attack if I select attack too quickly.”
- “Loved it, but it was very buggy.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
67%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the soundtrack while others find it repetitive and lacking in variety compared to the first installment. Overall, while the music is deemed decent, it does not significantly enhance the gaming experience, and some players have expressed disappointment with its quality.
- “The soundtrack is nice, though it can become a bit repetitive after a while.”
- “I do recommend the game, although I didn't see much difference from the first game. The background music wasn't my favorite, but it's still a good simulation experience.”
- “I do recommend the game, although I didn't see much difference from the first game, and I also didn't like the background music so much. Despite that, it's a good sim, but I would recommend getting the first one. The second one was a good attempt but just doesn't add much.”
- “Bugs, poor design, terrible combat model, terrible graphics, one boring soundtrack.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy has been criticized as a cash grab, with users expressing frustration over the reliance on free labor and advertising, as well as the removal of key gameplay elements that previously defined the classes. Overall, the approach is seen as a poor decision that detracts from the game's quality.
- “It's free labor and advertising; a crazy decision.”
- “Same with the classes of gladiators: no shields, nets, and other items they used to be called the class they are. No dual wielding, etc. Just a piece of cash grab from some low IQ noob dev.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is derived from its absurd and exaggerated portrayal of gladiatorial combat, where the mechanics and moral implications are presented in a comically broken manner. Players find amusement in the game's unrealistic premise, particularly the notion of "happy-go-lucky slaves" fighting for a pot, leading to a mix of frustration and laughter at its flaws. Overall, the humor is characterized by a satirical take on historical themes, despite the game's shortcomings.
- “The RNG against you is totally broken and insane; the moral is funny as well. Gladiators want half the pot just to be happy-go-lucky slaves fighting to the death. So really, the game is pure fiction, as it was rare that a person fought not as a slave in the first place, and as far as we know, only a few became free. But this game wants you to only use the freemen as gladiators because the slaves all suck.”
- “I didn't do it because after the 10th time, I was uninstalling this game, laughing at how bad it is.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is generally regarded as good, featuring a variety of perks that enhance the experience, though it falls short of being exceptional.
- “Character development is good (not great, but good) with perks and all.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the emotional impact of the game heightened by the permadeath feature for their gladiators, creating a sense of loss and attachment. However, the option to savescum provides a safety net for those who find the emotional stakes too overwhelming, allowing them to mitigate heartbreak while still engaging with the game's challenges.
- “The game has permadeath for your gladiators, but you can save scum if it's too heart-breaking.”
- “Every decision feels weighty, and the emotional stakes are incredibly high.”
- “I found myself genuinely caring for my characters, and their losses hit me harder than I expected.”