American Conquest

About

American Conquest is a single player and multiplayer real-time strategy game with warfare and historical themes. It was developed by GSC Game World and was released on August 26, 2011. It received positive reviews from critics and mostly positive reviews from players.

American Conquest is a real-time strategy game that transports players to the early days of North America. Players can choose from several European nations and Native American tribes, each with unique strengths and weaknesses, and lead them in battles to expand their territories. The game features a variety of single-player campaigns and skirmish modes, as well as online multiplayer for up to 16 players. Emphasis is placed on resource management, troop movement, and historical accuracy.

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68%

Audience ScoreBased on 280 reviews

gameplay6 positive mentions

stability11 negative mentions

American Conquest offers a deep and complex RTS experience with a rich historical context, allowing players to engage in large-scale battles and manage resources intricately.
The game features a variety of distinct factions, each with unique units and strategies, enhancing replayability and providing a diverse gameplay experience.
Despite its age, the game retains a nostalgic charm and offers a challenging experience for strategy enthusiasts who appreciate depth and historical accuracy.

The game suffers from significant compatibility issues on modern systems, often resulting in crashes, speed problems, and difficulty in adjusting settings.
The steep learning curve and lack of clear tutorials can be overwhelming for new players, making it hard to grasp the complex mechanics and strategies required to succeed.
Visuals and interface design feel dated, which may deter modern players, and the game's bugs can lead to frustrating gameplay experiences.

gameplay
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
65%
12%
The gameplay of this classic early-2000s RTS is characterized by its ambitious scope and complexity, featuring traditional mechanics like resource gathering, building construction, and large-scale battles. While it offers a rich historical campaign and engaging strategic elements, some mechanics feel outdated, leading to potential frustration on modern systems. Overall, it remains enjoyable for fans of the genre, particularly those with a nostalgic connection, despite occasional technical issues.
- “Originally released in the early 2000s and later made available on digital platforms, the game stands as a classic example of early-2000s RTS design—ambitious in scope, mechanically demanding, and unapologetically complex.”
- “Its expansive historical scope, large-scale battles, and layered economic mechanics create an experience that feels both grand and demanding.”
- “The campaign mode takes you on a journey through key events like the Mayflower voyage and the Battle of Bunker Hill, offering a compelling mix of historical accuracy and strategic gameplay.”
- “20 years ago, computers were slower, and I think this entire game was programmed with old technology in mind to the point where the gameplay is impossible nowadays.”
- “While the gameplay is horrible, this game has tremendous educational value.”
- “I couldn't play it very long because the mechanics seemed very 90s.”
story
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
70%
15%
The game's story is structured around a series of mission-based campaigns that connect historical events, but the narrative delivery is criticized for being overly text-heavy and lacking cinematic flair. Players often find missions to be lengthy and repetitive, with unclear objectives leading to frustration. While the campaign mode offers a nostalgic appeal for some, it can also lead to burnout due to its demanding difficulty and lack of variety in mission design.
- “The narrative framework, while not heavily cinematic by modern standards, provides context that ties missions together.”
- “The story mode was the main thing that kept me playing as a kid, that and the scenario creator.”
- “+8 campaigns, each with 5 missions.”
- “The storytelling is done through walls of text, which can be quite boring.”
- “My only major complaint is that some missions take much longer than you'd expect, and another downside is that the game doesn't clearly explain what needs to be done in order to complete certain missions.”
- “After I've beaten each mission, I felt burnt out completely.”
graphics
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
40%
15%
The graphics of "American Conquest" feature detailed 2D sprite-based visuals that were impressive for their time, though they show the limitations of technology from two decades ago. While some players appreciate the nostalgic charm and find the graphics enjoyable, others report numerous bugs and compatibility issues that detract from the experience. Overall, the visuals are considered good for an older game, but they may not meet modern standards.
- “Visually, American Conquest uses detailed 2D sprite-based graphics.”
- “The graphics, while not cutting-edge by today's standards, were quite impressive for its time, capturing the vast landscapes and detailed unit models.”
- “Great game indeed, one of the best RTS available, the game lets you build anywhere you want, recruit hundreds of troops, for squads of 120 men each with different choices of formation and stances; graphics are beautiful and animations are detailed.”
- “Problems with graphics, unsolvable.”
- “Keeps saying I need 1024 x 768 x 8 graphics and then crashes.”
- “Numerous graphics issues and very buggy play.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
43%
19%
The music in the game has received mixed feedback, with many praising its immersive quality and thematic variety that enhances the gameplay experience. However, some users have reported technical issues, such as the music continuing to play even after exiting or uninstalling the game, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. Despite these problems, the soundtrack is often highlighted as a standout feature, with some users rating it highly.
- “The soundtrack adds an extra layer of immersion, complementing the game's epic scale.”
- “One of the most revolutionary games ever made, with a powerful soundtrack and a fantastic narrative.”
- “Set during an interesting historical period, has great music.”
- “Never have I seen a game so broken that after exiting, the god awful music still plays.”
- “After I uninstall the game and delete the files, the music is still going on and I can't delete that since it's being used by something; I have to let the song finish.”
- “Edit: The problems with closing and music still persist, and every time I try to change the settings, the game crashes.”
stability
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with many users reporting significant bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay, such as freezing and graphical issues. While some players enjoy the game overall, the prevalence of these technical problems has led to frustration and a sense that the game feels incomplete.
- “Fun game but very buggy.”
- “Don't get me wrong, I love this game and I'd play it for hundreds of hours if it didn't have bugs and glitches that make it unplayable.”
- “The game appears to be incomplete and buggy.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with users reporting significant challenges in running it, particularly on Windows 10, despite attempts to adjust settings like resolution and fullscreen optimizations. While some players find it runs smoothly once in-game, the overall experience is marred by poor optimization for new players.
- “Runs smoothly and it's easy to lose hours to.”
- “I clicked run in 640 x 480 screen resolution and disabled fullscreen optimizations, and it seems to help.”
- “No changes or considerations were made for the newer players vying to purchase the game, and it is so poorly optimized that getting into a game at all is a challenge.”
- “Not optimized at all for Windows 10.”
- “I clicked run in 640 x 480 screen resolution and disabled fullscreen optimizations, but I'm not sure if these help.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive at times, despite its overall quality and engaging gameplay. The ability to build freely and manage large squads adds depth, but the repetitive nature of certain tasks can detract from the experience.
- “Still, both sides can feel very tedious and repetitive.”
- “Great game indeed, one of the best RTS available. The game lets you build anywhere you want and recruit hundreds of troops, with squads of 120 men each and different choices of formation and stances. The graphics are beautiful and the animations are detailed. However, it can sometimes get tedious.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's diversity enhances its replayability by offering varied experiences that reflect historical nuances, ensuring that players encounter distinct cultural elements without oversimplification.
- “This diversity reinforces replay value and provides historical flavor without oversimplifying the differences between cultures.”

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83%Critics’ scoreBased on 2 critic reviews

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4h Median play time

4h Average play time

2-5h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

American Conquest is a real-time strategy game with warfare and historical themes.

American Conquest is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 4 hours playing American Conquest.

American Conquest was released on August 26, 2011.

American Conquest was developed by GSC Game World.

American Conquest has received positive reviews from players and positive reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its story.

American Conquest is a single player game with multiplayer support.

Similar games include Cossacks: Back to War, Cossacks: European Wars, Medieval: Total War™ - Collection, Sid Meier's Civilization® III Complete, Rome: Total War and others.

American Conquest

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