Expeditions: Rome

88%
Game Brain Score Based on 2,480 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Expeditions: Rome Game Cover
Expeditions: Rome is astounding in every area I was presented with. Constantly I felt like there were tons of things for me to explore and pay attention to, and truly simulates how I picture leading an entire war campaign.
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"Expeditions: Rome" is a turn-based role-playing game that transports players to ancient Rome. As a young legatus, you'll lead your own Roman legion and make decisions that will impact the political landscape of the ancient world. Engage in tactical combat, navigate complex relationships, and discover the rich history of the Roman Empire.

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Reviews

88%
Audience ScoreBased on 2,480 reviews
story599 positive mentions
grinding115 negative mentions
  • Engaging and well-written story with meaningful choices that impact the outcome.
  • Fun and challenging turn-based combat with a variety of tactical options.
  • Rich historical setting with interesting characters and good voice acting.
  • Repetitive legion battles that feel tedious and lack player agency.
  • Some gameplay mechanics, like resource management and crafting, feel shallow and underdeveloped.
  • Long enemy turn times in combat can be frustrating, especially in larger battles.
  • story1,567 mentions

    The story in "Expeditions: Rome" is generally praised for its engaging narrative, rich character development, and meaningful player choices that significantly impact the outcome. Players appreciate the historical context and the depth of the plot, which intertwines personal and political intrigue, although some find the pacing slow and certain missions repetitive. While the game excels in storytelling and character interactions, it faces criticism for forced gameplay mechanics that detract from the overall experience, particularly in the context of legion management and pacification missions.

    • “The story actually flows around you even as you make decisions that you will genuinely never know are key to the story.”
    • “The story and word is amazing with memorable companions and impactful decisions.”
    • “The story is engaging and not overly complex to follow, and your companions are all great and each have a small side story you can follow.”
    • “The story is very boring and easily forgettable.”
    • “The story is ok but not really engaging and the characters lack depth.”
    • “The story felt really contrived and confusing at times, and the overland map pissed me off after the 53rd time I didn't properly select a town to send a legion and instead yeeted my character somewhere I didn't want to go.”
  • gameplay576 mentions

    The gameplay in "Expeditions: Rome" is a mix of engaging turn-based tactical combat and strategic legion management, with many players praising the depth and mechanics of the combat system. However, the legion mechanics and world map interactions are often criticized for being tedious and underdeveloped, leading to a repetitive gameplay loop that detracts from the overall experience. While the core combat is enjoyable and offers tactical depth, the additional mechanics can feel cumbersome and detract from the game's pacing.

    • “Just like Expedition: Vikings, Expedition: Rome is an onion with many layers; depth is revealed as the game progresses, with new mechanics, maps, items, skills, and followers appearing as you proceed.”
    • “The tactical battles that are the core of the gameplay work very well.”
    • “The gameplay is solid, with only some visual bugs but nothing major; I'm looking at you, pathfinders.”
    • “The 'strategic map' gameplay is also dumbed down to the lowest level possible and becomes really boring really fast.”
    • “You will spend a lot of time fighting tedious side battles, crossing the map, and playing the literally broken army mechanics, which is widely recognized even among the positive reviews as a total trainwreck.”
    • “The legion management and conquering aspect of this game I found a little tedious; as a gameplay loop I just wanted to get it over with so I could play with my party in direct combat.”
  • graphics187 mentions

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the stunning visuals and improved character designs, while others criticize them as mediocre or outdated compared to recent titles. Many players appreciate the atmospheric representation of ancient Rome and the detailed environments, but some note issues with character customization and graphical bugs. Overall, while the graphics are generally considered good for the genre, they do not consistently meet the high standards set by other contemporary games.

    • “The graphics are stunning, the gameplay is incredibly immersive, and the storyline is just great!”
    • “The visuals are beautiful and the game runs quite well for the most part.”
    • “The graphics are excellent for this style of game.”
    • “Coming to this game after having fallen down the BG3 hole, the character graphics suck.”
    • “The graphics are much worse than its predecessors, and there are so many bugs and glitches.”
    • “Couldn't barely stand the first hour of the game, such is the bad quality of this... every aspect of it looks like an unpolished poor mobile game, from the graphics, presentation, UI, voice acting, gameplay, characters, animation, music.”
  • grinding122 mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game has been widely criticized for its tediousness, with many players finding combat encounters, legion management, and resource gathering to be repetitive and time-consuming. While some appreciate the unique elements of the game, the overwhelming sentiment is that the grinding mechanics detract from the overall enjoyment, making progression feel like a chore rather than an engaging experience. Despite some redeeming qualities in the story and character interactions, the grind-heavy gameplay often leads to frustration and disengagement.

    • “You can also bump up the game speed in options, and there are no tedious repeated cinematics during combat.”
    • “Legion battles are fun and not tedious, although I do wish they did a little more with them.”
    • “Not a lot of character customization and virtually no grinding/getting a little stronger.”
    • “The combat gets really tedious and stupid and extremely long.”
    • “The legion management and battles felt tedious and not particularly interesting.”
    • “The main problem with the game is the strategic layer which is grindy and soon becomes tedious making the game feel longer than it should have been.”
  • music91 mentions

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its quality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many reviewers praising the soundtrack as one of the best they've experienced. However, some players noted that certain tracks, particularly battle music, can become repetitive over time. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's immersive experience.

    • “The game has one of the best soundtracks ever.”
    • “The music and atmosphere really immerse you in the setting and gameplay.”
    • “The soundtrack is fantastic, to the point where I bought the album for myself.”
    • “In-game music is boring.”
    • “The music regularly either stops completely or plays twice at the same time just slightly out of sync if you reload an autosave in the middle of combat.”
    • “The main issue I found with the game was during certain long battles the repetitive music, although of good quality, became grating after a while; a bit more musical variety in those sections would have been appreciated.”
  • replayability52 mentions

    The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with many players noting significant potential due to meaningful choices that affect story outcomes and character experiences. While some reviews highlight excellent replay value through different character builds and narrative paths, others express disappointment in the overall replayability, citing a lack of substantial changes in gameplay upon replaying. Overall, the game offers a decent to high replayability factor, particularly for those interested in exploring various storylines and character dynamics.

    • “What a great game and certainly replayable.”
    • “The various endings give it replayability.”
    • “One of the greatest RPGs I have ever played, it has an amazing replay value, iconic characters, excellent plot and choices that actually matter.”
    • “Well, I am still in the middle of the game, and I enjoyed playing it so far, but to be honest, I am afraid that it has zero replayability.”
    • “Not much replayability here - that's why I want more of it (sure you can make some decisions differently, but gameplay-wise not much changes).”
    • “Replayability is quite low, considering other games like this on the market.”
  • humor35 mentions

    The game's humor is a standout feature, blending clever writing and historical references with engaging dialogue and voice acting that often elicits laughter. Players appreciate the humorous side quests and character interactions, though some feel the humor can be forced or excessive at times. Overall, the comedic elements enhance the immersive experience, making it both entertaining and memorable.

    • “This is a gem of a game and a great follow-up by the studio; their attention to detail, sense of humor, and love of history (with plenty of liberty taken for fun!) shines through.”
    • “The writing is funny and clever enough to keep me engaged, and the TTRPG-esque combat is pretty in-depth and engaging.”
    • “The companions are well acted, and they even made me laugh occasionally.”
  • atmosphere30 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and captivating environment, particularly its well-researched depiction of ancient Rome, enhanced by beautiful graphics and an outstanding soundtrack. Players appreciate the engaging worldbuilding, strong character development, and the ability to influence the story, which collectively create a unique and addictive experience. However, some critiques mention technical issues and the introduction of modern elements that may detract from the historical atmosphere.

    • “The music and atmosphere really immerse you in the setting and gameplay.”
    • “The atmosphere, story, and presentation are all very great.”
    • “The attention to detail and atmosphere of the settings are wonderful.”
    • “I wish the game had more large-scale battles to make the atmosphere that the game sets feel much more prominent.”
    • “Honestly, the game is pretty good, but for a historical game, it works way too hard to add woke elements and kills its own atmosphere.”
    • “Graphics: atmosphere-wise, not so bad.”
  • optimization22 mentions

    Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance and minimal bugs, some express frustration with certain gameplay mechanics and a lack of character customization. Despite its solid performance in large battles and appealing graphics, there are concerns about resource consumption and occasional crashes that detract from the experience. Players hope for future improvements in optimization to enhance the overall gameplay.

    • “The game runs smoothly, with no bugs, and no crashes.”
    • “No performance issues even in big fights with lots of units/effects on screen.”
    • “Runs smoothly on my potato GTX 1050 laptop at 1080p medium settings.”
    • “Restricting companions, hard classes, stun locks, no respecs, no way to pass time in the main camp, unoptimized, a nonsensical war system, stupid frustrating random events that drain your time.”
    • “It's honestly surprising how much this game eats up my GPU - especially given the graphics are just mediocre, so it's incredibly disappointing to have an otherwise great game spoiled by poor optimization (and constant crashing).”
    • “For-hire praetorians are pre-generated and not customizable outside of their names, a contrast to Viking where you could create new hird members and customize them completely, but like Viking, they have personality traits and voiced lines that elevate them beyond being optimized ken dolls that custom party members tend to be in other CRPGs.”
  • stability22 mentions

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent bugs and glitches that detract from the overall experience. While some users noted that the game is mostly playable and enjoyable despite these issues, others experienced significant crashes and UI problems, particularly on Windows 11. Overall, the consensus suggests that the game is currently too buggy for a full recommendation, though some players still find it enjoyable.

    • “The game is mostly bug-free outside of some visual and physics glitches.”
    • “Fairly bug-free as well during my 62-hour run.”
    • “For today's standards, the game was surprisingly bug-free.”
    • “The game is great, I love it, but it is so buggy.”
    • “I've really enjoyed the story, tactical combat, and general feel of the game, but in spite of that, I can't really recommend it at this stage due to it being such a buggy mess.”
    • “The game starts off really good and I was enjoying it for a time, but the last region is completely buggy and had me crashing every 5 to 15 minutes. This is a major problem for many people; some items are bugs that cause issues such as swords or shields. Until they fix it, I can't finish the game.”
  • character development18 mentions

    Character development in the game is generally praised for its depth and variety, allowing for interesting builds and meaningful interactions with companions. While some players note that the pace of development can be slow and dialogue choices may feel restrictive, the overall character arcs and customization options contribute significantly to the engaging narrative. Despite minor criticisms, the character development is seen as a strong aspect that enhances the gameplay experience.

    • “Good character development, that goes for most of the companions as well to a lesser extent.”
    • “Interesting and complex story with various branching sub-plots, impressive character development (in terms of their actual character) and some simple base improvement, map conquest and large scale army auto-battle system that allows you to affect it using 'stratagem' cards.”
    • “Surprising depth in character development and customization give this more legs than the standard top-down RPG, and is recommendable to any who have an interest in Roman history.”
    • “Character development is slow.”
    • “Your choice of dialogue path in character development is pretty restrictive and does not open up too many options throughout the game.”
    • “Villains come and go and some are a lot more interesting than others, and you'd wish that, in my opinion, the better ones stay and get more character development.”
  • emotional14 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by players' deep attachment to well-developed characters and a touching, thought-provoking story that includes significant plot twists. Many reviewers noted that their choices were driven by emotional investment rather than optimal outcomes, leading to heartfelt experiences, including moments of sadness and joy. However, some felt that interactions with NPCs lacked emotional depth, contrasting with the strong connections formed with main characters.

    • “I found myself really growing attached to my friends in the game, and I was deeply emotionally invested. My choices reflected my attachment rather than min-maxing for the best outcomes.”
    • “The story is really deep, thought-provoking, and emotional.”
    • “The characters in the game are developed very well, and there are some rather emotional plot twists throughout the game.”
  • monetization6 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game is characterized by the presence of microtransactions and in-game purchases; however, many users appreciate that the game feels complete and polished without relying heavily on these practices. Players express satisfaction with the game's quality and the developers' apparent passion, contrasting it with the trend of incomplete games that prioritize profit through additional content.

    • “In a time when games are cutting corners, releasing half-finished products and cramming in as much DLC/microtransactions as they can, this game is in stark contrast—a game that oozes polish and quality.”
    • “For the first time in at least 2 years, I feel like I just finished a game that the developers created because they had passion for a project, not just a cash grab.”
    • “Well, I hope you'll receive the other part of my discount from Twitch as a thank you for the advertising.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

85% average critic score

Buy Expeditions: Rome

Play time

47hMedian play time
60hAverage play time
23-90hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 26 analyzed playthroughs

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