The interface of Emperor should be instantly recognizable by any veteran of Westwood's RTS iterations. Without so much as picking up a manual I simply delved straight into combat with ease. Moving around the camera view via rotation and zooming is fairly simple, although admittedly limited in versatility. Usefulness, however, is much more important and for this purpose the camera operates just fine. The construction menus are transparent in order to enhance the view of the battlefield, and of course a minimap rests on top of the menu. While there are waypoints and queue options along with an easily accessible command interface, I cannot say that there is anything revolutionary about the setup. From Total Annihilation to Dark Reign 2, there have been ways to group units by their chassis type, detailed modes for battle behavior, and options for tracking certain units. None of this exists in Emperor. While these are not huge drawbacks, it is reasonable to expect these kinds of basic options after having been around in popular titles for several years now. On another note, I disliked the so-called tactical interface that is presented before one actually engages in combat. Here you are presented with a kind of 2D map, showing the three sides' attacking or defending positions, and you also have to defend or attack enemy areas. But there is nothing dynamic about this, as no matter how many times this screen is displayed some battles are always there, with the same justifications, and you don't even know if and when any of your opponents have lost any territory. A lot more could have been done with this but it wasn't exactly a key feature of the game, so at worst it's a lost opportunity.

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The most critical aspect of any review is the gameplay section and this one is no exception. Emperor's gameplay is absolutely impeccable. The holistic effect of excellent audial and visual feedback certainly adds to the experience, but for now let's stick to the mechanics themselves. As soon as you enter the battlefield, you are given certain commands from HQ-- usually, it's find the enemy and blow it up (do we need a Headquarters to tell us that?). Once you establish a construction yard and some power, it's time to pound out a refinery. The resource management in this game is somewhat different for earlier Westwood titles, as your harvester is pretty much a self-operating unit, whisked to and fro the battlefield by a Carryall air unit. Both units can still be attacked, but there is no need to actually follow around the harvester and give it commands every two minutes. With basic essentials established, it's time to start building units.