‘Empire of Sin’ game review: A strategy game for the budding mob boss in you
- The RPG puts you in the role of Prohibition-era crime lord
- The 1920s-set title was developed by the producers of ‘Doom’ and ‘Jagged Alliance’
Do mobster battles 1920s Chicago. Photo: Paradox InteractiveGo back in time Prohibition-era Chicago in Empire of Sin, a game in which gangsters battle for supremacy in the illegal alcohol trade of the 1920s. (Available for PCs, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, and Xbox One.)
Violence and corruption determine everyday life in the US metropolis and players take on the role of a gang boss. The goal is to rise to the top of organised crime using a combination of clever deals and brutal violence.
In this title from Romero Games and Paradox Interactive, players can choose between fictitious and real criminals such as the notorious Al Capone. Once that choice has been made, the first step is to build an infrastructure for the production and smuggling of alcohol, including warehouses, distilleries, and shipping routes.
You’ll have to battle other criminals on the way. Sometimes such turf disputes can be resolved peacefully, but mostly it comes down to gang war.
Then Empire of Sin changes from an economic simulation to tactical battles in the style of XCom games. Each gangster has their own weapons and skills that need to be exploited to win the battle.
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When fighting a gang it’s always important to negotiate peace with other gangs and to forge alliances with them – or at least to make them an offer that they can’t refuse.
The minds behind Empire of Sin are two veterans of the game industry: Brenda Brathwaite, who worked on the classic tactical game Jagged Alliance, and her husband, Doom creator John Romero.
Their vast experience shows itself in every aspect of this game. Despite its complexity, the battle for Chicago is never overloaded or overcomplicated, which means that even newcomers to the strategy genre can quickly become experienced gang bosses.