Hex Empire

Hex Empire is a great example of a strategy title that appears straightforward at first glance, however, over time the significance of positioning becomes apparent. Just a couple of moves will determine whether your nation expands smoothly or is surrounded by stronger borders. That is why it is such fun. It is not overwhelming you with menu options or resource management systems. Rather, the game has you focused on the map itself. Each city, border and capital presents a new tactical problem. Its best suited to players who have experience playing strategy games centered around war with defined rules and relatively quick turns.

Key Controls

• Use MOUSE and LEFT-CLICK

Game Overview

Hex Empire is a turn based strategy game centered around territorial control, calculated expansion, capital conquest and battle. Players select one of four nations and start on a hexagonal map (shared) along with three competing empires. The objective of this game is straightforward, although not easily accomplished: Capture cities, fortify your position, protect your capital and ultimately take all of your opponents' capitals. The rules being so clean allow for greater clarity to the strategic decisions made during the course of the game.

This game works effectively due to its speed. At no point does the player feel as though they have been rushed through the game; however, their pace remains consistent throughout each campaign. As a result, the player is continually deciding whether to press forward, defend your flanks or delay for a stronger opening. Aggressive advances may place your capital at risk; whereas conservative approaches may provide additional opportunity for your opponents to establish themselves. Additionally, randomized maps contribute greatly to the replayability of this game since each campaign provides unique challenges.

Key Features

• Turn based strategy gameplay focused on conquering territory, creating borders and timing.
• A hexagonal map design that emphasizes placement and routing of units.
• Single player campaigns against 3 AI controlled rival nations.
• City and Capital capture system that maintains focus on each individual campaign.
• Randomly generated maps that increase the number of times you can replay the same campaign.
• Fast paced campaign structure that allows for tactical gameplay without slowing down.

Tips for Beginners

• Expand towards surrounding cities initially to allow growth of your area before borders become restrictive.
• Protect your capital and avoid advancing too aggressively in the beginning stages.
• Focus on the overall shape of the map and not simply the immediate neighbor of your territory.
• Use natural choke points and narrow areas to impede stronger opponent's progress.
• Do not distribute your resources evenly across multiple fronts if one front is significantly more important than others.
• Think about your next 2 turns as opposed to focusing solely on your current attack.

Intermediate Strategies

• Attack weaker neighboring nations prior to attacking stronger nations which could potentially pose future threats.
• Use city control to facilitate improved routes of advancement and cleaner front lines.
• Grow strategically so as to maintain connection among your territories and avoid stretching yourself thinly.
• Monitor your opponents' exposure of capitals and defenseless avenues of approach.
• Utilize defensive maneuvers to compel your opponents to engage in suboptimal attacks.
• Consider every conquered hex as part of a larger border plan, rather than as an independent gain.

Mistakes

• Advancing too aggressively outward and leaving your capital vulnerable.
• Engaging enemies in too many different directions simultaneously.
• Failing to recognize the significance of cities when pursuing distant territory.
• Overextending into weak lines that are difficult to defend.
• Reacting to each opponent action rather than developing a longer term strategy.
• Underestimating an opponent's potential to dominate if left unchecked.

FAQ

1. What is Hex Empire?

   Hex Empire is a turn-based single-player strategy war game in which you command a nation on a hex map attempting to defeat three AI controlled empires by capturing cities and capitals.

2. How do you play Hex Empire?

   You select a nation, expand across the hex map, capture cities to improve your position, protect your capital, and attempt to capture all enemy capitals before your opponents overwhelm you.

3. Is Hex Empire turn-based or real-time?

   Hex Empire is turn-based. Success in this type of game relies heavily upon timing, positioning and thoughtful decision-making as opposed to rapid-fire button mashing.

4. How do you win in Hex Empire?

   You win by defeating all of the other nations and capturing all enemy capitals. Typically successful campaigns rely upon strategic development of your empire and establishment of solid border controls as opposed to aggressive tactics.

5. Why is Hex Empire so replayable?

   Each randomly generated map produces a unique challenge within each campaign. Therefore, openings, borders, and direction of threats present varying degrees of complexity from one game to another.

Final Thoughts

Hex Empire succeeds due to its ability to keep strategy accessible withoutminimizing it. Each campaign provides sufficient room for improvisation whilestill providing significant guidance regarding cleaner planning and timelyexecution. This combination makes the game both easy to learn and challenging tomaster. If you enjoy traditional conquest style games with quick turns and highreplay value, Hex Empire fits naturally into Rocket Games' portfolio.

More Games Like This

If you enjoy controlling maps, expanding carefully, and developing strategy based on territorial pressures, you can continue with Terratomic io for another tactical conquest challenge, OpenFront for a wider strategic battlefield, or FrontWars for another war-style game where positioning/timing are just as crucial as direct attacks.