July 6^th, 2005 (2:51pm) - Strategy First is pleased to announce an exclusive publishing deal with Slitherine Software under which Strategy First will publish Slitherine’s Legion Arena in North America with a launch in late 2005.

"We’re delighted to be working with Strategy First again. They did a superb job for us on the original "Legion." "Legion Arena" is a much more advanced and visually pleasing game, and we expect another success story this time," said Iain McNeil, Lead Designer at Slitherine Software.

Legion Arena is a role playing strategy game created on a massive scale, providing gamers with more than just the pure taste of battle. Set during the period of the Roman Republic, players take command of a band of simple peasant warriors and train them into a formidable fighting force. With each victorious battle, gamers can reap the rewards of fame, money and experience along with the opportunity to ’level up’ their units. Troops will learn hundreds of new talents through their field experience, and will progressively upgrade their skills with each new combat they face. Gamers can play as the Roman Empire and Celtic Clans through over a hundred scenarios and must use calculated strategies in an attempt to crush their Roman enemies on the front line.

Features:

Gamers recruit and train their troops.

Buy equipment and choose their skills. Over 100 skills to choose from!

Personalize the appearance of each squad by selecting their textures.

Command vast armies in epic 3-D battles.

Earn experience and denari for every victory.

Choice of two campaign paths—play as Romans or Gauls. Get drawn into the story of the rise of Rome.

Over 100 scenarios.

Over 20 unique unit types including Legionnaires, Praetorians, Elephants, and Naked Fanatics.

Special effects including water, particles, lighting & night battles, weather and grass.

Detailed combat model design by twice world wargaming champion, Iain McNeil.

Deploy troops and issue orders before battle.

Real time control in battle using Slitherine’s innovative order time system.

Every unit has strengths and weaknesses. Gamers learn how to use their strengths and exploit their enemies’ weaknesses.
Real terrain effects—cavalry are weaker in woods, light infantry are weaker in the open.

Sandbox mode to allow the design of scenarios for gamer and other players to challenge.

Two-Player head-to-head mode over LAN & Internet.