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By Mark Digiovanni on May 8th, 2006
Developers Sillysoft want to take over the world. Or at least that’s the impression you may get from their Lux series of games. Lux Deluxe, released in 2005, saw the developers pick up a couple of awards for their independent, Risk-inspired strategy game. Sillysoft decided to keep the Lux name alive with American History Lux. Whereas the wars in Lux Deluxe encompassed the entire planet, American History Lux focuses on the singular wars that have shaped American history, such as the US Civil War and the American Revolution. It is your role to guide the American soldiers through each of the 10 wars available.
"AHL can be alluring, especially due to the satisfaction in winning a war..."
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Sillysoft claim on their website that "taking over the world is fun," but is the game any fun? If you’re a fan of the turn-based strategy genre or the classic game of Risk, then you’ll be accustomed to the gameplay elements. But if you don’t know your Age Of Empires from your Empire Earth, there is a quick three-page tutorial that explains just how to tackle the elaborate scenarios. There are 4 difficulty levels ranging from Recruit to General that cover the grounds for newcomers and seasoned veterans of the Lux world alike. Before selecting your desired war, the game offers you a crash course in history informing you of the circumstances that lead up to the specific event. There are even links to Wikipedia articles for each war if you’re interested in further reading. As far as the battles in the game go though, they’re quite fun once you figure out a strategy. There are key areas on the maps that give you bonuses by allowing a larger number of reinforcements. The goal is to control these key points so that you may build up your forces and obliterate your enemy. American History Lux can be alluring, especially due to the satisfaction in winning a war, but the game is not without its faults. The flat, 2-D-drawn maps come off as a little stale. Each map looks the same as the one before it, so there isn’t much to offer in the graphics department. The armies placed around the maps are symbolized by one or two soldiers, depending on the size of the army, and a number that signifies just how many soldiers are covering a piece of land. The battles between you and your enemy are quick and concise. Only a small cluster of explosions animate the war at hand, which loses its charm quickly as you soon find yourself using the option to skip through battles quicker. The graphics are serviceable considering the game wishes to emulate the flat-board look of Risk, but on the other hand, they are so minimal that you often wish there were a little bit more to offer.
"...there isn’t much to offer in the graphics department."
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The sounds and music will evoke the same kind of reaction. You’re treated to a familiar sounding theme of war as you play, the kind with a steady flow of trumpet and pounding timpanis, but the problem is that it’s the only song that plays. By the end of the first war I had the music turned off and wishing that there was more variation. The sound effects mostly comprise of the crackling explosions that accompany each battle as well as the placement of your troops. The quality of the audio is not particularly bad, it’s just that it gets repetitive quickly. Much like in the case of the graphics, if the audio were more diverse it would make for longer, more enjoyable sessions.
"...could’ve delivered more."
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American History Lux is not a terrible game -- it just feels like Sillysoft could’ve delivered more. Their previous game, Lux Deluxe, featured online multiplayer matches with worldwide rankings as well as the ability to create your own maps. Both of these features are absent from American History Lux, and sadly, so are any other features besides the single-player campaign. Fans of Risk and Lux Deluxe are still advised to give this game a shot, but as someone who is not a hardcore fan of the aforementioned, I could not find very many redeeming qualities in American History Lux. | 
