to attack first. (Otomo, his lieutenant, gives you the options.) When Kenji returns from Malcomson, he must decide whether to rebirth the Dragon Clan and save the peasants honor with righteousness or take up reigns in his brother's and his father, Lord Oja's, footsteps and lead the Serpent Clan. Taking specific territories might give benefits, and other Zen Masters may join Kenji. Later on, the player can summon these Zen Masters from the Keep. The story focuses on an artifact Called Tarrant's Orb/Orb of the Serpent which Kenji and the other clans are seeking out. Kenji must get to the Orb before them. There are four clans in the game: Dragon Clan, Serpent Clan, Wolf Clan, and Lotus Clan, each with their own motivations. The ancient Dragon Clan prizes honor above everything else and because of their devotion to such ideals, the Dragon deity assists them during times of great peril. The Serpent Clan, followers of Yin, have forgotten their honorable ways and have resorted to thievery and deceit. Wolf Clansmen prizes freedom above all else, while also being down-to-earth, hardworking people, and take a delight in nature. Lotus clansmen follow the Forbidden Path, which focuses on death and decay. Reception The game was met with positive reception upon release, as GameRankings gave it a score of 82.04%, while Metacritic gave it 82 out of 100.Igromania magazine gave the game 9 out of 10, calling it an "ideal contemporary Real-time strategy". The reviewer noted good gameplay and praised the graphics and animations, but he said the game did not deviate much from traditional RTSes and the AI did not stand out. The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Battle Realms for its 2001 "Computer Strategy Game of the Year" award, which ultimately went to Civilization III. ExpansionBattle Realms: Winter of the Wolf'' is the expansion pack, announced on July 7, 2002 and released on November 5, 2002. References External links 2001 video games Crave Entertainment games Multiplayer and single-player video games Real-time strategy video games Ubisoft games Video games developed in the United States Video games with expansion packs Windows games Windows-only games Liquid Entertainment games