America (video game)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''America'' is a real-time strategy game developed by Related Designs and published by Data Becker, released in December 2000 and January 2001 to mixed reviews. Set in a post- civil war America, the game plays similarly to ''
Age of Empires ''Age of Empires'' is a series of historical real-time strategy video games, originally developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Xbox Game Studios. The first game was ''Age of Empires'', released in 1997. Nine total games within the ser ...
''. The player may choose to control a group of either
settlers A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settle ...
, Native Americans,
Mexicans Mexicans ( es, mexicanos) are the citizens of the United Mexican States. The most spoken language by Mexicans is Spanish language, Spanish, but some may also speak languages from 68 different Languages of Mexico, Indigenous linguistic groups ...
or
outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them ...
s of that time.


Development

''America'' was the first released game developed by German studio Related Designs after the studio had been founded in 1995, and the first full-price game published by Data Becker. The game was conceptualised at Data Becker in 1998 and developed in less than 23 months. In Germany, the game was released in late December 2000; a release in North America followed on 15 January 2001. The game was released for
Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
, specifically supporting the Windows 95, 98,
2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
and Me versions.


Reception

''America'' received mixed reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. John Lee of '' NextGen'' said that the game was "still a kick, even if the history is skewed. Many of us grew up playing cowboys and Indians, and we're primed for covered wagons, and cavalry charges. The fun wears thin quickly enough, but the game still has its charm. Now if only the Germans could polish up their American history."


Expansion

An expansion pack to ''America'', titled ''America: Expansion Pack'', added eight further missions, a level editor, a multiplayer mode, a revamped
game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term "software engine" used in the software i ...
to allow for improved artificial intelligence, gameplay and graphics, as well as new units and buildings, to the game. It was also developed by Related Designs, and announced by Data Becker in May 2001, scheduled for release in Germany in September 2001. In North America, Data Becker released the expansion pack on 17 December 2001.


Sequel

On 9 March 2001,
CDV Software CDV Software Entertainment AG (formerly CDV Software GmbH, stylized as cdv) was a German publisher of video games founded 1989 in Karlsruhe. On April 17, 2000, cdv became a Frankfurt stock market traded company. In the beginning of the 2000s, C ...
, by press release, announced that it was producing a real-time strategy developed by Related Designs, tentatively titled ''America II''. Data Becker, which owned the rights to the ''America'' name, took notice and inquired CDV to
cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...
shortly thereafter. CDV declined to do so as it found no copyright infringement in ''America II'' title, though opted to file for a caveat to protect itself from a
preliminary injunction An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in par ...
. Data Becker subsequently filed for a preliminary injunction with the
Landgericht Berlin The Landgericht Berlin is a regional court in Berlin, divided into two divisions for civil and criminal cases. In the German court hierarchy, it is above the eleven local courts (Amtsgerichte) of the city and below the Kammergericht, which is the ...
on 29 March 2001. At the time, Data Becker intended to produce an ''America'' sequel of its own. Data Becker won the case by May, wherefore CDV had to drop the ''America II'' title, though it was allowed to continue producing the game under a different name. As a result, ''America II'' was retitled ''
No Man's Land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...
''. However, CDV continued advertising ''America II'' through press releases and its
newsletter A newsletter is a printed or electronic report containing news concerning the activities of a business or an organization that is sent to its members, customers, employees or other subscribers. Newsletters generally contain one main topic of int ...
, prompting further action by Data Becker. CDV also registered the internet domain "america2.de" with registrar DENIC, which redirected users to the website of ''No Man's Land''; a judgement reached by the
Kammergericht The Kammergericht (KG) is the ''Oberlandesgericht'', the highest state court, for the city-state of Berlin, Germany. As an ordinary court according to the German Courts Constitution Act (''Gerichtsverfassungsgesetz''), it deals with criminal a ...
in Berlin in December 2002 ordered CDV to inquire the deletion of the domain with DENIC and publicise a press release to announce that it was not releasing a game titled ''America II'' in 2003. Data Becker proceeded to produce its own sequel to ''America'', to be titled ''America 2'' or ''America II'', by June 2001, planning to release it in the first quarter of 2003. Data Becker announced its sequel in February 2003, with its release scheduled for later that year. A website for the game was launched in May 2003. It was also scheduled to be displayed at
E3 2002 E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publisher ...
. ''America II'' was later cancelled.


References


External links

* {{MobyGames, id=/windows/america 2000 video games Real-time tactics video games Single-player video games Video games developed in Germany Western (genre) video games Windows games Windows-only games Video games set in the United States