Supreme Ruler 2020 is the third version of a game that was originally released in 1983 when it was a text-based strategy game. The second version called Supreme Ruler 2010 was released in 2005 to critical acclaim from various different gaming and strategy publications including winning an award in Canada in the PC category. The new version 2020 has been released with various improvements from the previous and with different variations on the original gameplay. The developers have to be congratulated for actually listening to the players of the last version and making the improvements they have suggested on the various forums etc.
In the game it is the year 2020 and the world is fracturing along economic and political fault lines. Borders are changing on a daily basis and rival military forces duel over the dwindling resources remaining on the planet. Choosing to represent a nation anywhere on the map the gamer has to rise above this chaos and lead his country to a new period of order and stability and restore the faith of the terrified population.
The scope of the game is just mind blowing. It features a very sophisticated strategic and tactical military system and you have access to hundreds of different military vehicles to research, build and deploy in your campaign. It does not have to be conventional warfare either as there is a full nuclear weapons possibility left open to you. It also features a complex government and economic system where you can control any department within the government should you wish too. However you can make the game slightly less complicated by delegating various decisions to the cabinet ministers you have under you. These ministers are incredibly helpful supplying you with the relevant pieces of data you need via an email box where they give you advice and ask you questions on the issues that you have chosen to peruse yourself instead of delegating to to them.
There are various different game modes available for you to play including regional battles, missions and full blown campaigns and a new sandbox mode where you can customize the game to your heart’s content, thus, the developers hope, extending the replay ability of the title. There is also a multiplayer mode where each player takes on an area of the map and you play until the agreed winning conditions have been achieved.
This is not a game to play for an hour and then go back too. Infact for the first hour of gameplay unless you are very familiar with the previous title, there is a chance you will be overwhelmed with it all and think it is too complex for its own good. There are so many boxes of information for you to read and digest although thankfully these are kept to the bottom of the screen and have been made easy to access by the use of a spinwheel system.
Graphically this is a much improved game than previous. The maps are detailed and varied depending on where in the world you decide to represent and the terrain actually seems to alter the gameplay accordingly. Depending on what you are actually doing at that time you can view the area from a distance or zoom in to view your troops etc moving over the terrain.
The ingame music seems to be straight from some US thriller/action movie and although well presented will be something that you will switch off as to me it distracts from the gameplay.
Overall if you are a strategy fan, especially a military strategy fans than this game is a delight. If you played the last version of the game then you will notice and approve of the improvements. However, it is certainly not a game for a novice as the level of complexity, even when you have delegated decisions is still enough to make you decide to switch off. There is a full (Very) tutorial provided with the game but to be honest unless you are completely stuck you are probably better off just playing the game and trying to figure out things yourself as you go along. The only other complaint about the game is that if you decide to delegate decisions to the ministers it can seem like you are not needed and you are just watching the game play itself out without any input at all. For example in one game somehow without realising it I got my country into more debt than I thought possible but the ministers sorted it out for me.
It is a game that rewards you for the effort you put into playing it. As I said it is not one you are going to play for an hour while you are waiting for your tea to cook. It will not appeal to everyone but I don’t think that is its intention but to strategy buffs like myself it is a very solid and enjoyable game and experience.
Windows 
