Back To School Month 2018: 5 games for history students
Best history games to help you with the new term
It's Back To School Month here on Pocket Gamer. The kids are finally heading back to school to continue their education, and we're either celebrating or commiserating depending on who you are.
We've planned a series of features to mark the start of the new school term.
So, whether you're a school returner looking to distract yourself from the misery of returning, or a parent celebrating the return of your free time, you'll be wanting a mobile game or three to help pass the time.
In this particular instance, we're looking at the games that might help out in the often sleepy subject of history. Here's a little look back at a few mobile games that deal with how things used to be.
1
Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge is a finely honed turn-based strategy game with just a single brutal mission - the infamous World War 2 event of the title. Everything from the terrain to the varying strengths and weaknesses of the units have been painstakingly researched and implemented.
In my review I called Battle of the Bulge "like the coolest - yet most in-depth - history lesson you've ever had". So there.
2
Type:Rider
Type:Rider is a unique game that teaches you about the history of the written word while simultaneously giving you tricky physics puzzles to solve.
In this beguiling game you're taken from Cuneiform script to pixel-driven computer fonts, all while being challenged to complete platforming sections and simple conundrums.
3
ROME: Total War
This dauntingly deep strategy game gives you control over the armies of Rome across the empire's historically held territory in Europe, North Africa, and Near-East Asia.
Besides its painstakingly realised battles, you must indulge in espionage, diplomacy, and empire management. It's a crash course guide to structure and militaristic might of the Roman Empire at its peak.
4
Nobunaga’s Ambition
If your student is interested in the history of feudal Japan, direct their attention to Nobunaga's Ambition. It might look rather rudimentary, but it's an engrossing strategy game with an epic historical sweep.
The game also pays more than the usual attention to fleshing out its cast of historically faithful characters - especially the titular daimyo who unified Japan in the 16th century.
5
Predynastic Egypt
Your two main opponents in Predynastic Egypt aren't any great opposing forces - they're the passing of time and the weight of history. It's up to you to build the great Egyptian civilisation that we all know by ticking off six essential historically-based tasks.
You don't so much play Predynastic Egypt as discover and learn it, and it's all done with a large amount of respect and consideration for events that really happened 7,000 years ago.
