[2] Players must avoid famine and engage in army expansion, building construction and simple resource gathering.

Cossacks is a game which allows the user to gain strategy skills and learn history of that period by the inclusion of a comprehensive encyclopedia.

Gold, iron and coal may only be acquired by constructing mines over a designated resource area and sending peasants into them whereas food is cultivated from mills and via the use of fishing boats.

The resulting shrapnel and debris upon impact on the building(s) would also kill nearby enemy units as well as the player's own if in the vicinity.

The player may also construct ships to wage naval battles and may build from a choice of yacht, galley, frigate or an 18th-century battleship.

Larger ships typically require gold for upkeep and its crew would mutiny against the owner if the resource has been depleted.

Shooters (such as the musketeer and the strelets units) take time to reload their weapons after a volley and are vulnerable to a melee counter-attack.

In Cossacks there is a multitude of playable, randomly generated maps in addition to five long campaigns which are considered[by whom?]

[5] Desires to create the game Cossacks began in 1997, when Age of Empires was published, and development started in 1998.

The 17th and 18th centuries were selected because the most obvious continuation of Age of Empires would be medieval Europe and Cossacks was its logical successor, not a competitor.

[6] Publisher CDV Software told investors that the game was "very successful" through the end of 2000, after its release late that year.

It was also popular in Britain, reaching #1 on the sales charts and selling roughly 100,000 copies by that date, according to GSC Game World.

[7] The title debuted at #5 on Media Control's computer game sales chart for December 2000, and proceeded to place fifth, fourth and seventh over the following three months, respectively.

[11][12] The Verband der Unterhaltungssoftware Deutschland (VUD) presented the game with a "Gold" award in July 2001,[13] indicating sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Reviewers generally praised the detail and accuracy during gameplay and felt the cut scenes and opening video were impressive.

A review in ESC Magazine described it as a complex game with many mouse clicks and fast artificial intelligence for computer opponents.

[24] A review by IGN staff concluded that the game's depth, potential and lasting appeal were its strong points but poor design decisions detracted from its playability.

[4] They also thought the artificial intelligence was below par, as the variable defensive abilities of their forces resulted in significant imbalances.

[4] The PC Zone review described the game's graphics as detailed and impressive, and liked the historical accuracy, smooth unit movement and 3D landscapes.

[citation needed] John Lee reviewed the PC version of the game for Next Generation, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "Like an old movie poster, this carnival of carnage can claim 'a cast of thousands' – as well as adjectives like 'thrilling,' 'sweeping,' and, occasionally, 'glorious.

Also to be noted is the real-time strategy role-playing game Heroes of Annihilated Empires released in 2006; which, owing to poor AI, became a less successful project.