I love to swim, but I learned how to do so in quite the particular way. Perhaps too brave for my own seven year old life, I walked up to the neighborhood pool and attempted to conquer the biggest water slide the place had to offer. Sure enough, when I hit the water, I went under and as I struggled to get to the top, I could feel the rush of the afternoon air, only to be pulled back down again and again.

Supreme Ruler: Cold War, the new political strategy game from Paradox Interactive and Battlegoat Studios is sort of like the feeling of being pulled underwater while trying to swim; you often get the feeling like you're in over your head, but the payoff is more than worth it. Supreme Ruler: Cold War is deep and intricate, perhaps too much so, but if you're able to stick it out and find your bearings, you'll find an impressive and addictive strategy experience.

As you may have guessed, the latest Supreme Ruler game takes place during the time period in the mid to late nineteen hundreds where the United States and the Soviet Union, the two global super powers of the era raced to stockpile more weapons and resources than the other. The game puts you in the leader role of either of the nations, and tasks you with defeating the other in battle via very strategic planning. There's no doubt about it, Cold War is easily one of the deepest and most intricate strategy games we've played in years. Your main goal is to gain is to gain the upper hand against the opposition, but just how you do that is up to you. Do you use diplomacy to better you relations and reputation with other countries? What about stealthily taking resources from other countries? Do you condemn or encourage another country attempting to hurt your ally? There are layers and layers to Supreme Ruler: Cold War's gameplay.

"The game moves fast, and can be incredibly unrelenting at times..."

Of course, that's not always a great thing if you don't know how to handle it. Battlegoat and Paradox interactive include very little in the way of a tutorial for and assume that everyone playing the game already knows the basics of the strategy genre and as a result, I often found myself losing in battle because I simply had no idea what was going on. The game moves fast, and can be incredibly unrelenting at times, leaving anyone unfamiliar with the genre behind quickly. Sure, you could make the point that most people playing this game would already be used to the ins and outs of the genre, but it's extremely intimidating for new players to come in cold.

If you do happen to stick with the game though, Supreme Ruler: Cold War is sure to show you a good time, and the bulk of that will come from the game's campaign. There are literally enough choices to play through the entire campaign multiple times without many (or any) repeating scenarios. The first time I played very aggressively, attacking my foe and their resources at any given chance until I was able to launch the inevitable nuclear attack, but on my second play through, I did things a bit differently. I played nice with my foes and the nations around me, earning their trust and learning their secrets...until I was able to launch said nuclear attack (what? It's a cool part of the game). The amount of options is truly impressive.

"...the game features a 16 player multiplayer skirmish suite..."

Aside from the campaign, the game features a 16 player multiplayer skirmish suite for up to 16 players. Though the matches where we were able to get the full 16 player field together were quite fun, many of the games featured far less players and as a result, wasn't as fun. The options are (weirdly enough) quite limited when compared to other games, so if you're looking for a new game to play online only, you may want to look elsewhere.

It may not be pretty, and it may not be the most flashy game on the market, but Supreme Ruler: Cold War packs quite a punch with its content, complexity and depth; oh and it's also loads of fun to get lost in, if you make it past the first five minutes. Strategy fans - don't miss this game.