Ever wondered what it's like to command the course of human history? In History of the World, you don't just lead one empire, but a succession of global powers across seven distinct epochs. The core premise is a sobering one: all empires eventually fade, and greatness is measured by how much territory they seized and how long their civilization lasted before vanishing. Your journey spans from the Sumerians in 3000 B.C. all the way to pre-WWI Germany.

The gameplay is high-stakes. Each round, you expand your reach by moving troops, conquering lands, and erecting monuments. Combat is decided by dice rolls, but the geography is key: forests, mountains, and the Great Wall of China can provide vital defensive bonuses. If your empire possesses navigation, you can deploy fleets across oceans to reach distant shores. Event cards add a layer of unpredictability, allowing you to trigger shifts that can alter the tide of an entire era.

The heart of the strategy lies in area scoring. Depending on the epoch, certain regions become more valuable than others. You earn points based on presence, dominance, or total control of a region. Interestingly, pieces from your previous empires remain on the board, accumulating points and creating a visual legacy of your expansion. To balance the empire-drawing mechanic, the current leader receives pre-eminence markers—secret bonus points revealed only at the end. It's a clash of strategy, luck, and territorial greed where the ultimate goal is to carve your name into the annals of history.