I’m not the biggest RTS fan in the world. My favourite RTS is Warcraft II for all the reasons that everyone else seems to dislike it. Gameplay wise, this Command and Conquer kind of model has never resonated with me.
In terms of getting into the game it’s not too bad. Having only one resource is nice, and it’s pretty obvious what all the buildings do and how to progress in building your base.
The AI seems to be a bit more interesting (not sure about smart) than in other games of this type.
Navigating the map and using the interface feels a bit clunky to me at times.
Pathfinding doesn’t always work too well, especially in the heat of battle – but that is a pretty common problem, even in my beloved Warcraft II.
But overall, the gameplay isn’t really my thing. I find myself enjoying the early missions without base building the most.
Aside from the gameplay:
Acting is above par – sure it’s cheesy, but in a fun, not cringey way.
The overall tongue-in-cheek tone is pretty good, although I feel at times the self-referential fourth wall breaks (especially in the manual and text files) go a bit too far.
Long story short, despite my not loving this particular genre, I can’t help but be a little bit charmed by this game.
It gets bonus points for being Australian too 😉
