Sins Of A Solar Empire Review

25 Jun 2008 at 09:31:57 by Matthew Smith
Systems used to review this title: ()

“Stardock? Don't they make windows themes?!?” It was the first thing I thought when I saw the publisher for the title from new developer Ironclad. It set alarm bells ringing for me – if a company with limited knowledge of computer games are publishing a game then I should prepare myself for the worst. Oh how I should learn how first appearances can be deceiving...

I myself am not an avid real-time strategy fan. Decent games such as the 'Command and Conquer' series and 'Starcraft' have kept my curiosity piqued longer than most games of the genre, but I have never found myself becoming as deeply involved as I have with 'Sins of a Solar Empire' (SoaSE). It lays the perfect trap; it sucks you in with its mild learning curve, keeps you interested with additional features as you become more proficient in the game and before you know it you are a victim of the 'just one more go' school of addiction.

Strangely there is no single player campaign to speak of. In games of this ilk you would expect this to be a large majority of the game itself (such as the aforementioned titles), however in 'SoaSE' there are merely skirmish matches against computer controlled opponents. Well, I say skirmish, but in most cases this may not be the right choice of word. A skirmish implies a fast and deadly showdown that can be decided very quickly. In 'SoaSE' this is rarely the case with matches lasting in some case in an excess of five hours! Where does all that time go?

Nearly all games start off the same way; you have control of a capitol planet and a solitary ship construction yard. Your starting funds are limited so you have to make snap decisions about how you start things off. Do you hoard resources from the outset by mining for nearby raw materials, build numerous scout ships to see what you are up against or go for the bullish approach of building up your space fleet so that you can swarm nearby star systems one at a time.

In most RTS titles you are usually constrained by a primary objective that you have to achieve and you adapt your play style to suit these situations. However, in 'SoaSE' the only objective is to grow and expand so how you go about this is completely up to you. This can be a little overwhelming when you start off and not being a seasoned strategy player myself I do prefer a guiding hand to help me out. Having said this, once you become accustomed to the freedom you are given you are only limited by your own planning.

Another aspect of the game that will appeal to gamers that do not usually indulge in a bit of strategic gaming is the fact that the units are fairly easy to get to grips with. You don't have to worry about if certain units are more effective against other units or take into account what type of defences you should put in place. The only rule you have to learn is bigger is better. Your capitol ship is your main powerhouse and can even be levelled up and upgraded by gaining experience in battle. You then have your cruisers, f**ates, scouts and fighters to name but a few. By building several f**ates and sending them to neighbouring galaxies along with your capitol ship you almost guarantee success in that sector, but leave your rear undefended.

Just like levelling your characters in an RPG, your main ship can be upgraded with many passive and active abilities to help bolster your attacking prowess. Ranging from a longer firing range to new weapons these powers require upgrade points to purchase. These points are only gained when the ship levels up so you'll have to get it plenty of combat experience of spend precious credits boosting its level artificially. This is the only time you'll really have to worry about weapon choices and how to upgrade your fleet as all of the other units are pretty generic and cannot really be customised. As stated previously, building the bigger ships are the key to surviving in battle.

It's all about balance as you do not have the resources to build an unstoppable fighting force that can span the whole galaxy as well as invest funds into research and development. There is no 'right' way to play the game, but your play style will determine what decisions you make and ultimately what direction the game will take. Personally, being the paranoid crazy person I am, I tend to build up a small fighting force, fortify my Capital planet's location and then slowly expand outwards ready to defend my currently occupied planets if the need arises. It's a safe tactic, but it usually means a long drawn out match as my opponents prefer to use bold tactics and send scouts ahead and perform skirmish attacks on my least defended outposts.

All ...

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