Universal Combat

Rating:
Summary: Forget the rules...
Review: This is what you need to do to appreciate this game:

FORGET ALL THE ESTABLISHED RULES OF MAINSTREAM GAMES!!!

Done that? Good.

Now, the most important thing to remember is to read the manual before you begin. That is what it is for. Unlike most (if not all) other games, the manual actually performs a function. Funnily enough, it tells you how to play the game.

Secondly, make sure you have the latest patch (which, contrary to 'a gamer from Portland', you are not required to register to download. I know this because I downloaded it BEFORE I registered). This will fix many of the reported issues, most of which are there due to development time constraints.

Thirdly, do not expect to just jump in this game and start blasting alien scum within ten minutes. If you do, you will hate this game and, unfortunately, have bought the wrong game for your particular tastes. You will need to spend time learning the control system and basically getting the 'feel' of the game.

Once you have done all this, however, you end up with a game that gives you a LOT. Certainly in the Roam mode, you are basically in the middle of an entire virtual universe where you can do just about anything. Whilst you are encouraged towards combat (as the name would suggest), you can just as easily become a peaceful explorer, trader or miner. What is rather unique about this game, and a very good thing, in my opinion, is the complexity. In most spacey type games, there is no real distinction between your ship and you. In this, you actually play a character as opposed to a ship, so, for example, you can send your AE (Alter Ego, your game character) into a shuttle, launch from your battlecruiser and use the shuttle to do some trading whilst you order your battlecruiser to attack an enemy starbase. The most complex I've had it (so far) is, on a planet, having a naval group giving covering artillery fire to a detachment of infantry marines assaulting a planetary base backed up by armoured cavalry whilst, at the same time, in space, having my carrier class ship attacking a starbase with support from two battlecruiser escorts and using its fighter wings as a guard against enemy reinforcements entering the system whilst my AE was using a shuttle to trade to raise some money and having a couple of drones on a planet doing some mining.

There are some negative points. The first is that yes, the graphics do look a LITTLE dated, but unlike most modern games, it is the gameplay that makes this game, not flashy graphics.

Secondly, there are quite a few bugs, but these are being worked out as I type. This is the only thing that makes me say that unless you are quite patient, you maybe shouldn't buy it....yet. On the other hand, if you are not quite patient, you are not going to enjoy this game anyway, as it requires an investment in time and brain-power to get the most of.

In conclusion, I would say this is a game you would either love with a passion, or loathe with a passion. If you like highly in-depth, complex games that give a lot of satisfaction if you give it an investment of time and energy, you are probably going to be the former.

Rating:
Summary: Forget the rules...
Review: This is what you need to do to appreciate this game:

FORGET ALL THE ESTABLISHED RULES OF MAINSTREAM GAMES!!!

Done that? Good.

Now, the most important thing to remember is to read the manual before you begin. That is what it is for. Unlike most (if not all) other games, the manual actually performs a function. Funnily enough, it tells you how to play the game.

Secondly, make sure you have the latest patch (which, contrary to 'a gamer from Portland', you are not required to register to download. I know this because I downloaded it BEFORE I registered). This will fix many of the reported issues, most of which are there due to development time constraints.

Thirdly, do not expect to just jump in this game and start blasting alien scum within ten minutes. If you do, you will hate this game and, unfortunately, have bought the wrong game for your particular tastes. You will need to spend time learning the control system and basically getting the 'feel' of the game.

Once you have done all this, however, you end up with a game that gives you a LOT. Certainly in the Roam mode, you are basically in the middle of an entire virtual universe where you can do just about anything. Whilst you are encouraged towards combat (as the name would suggest), you can just as easily become a peaceful explorer, trader or miner. What is rather unique about this game, and a very good thing, in my opinion, is the complexity. In most spacey type games, there is no real distinction between your ship and you. In this, you actually play a character as opposed to a ship, so, for example, you can send your AE (Alter Ego, your game character) into a shuttle, launch from your battlecruiser and use the shuttle to do some trading whilst you order your battlecruiser to attack an enemy starbase. The most complex I've had it (so far) is, on a planet, having a naval group giving covering artillery fire to a detachment of infantry marines assaulting a planetary base backed up by armoured cavalry whilst, at the same time, in space, having my carrier class ship attacking a starbase with support from two battlecruiser escorts and using its fighter wings as a guard against enemy reinforcements entering the system whilst my AE was using a shuttle to trade to raise some money and having a couple of drones on a planet doing some mining.

There are some negative points. The first is that yes, the graphics do look a LITTLE dated, but unlike most modern games, it is the gameplay that makes this game, not flashy graphics.

Secondly, there are quite a few bugs, but these are being worked out as I type. This is the only thing that makes me say that unless you are quite patient, you maybe shouldn't buy it....yet. On the other hand, if you are not quite patient, you are not going to enjoy this game anyway, as it requires an investment in time and brain-power to get the most of.

In conclusion, I would say this is a game you would either love with a passion, or loathe with a passion. If you like highly in-depth, complex games that give a lot of satisfaction if you give it an investment of time and energy, you are probably going to be the former.

Rating:
Summary: Oh what could have been
Review: Universal Combat could have been the best thing since sliced bread. The scope of the game is absolutely unreal. You can pilot a capital ship, opt for a fighter, cruise around in a transport, defend ground installations in a tank, man a SAM silo, launch STO (surface to orbit) missles at antagonistic invaders, orchestrate combined-arms attacks on enemy installations and much more. On top of that, many of these things can be done in a single saved game. A single character can pilot both large and small craft (in space, air and ground) with relative ease and continuity. This flexibility and diversity of available options could have made for a thrilling game that seamlessly and elegantly rolled together all imaginable forms of combat (from hand-to-hand to cap-ship to cap-ship and any other intermittent comibination). Unfortunately, every individual aspect of the game is sub-par (or at the very best, average).

Space-bourne ops are the most clearly developed, but even then the design, balancing and interface have a greater affinity for the author's own idiosyncratic preferences than any standard principles of human-computer interaction. While there is an elegant continuity between the capship, fighter and shuttle aspects of the game, there is a haphazard restriction on capabilities between ships and many common activities made difficult by an unnecessarily complex or restrictive procedures. Personnel/Security management abroad the capship is interesting, but actions get bogged down in a clunky and repetative UI.

Planetside operations are not very well developed at all. There is tremendous breadth on even a single planet, but not a great deal of depth. Many city structures serve no other purpose than to take up space, and while attacking a defended city may be challenging, the lack of interactivity with different parts of the city leaves one with a "why did I bother" feeling. Complex, ground-based operations are disappointingly difficult due to the idiosyncratic UI - while you can plan a complex op, changing strategy in the middle is absolutely unwieldy. The first-person mode is unforgivably weak, playing more like something from 1996 than anything modern.

The quality of Universal Combat is definitely greater than the sum of its parts. The connection, combination and continuity between the different elements is awe-inspiring. However, when I played this game, I experienced each individual part in succession rather than "the whole," and the aforementioned flaws in each individual part make gameplay frustrating as you go from one shortcoming to the next. The game's steep learning curve (a sure sign of pride amongst BC3k fans) is partly a natural consequence of the game's scope and complexity, but mostly due to the game's idiosyncratic design and clunky interface.

Rating:
Summary: A great game, tons of stuff to do.
Review: Well, I picked up UC day of release and after playing it for many hours, I am prepared to write my "official" review on the game. So, here goes:

General/Summary: This game is huge. There is so much to do and so many ways to do it. Even playing for 15+ hours I have not even scratched the surface of all I can do and see. I have played as a Commander on a large Star-Cruiser, a small fighter pilot and a ground force Marine, and I am enjoying all facets. Being able to fight a small armada above a planets surface, then take the fight down to the ground is alot of fun and quite immersive.

Gameplay: As was said there is alot to do, which is great, the downside to this, however, is a very steep learning curve. Be prepared to invest a few hours learning the interface before you feel comfortable engaging multiple targets. Unlike some others, I do not feel the interface is bad, just complex. This doesn't bother me, in fact I view it has a challenge and it actually increases the immersion of the whole experience.

Graphics: The space graphics are great. The ships show plenty of detail and the planets, stars and nebulae are very pretty and well done. The planets, once you enter the atmoshere, are well done from altitude but start to show some problems as you get closer to the ground. At ground level they are pretty good, but not as good as most modern day FPS graphics. I have no problem with this as the size of the game and the amount you can do more than compensate for a lack of detail in visuals at ground level.

Sound: Sound is well-done, although sparse as you might expect from a space sim. The few voices are all well done, as are the sounds of blasters. Nothing to truly complain about, although I think the FP weapons could use a "meatier" sound, but that is just a personal preference. The music is very good and goes along with the feel of the game well.

Bottom Line: A very good game, has an immersion that I have found lacking in X2 and Freelancer. While some of the graphics are not as good as the above titles, and the interface has a high learning curve, the amount to see and do more than makes up for it. I heartily recommend the title for anyone looking for a very good space sim.

Rating:
Summary: A great game, tons of stuff to do.
Review: Well, I picked up UC day of release and after playing it for many hours, I am prepared to write my "official" review on the game. So, here goes:

General/Summary: This game is huge. There is so much to do and so many ways to do it. Even playing for 15+ hours I have not even scratched the surface of all I can do and see. I have played as a Commander on a large Star-Cruiser, a small fighter pilot and a ground force Marine, and I am enjoying all facets. Being able to fight a small armada above a planets surface, then take the fight down to the ground is alot of fun and quite immersive.

Gameplay: As was said there is alot to do, which is great, the downside to this, however, is a very steep learning curve. Be prepared to invest a few hours learning the interface before you feel comfortable engaging multiple targets. Unlike some others, I do not feel the interface is bad, just complex. This doesn't bother me, in fact I view it has a challenge and it actually increases the immersion of the whole experience.

Graphics: The space graphics are great. The ships show plenty of detail and the planets, stars and nebulae are very pretty and well done. The planets, once you enter the atmoshere, are well done from altitude but start to show some problems as you get closer to the ground. At ground level they are pretty good, but not as good as most modern day FPS graphics. I have no problem with this as the size of the game and the amount you can do more than compensate for a lack of detail in visuals at ground level.

Sound: Sound is well-done, although sparse as you might expect from a space sim. The few voices are all well done, as are the sounds of blasters. Nothing to truly complain about, although I think the FP weapons could use a "meatier" sound, but that is just a personal preference. The music is very good and goes along with the feel of the game well.

Bottom Line: A very good game, has an immersion that I have found lacking in X2 and Freelancer. While some of the graphics are not as good as the above titles, and the interface has a high learning curve, the amount to see and do more than makes up for it. I heartily recommend the title for anyone looking for a very good space sim.

Rating:
Summary: Just like burning $20!
Review: When I researched this game online, it seemed like the holy grail. Finally a game that let you have some FPS fun before you hopped in your space ship and blasted off for some air & space battles. I figued battlefield 1942 meets homeworld 2. I bought it as soon as it came out.

Ah, but how quickly the dream became a nightmare...

After popping in the game (and having crash upon installation) I fired it up, cranked up all the graphical options (the beast can handle it, trust me..) To my surprise, there wasn't even a basic tutorial. I figured I'll just check out the options for the key-asignments. Well folks, hope you have no plans for changing them because there are very few keys you can change. So I whip out the manual, read it, start playing....

First of all, the graphics look like an unreal tourniment mod I played back in 2000. Only the mod was more entertaining. For the hyped "physics engine" I can only say this, bulls!@#! This game doesn't even know what collision detection is. I mean come on, Quake had it down. The user interface gave no thought to the user at all. As you can read about in other reviews. Getting from place to place will take a long, boring time. Final thought, buy some socks instead, you'll have more fun.