Universe at War: Earth Assault Demo Impressions
May 12th, 2008
Although Universe at War: Earth Assault, a science fiction RTS game, wasn’t given an overly impressive reception when it was released I thought it was worth at least playing the demo so I could create my own impressions about the game.
The demo is quite extensive and allows you to try out a few different options from the game. Firstly it’s worth playing through the “Tutorial” mission which will guide you through the controls and the basic principles of unit selection and grouping as-well as some rudimentary building and unit production.
After playing the tutorial you can either jump into a single player game via the “Skirmish Battle Setup” or jump online using the “Conquer the World” option. Both offline and online modes allow you to pick from two maps, Kamchatka or Turkestan and play as either the Novus, a sentient machine race, or the distinctly alien Hierarchy. Each faction has there own inherent strengths and weaknesses and felt comparably different to play.
Universe at War uses what now seems to be an RTS “standard”; An isometric view of the battlefield which can be panned, rotated, and zoomed as the player sees fit and familiar game mechanics (that haven’t changed much in over a decade) which start the player off with a command centre and a construction unit with which to establish a base. The player divides their time managing building and unit production as-well as scouting the battlefield not only for the enemy but also to secure more resources to be converted into credits (when harvested), which are required to purchase everything from new buildings and units to technological advancements.
As mentioned previously the two factions in the demo felt quite different to each other. The Novus seemed like the more traditional RTS faction, constructing a more permanent facility relying upon a central command centre and periphery buildings. The Hierarchy however felt much more like an invading alien force with the sole aim of ravaging the world, employing huge lumbering behemoths which can not only produce various combat units (depending on the walker) but have a number of structural hard points that can be upgraded with weaponry or equipment.
Once the initial learning curve with the fairly complex controls has been scaled then the game itself plays really quite well. It was easy enough to navigate around the map, select individual units or create custom unit groups and send them off on missions. The game also employs a context sensitive action menu, using the left trigger on the controller, which is used to access everything from production and research menus to special unit powers.
I think most of the elements in Universe at War: Earth Assault fit together quite well. The controls work well and graphically it all looks fine with some great distinctive units and some impressive looking effects from weapons fire, however there are some niggling points in the demo. Every now and again I would get quite a bit of slowdown when there were a few units on screen at once, and the background music track on the skirmish mode was, for me, just dire.
The main problem with this demo is that apart from the tutorial you’re thrown straight in at the deep end with access to lots of buildings and units but no idea how to use them correctly. Having access to the skirmish mode straight off the bat is a two edged sword, yes the player gets to experience a vast proportion of the units in the game, but on the flip side they will most probably just end up more than a little confused with the variety of choice on offer and have to spend a great deal of time reading the accompanying informational pop-ups just trying to figure out unit roles.
I would suspect that the full retail game eases the player into the game via the campaign mode and it would have been nice if the demo also included some campaign missions just to give the player a taste of the story and of the background behind the Novus and the Hierarchy. I wouldn’t rush out and buy Universe at War: Earth Assault but it would be something I’d consider buying if I noticed it lurking in the bargain bin.
