Lost Empire: Immortals
Preview
The galaxy just got much, MUCH bigger.
by Marcus Mulkins
previewed on PC
Getting down to the nitty-gritty (cont.)
Now, there are a few other salient features which Paradox Interactive, the publisher, is touting about the Danish developers', Pollux Gamelabs, latest creation which I somewhat question:
Primary amongst those is that they are bragging about "Vast Scientific Multi-nodal Research Tree" containing some 150 Researchable techs. Compared to Galactic Civilizations: Dark Avatar, that is not exactly a quantum leap. In fact, I believe that the GC:DA Research tree is right about that 150 mark. Whatever the difference is, it strikes me that 150 isn't a number large enough to brag about.
Then there's the ballyhoo about being able to customize eight - count them! eight! - ship classes that you can customize and tweak continually as the Research breakthroughs keep making your fleet obsolete. I seriously doubt that the system will be anywhere as freewheeling and extensive as the ship design component in the GC games. Then again, maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised. Remains to be seen.
I'm sort of neutral about the "3D Rendered Dual Warfare System". It sort of sounds like TiVo for your space combats, where you can watch your fleet get its butt kicked over, and over, and over again from a dozen different angles. And it should be stressed that you can give orders to the fleet going into the engagement, but thereafter you will become a passive observer. (But a noisy one, I'm sure, as you scream at the screen, "Not _there_! Over THERE! Can't you see that ship sneaking up behind you?? What is wrong with you morons?? Don't you have the slightest bit of initiative??")
And now for the BIG complaint...
One of the most annoying aspects to me about all of these space empire games (and Civilization-type games as well) is that though they are focused on one HUGE empire or civilization, the premise is that that race or empire literally puts all of its eggs into one basket. As in, for a star empire that can span several hundred planets, all of those planets are directing their Research efforts towards the perfection of ONE technology.
Now, just stop and think about it: In the USA alone, how many distinctly separate lines of research are being conducted right this moment? Undoubtedly there is research on a score or more of different weapon systems, dozens of diseases are being studied in order to find cures, and umpteen corporations are working on new-and-improved versions of their products. Despite that clear and obvious model of Reality, practically every single game out there has decided that players will be limited to the advancement of just ONE technology at a time. And that same unrealistic approach is applied to other areas of the games: A planet will have only ONE space ship under construction at a time. Every province of every planet will levy ONE tax rate. Every planet is limited to building just ONE Social or Industrial project at a time.
One of the things that make these games enjoyable is that they are at least somewhat "realistic", albeit a simplified and streamlined version of Reality. Given the sophistication of computers and computer programs these days, how hard would it be to allow for multiple lines of Research? Understandably, the Research process slows down when the budget gets split between 20 different projects, but conversely, as projects come to fruition more or less at the same time, it can catapult the society into a Golden Age. That, to me, seems like some attainable Reality that the developers of every game - including this one - seem to have deliberately ignored. Either they have been blinded by "this is the way it has always been done" or else they don't want to waste effort on what may be viewed as a luxury item. [Which makes me think of Henry Ford: "The American public can have their Model T in any colour they want - as long as it's black."]
"The End" is near!
You will undoubtedly be hearing that as far as space empire games go, Lost Empire: Immortals is going to be a great game. Perhaps it will even be described as "destined to be viewed as a classic." That may be. I know that, I, for one, will be buying this game, pretty close to the March 31st release date. And that I will more than likely spend hundreds of hours playing with it. That is, for my $29.99 (and also €29.99, which I find amazing, given the exchange rate), I will most definitely be getting my money's worth out of it. But I am also pretty certain that while I play it, the word "great" is not likely to cross my mind very often (at least, not in the complimentary use of the word). However, I am confident that I will be entertained for many, many hours.
And what more do you really need from a game?
The End
