Universe at War: Earth Assault Review

7.9

Format PC

Developer Petroglyph

Publisher

Genre Sim / Strategy

1 Comments

Arguing with Petroglyph's RTS pedigree is daft. With many of its members having cut their teeth on the C&C series and with the solid Star Wars: Empire at War under its belt, much was expected from the developer's next RTS.

Without question, Empire at War was a top-quality strategy game, one which commendably melded epic space battles with land-based missions. But while the intergalactic slugfest proved both feverishly exciting and innovative the land-based skirmishes were lacklustre by comparison, hardly a good omen given that Universe
at War's battles are exclusively set on terra firma. So understandably, we had our concerns when this game arrived for review.

RIGHT OR WRONG?
But our worries had no basis in fact. Clearly, the bods at Petroglyph have had a long hard think about the criticisms levelled at Empire at War's land battles, as Universe at War's missions have taken the best elements from its predecessor's intergalactic scraps and injected them into ground-based battles that teem with mayhem, explosions and unbridled carnage.

Proceedings kick off in the year 2012, when Earth has come under attack by a technologically superior alien race called the Hierarchy. With 90 per cent of the planet's military in ruins, a gruff voiced, mini-gun toting US colonel, who ticks every box on the action hero stereotype checklist, leads the remnants of the US army in a last-ditch attempt to repel the invaders.

All seems lost until suddenly, another technologically advanced robotic alien race called the Novus appears to help humanity in its fight against the aggressor race. Now that's luck. So begins a war between age-old enemies the Hierarchy and Novus. Their war, our world, to coin a phrase from recent celluloid robotic flick Transformers.

This clash of sentient machines starts with you commanding the Novus, a race of emotionless robots that considers the Hierarchy as a cancer that needs to be eliminated from the universe. Amongst their ranks is a lone human, Mirabel, who attempts to educate her logic-obsessed masters about the merits of morality, by displaying empathy for mankind that transcends her robotic comrades' single-minded desire to eliminate the Hierarchy, no matter what the cost.

Novus's battlefield technology is made up of a collection of mechanised foot soldiers, lumbering artillery units that can encase nearby allies in protective shields and nippy, lightly armoured aerial units.

However, the faction's true genius doesn't lie in its satisfying - if somewhat by-the-numbers - arsenal, but in the way its troops can traverse wide expanses in mere seconds by using Flow technology, which transports units along linked electrical nodes. Naturally, these relays have to be built first, but once you've set up a network across a map, you can traverse an entire level with a sizeable force within a matter of seconds.

YING AND YANG
Unlike their goody-goody adversaries, the Hierarchy aren't nearly as manoeuvrable, but what they lack in speed they more than make up for with sheer firepower, with several titanic four-legged customisable walkers at their disposal (head over to the Four Legs Are Better Than Two panel for more on these).

The game's final faction is the Masari, a mystical people thought extinct until the Hierarchy accidentally raise them from their slumber when they decide to use some Egyptian pyramids for target practice. This druid-like race can switch between upgradeable Light, Dark and Balance powers (offence, defence, and a happy medium), providing an excellent alternative to its more rigidly structured adversaries.

By the end of the 20+ mission campaign you'll have bloodied your hands as all four races, with each mini campaign featuring its own sub-plots and unexpected twists, turns and surprises. The plot as a whole is worthy of praise, as it genuinely attempts to inject an ethical vein into the proceedings, and while much of the moralising may be a touch heavy handed, its mere presence adds an emotional slant to the storyline, which threatens to descend into cliché at first.

Watching your units in action is a joy to behold, as vehicles pummel each other with devastating attacks that make the somewhat dated engine look more impressive than it really is.

By pressing the Cinematic View button, you can watch the firefights from the units' point of view, though more often than not you're left cursing in frustration as the so-called intuitive camera interface points in the wrong direction, forcing you to miss the brutal slugfest that's unfolding tantalisingly off screen.

WE NEED ANOTHER HERO
The further you progress into Universe at War, the more comparisons you'll begin to draw with the likes of Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends and WarCraft III. The numerous, varied factions. The emphasis on hero units. The multiple points of view. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that if you enjoyed either of these games, it's likely you'll find plenty to entertain you here, most notably if you're a fan of hero-centric RTS gameplay.

Each faction has its own unique super units, replete with special abilities. Novus' main hero is a giant, flying robotic suit piloted by Mirabel that can spit out clusters of rockets at enemies and take out enemies with a single, considered sniper shot. Orlok, the Hierarchy's champion is a lumbering robotic shell that can soak up more punishment than Rocky Balboa's cranium and fire barrages of devastating area damaging mortar fire at nearby enemies.

However, unlike its RTS competitors, special abilities aren't merely reserved for heroes in Universe at War, as each and every unit possesses at least one secondary skill. These include the ability to capture buildings, raise shields, become invisible or leap great distances in order to reach areas of the map that other units can't access.

Every unit also has a tooltip that provides information about its abilities, strengths and weaknesses, ensuring that you're never left in doubt as to which unit is best for each situation.

So, with such an impressive collection of unit skills at your disposal, you'd assume that Universe at War would be one of the most complete and tactical strategy games of all time. Well, it isn't.

A MISSING INGREDIENT
For all of its merits and imagination, all its potential and breathtaking battles, Universe at War is lacking an essential ingredient of real-time strategy games: strategy.

Yes, units and heroes possess special abilities. Yes, each faction is distinct. But all of this is made redundant by the game's simplicity. It's not long before you start to ignore your units' lovingly created and balanced abilities as you realise that you can just wade through most levels without ever truly worrying about the prospect of defeat. Pretty much the only time you'll see a mission failure message is when your hero dies because you didn't keep an eye on its health bar.

Another letdown is how contrived the game's attempts are at making you use your units' special abilities, regularly presenting solutions to you on platters rather than tasking you with using your strategic skills to outsmart the level design.

Battles also have their problems. Although intense and visually spectacular, these slugfests are all too often one-sided (in your favour), while there's an irritating over-reliance on waves of giant mechanised walkers being thrown at you when you're up against the Hierarchy. To top things off, some clumsy glitches such as losing all sound effects and music midway through missions and some occasionally suspect path-finding and animations mar what is an otherwise well-polished product.

The game's faults are by no means dealbreakers and Universe at War contains more than enough merit to warrant your investment, but there's a sense that this is a game that could have been challenging the Supreme Commander and World in Conflict if it had made of the strategic possibilities offered by its factions.

Ultimately, Universe at War provides a collection of intense conflicts that thrill more than challenge, some excellent skirmish options, and an OK freeform campaign. If you're looking for a- strategy game to fill the void until the next great RTS, Universe at War fits the bill.

Martin Korda