Review Shock Tactics: XCOM for 300 rubles

⚑ 10 May 2017г. Category: Articles | ❤ 1239 | Reviews: 0

Contents

1 Space flagelacion
2 Hunky-briks — and kings!
3 Do not attempt to leave Hephaestus

A distress call from a mining Outpost came too late: when the soldiers arrived at the scene, around lay only the bloodied bodies of the colonists. Lacerations indicated that the attack made the local creatures living in the Hephaestus long before the arrival of man. But the monster hadn’t gone far: the group was about to return, when the earth suddenly shuddered. The rescuers realized that something is moving in their direction, so the captain ordered to circle the wagons… No, it’s not a scene from “Aliens” or “starship troopers”, a strategy RPG from the small German Studio Point Blank Games.

Space flagelacion

Reminiscent of the fantastic action with the participation of some of Michael pare , or, God forbid, Olivier Gruner. In the distant future, corporations battle for control over the colonies, which produce resources for the metropolis. We — for, generally speaking, the good guys, who call themselves the free exploring space or SIK. Against us — all relatively bad: alien consortium (HIC), the pirates and adventurers of all stripes, as well as the flora and fauna of the planet Hephaestus, where the action unfolds game. Why probation? Because the JIC, the IR — a hell. Those and other captured worlds, in order to drain them dry, and then stick to the next carcass. And if you had the opportunity to interview a soldier “free”, he’d say something like this: “the Bosses said — that fight. Well, boys, let’s go die?”.

In comparison with the same substance, the characters provide iron motive — attack on the homeworld, and offered more or less adequate, the plot, the authors Shock Tactics worked for these moments to fuck off. The space researchers arrive at Hephaestus and searched with the help of vehicle surroundings base, passing through the cell per day. And that’s from the “fog of war” on the map appear the task is to repel the pirates of the mine, there — to capture the Outpost. In other words, the activity is reduced to the formula “kill them all”. The reward we get, of course, resources.

As is customary in solid strategies money with the minerals go into the development of the database: build and improve the supply of building generator, equip the Arsenal, the infirmary, training center, launch pad — in short, everything you need to kick ass. And in addition arming soldiers with the latest technology, because the colonists there only six months — just long enough parts start colonization and landing IR. For clarity — this is about how the Harkonnen attack on house Atreides in the novel dune.

That is, in the global section of a Shock Tactics and XCOM have little in common — here he dashed, and, fortunately, it takes just 1% of the time spent playing. Another 10% are looking at a pink jelly that says “loading”… Well what did you expect? Cool CGI and action clips with knocking doors? The rest of the timing smells of gunpowder and it’s great. Because here the Germans beat Firaxis on a number of points. But breaking anything, of course.

Hunky-briks — and kings!

The battlefield friends work rules, copied know why until legend and exactly same flow of action points: to run barrels and shoot and fence in a barrel — only run. But make a correction on the budget: no major plans for the shaky camera a La “the Bourne Identity”, it is impossible to demolish the house on the Foundation and to burn the groves at the root. Although, Yes, Shock Tactics much like XCOM.

Imagine XCOM, where you don’t need to spend a move to reload gun. Where the calculation of accuracy is done for each bullet, so, for example, machine-gun fire at low odds albeit slightly, but still hurt the enemy. Where a bullet is shot at point blank range. If a fighter, if desired, could reach out and touch the enemy hand, the success rate is full, not 65%, than sinning strategy Firaxis. Where you show who and what shelter you can get to crawl behind the boxes at random. Where the specialty of the soldier does not tie his chain to a particular type of weapon: for example, hand sniper gun, and the assault sniper rifle and watch what happens.

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And where, finally, there is no rush to interchange the need to get to the containers that explode in five moves. Here the same goal is achieved by other means. If someone does not know, military jargon the name of the game refers to the maneuver, which amounts to a sudden and devastating attack, forcing the enemy to retreat. No sooner said than done. Whether because of the inconvenient location of the shelters you have and successful of the enemies, whether because of the risk of death of allies under AI control, for the sake of winning and then go ahead.

But for all its merits, Shock Tactics demonstrates unimaginable ugliness. No saves during combat, so clicking is not there and losing fighter on level ground, or face, or clock start the battle again. Training does not give a tenth of useful knowledge, and communication with the local interface perfectly illustrates the song G. G. Allin “I hate people”. On the background of such ugliness to the Bahamas you get used to it, as an employee of the zoo — the smell of manure. Just think, instead of to finish off the enemy, aimed shot, on the contrary, he added health. Well, who doesn’t?

On the other hand, mistakes authors sometimes turn into an interesting experience. Here’s the situation: a squad in the middle of a great location, surrounded by corpses Gentiana monsters. Like already shot, even the wounded is — what next? The nose at the destination, as it would be in XCOM, we do not poke. Not understand, hung in the game instead of finishing the fight or the worst lies ahead. Can only get in touch through the unknown, taking just in case a defensive perimeter. And when after three or four moves really out of the woodwork spitting acid at the creature, instinctively remember “Hadley Hope”. Hell, these emotions were not, perhaps, since X-COM: UFO Defense.

Do not attempt to leave Hephaestus

What is definitely not expected from the strategy over three hundred a penny, so it is a good Russian localization. But you wouldn’t believe. If to put outside the brackets a wretched job with the font, things get done. Inscriptions translated, the actors read with feeling, really, slowly, and his words do not climb. The pirates are really “freaking out” from a daring RAID on the elimination of their leader — or not say. In doing so, the authors came to the sound with more lukewarm than localizers. Single track on all the battles — are you serious? Alas, from a mix of the beautiful with the disgusting, and woven the game.

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Make no mistake, you won’t get from Shock Tactics just gave the restart of the XCOM — Firaxis where, where is Point Blank? The preview lied to us with three boxes — so blatantly that No Man’s Sky rests, and everything breathes cheapness. As if instead of the metal and welding the developers used cardboard and PVA glue. But the shortcomings overshadows what we actually expect from tactical battles — they carry not in on the joke. Given the ridiculous price tag for any fan of the genre this is the deal of the century.

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