|
|
||||||
|
|
||||||
Spaceward Ho! 5Reviewed By: Erica Marceau Review Computer: 400MHz G4 (Gigabit Ethernet) with 768MB RAM, ATI Rage Pro 128, Mac OS X (v10.2.4) Review Date: May 27, 2003
Your goal in Spaceward Ho! 5 is to dominate a galaxy by conquering planets through exploration, colonization, and engaging your opponents in battle. Unlike other strategy games which have a steep learning curve and a complexity to match, Spaceward Ho! 5 keeps things as simple as possible. Will gamers find enough depth to keep them interested?
The rules are deceptively simple. You have to explore the planets to determine if they should be colonized or mined for metal or both depending on the temperature and gravity, with the prettier planets being better. You use planets you've colonized to explore even further until you inevitably meet other players who also want to conquer the galaxy. You can either ally with them to defeat the other players or build fighters to destroy them and satellites to defend your planets. Once you've killed all of the colonies of an enemy, they are kicked out of the game. When there are no more enemies, you win and get points that earn you ranks, the opportunity to name a star, and the ability to unlock advanced features.
Not all ships are created equally, as you can spend money on upgrading them in a variety of ways: range (determines how far they can travel), speed (determines how fast you travel when you explore and who shoots first in battle), weapons (how strong your ships can attack), shields (how strong your ships can defend), and Mini (allows you to build your ships for less metal but more gold). There's also Radical Research which can do practically anything but is a big gamble since nothing could happen. You don't know when these advances will happen, but you can prioritize on which of these you want to spend more money or none at all. For example, you might want to spend most of the money on range and speed in the first part of the game so you can explore quickly, and then switch it to weapons, shields, and mini once the game progresses so you can defeat the enemy. The best thing is that–no matter what you choose–you don't have to micromanage the research because it happens automatically.
Once you have ships, you can explore the galaxy. Scouts are ideal for this, and as you can see in the picture above that I've sent several out to the nearby planets. Ideal planets for colonization are a green and blue color, hot planets are red, cold planets are icy blue, and planets with more metal have a rocky appearance. You need a balance between the planets which make money, planets which you're mining for metal and which are losing money, and planets which you are in the process of terraforming and colonizing and which are losing money until the process is done. If you don't have enough money and metal saved up, then you won't be able to build enough fighters to defend your planets and defeat the enemies when they come knocking at your door. It's also important to not waste metal since there is a limited amount in each game. Mining planets before the enemy gets to them is a powerful strategy, but if you're mining too many planets at one time you won't have enough money.
Not that you have to fight every other player, as you can form alliances by changing the pop-up menu next to the player from enemy to ally. If they want to ally with you they will accept and you can both be at the same planet without attacking each other. If you're best buddies, then you share with each other information about planets you explore. You can also ask for and send metal and gold to your allies as well as chat with them if they happen to be human and not computer.
Unlike other strategy games where single-player is rarely played because there is no fun in beating a dead horse (figuratively speaking), Spaceward Ho! 5 has an artificial intelligence that is actually intelligent and which doesn't have to cheat to be better than you. Of course, nothing can perfectly duplicate playing against other people, so you can sign up to the free service at spacewardho.net. The few times I've signed on, the service has been pretty empty. It might be a better idea to arrange a meeting time beforehand so you don't waste time waiting for another person who is willing to play a game.
Despite these minor quibbles, Spaceward Ho! 5 is an enjoyable game which will appeal to anyone who wants to conquer a galaxy and not spend hours learning how to do it. To answer the question I posed at the start of this review, simple rules do not necessarily correspond to a simple game, and Spaceward Ho! 5 is an example of how "simple" can be both fun and challenging.  [an error occurred while processing this directive]
|
. |
Cool Mac Gear• iPod 1G-2G • iPod 3G • iPod 4G • iPod Mini • PowerBook-iBook • Keyboard Skins • Garageband
|
||||
Starting a game is a simple matter of naming your galaxy, determining how many resources both you and the computer players get, how many computer players there are and how smart they are, how the galaxy looks (shape, size, density) and how many years there will be per turn. Once this is done, you are ready to play.
There are only five types of ships in Spaceward Ho! 5: Colony Ships, Satellites, Scouts, Tankers, and Fighters, each with its unique role. Colony Ships colonize planets so you can mine and/or terraform them. Satellites defend your planets but can't leave them. Scouts can travel far but aren't good at fighting. Tankers automatically refuel your ships so you don't have to stop at a planet you own. Fighters destroy the enemy ships and can either be Standard, Dreadnoughts, or Biological. There's a handy window which lists what ships you have, how much fuel they have, how many people are on board, where they are, and what they are doing so you can keep track easily, which is especially helpful in a large galaxy.
Engaging in battle is inevitable, and while every ship and planet can fight, the most effective at it are the fighters and–to a lesser extent–satellites. Battles happen automatically when two enemy ships meet at a planet, and it is divided into rounds with damage given and taken based on the difference in weapons and shields. Ships with the higher speed go first. Since you can group ships of different types together, you have the option of having the tankers arrive to a planet after the fighters so they miss the main battle. You can also change the behavior of the ships from normal to more offensive at the cost of defense or more defensive at the cost of offense. Aside from this, all you can do is watch a battle happen and hope for the best. Fortunately, the computer is pretty smart at knowing what to shoot at first even though it would have been nice to have more direct control.
Despite the many good points of Spaceward Ho! 5, there are a few negatives I should mention. The graphics could be enhanced by more clearly showing the differences between ship types at planets, and it would be nicer if they were a bit bigger so it would be easier to select them. Even though the requirements suggest having a display capable of millions of colors for best graphics, I didn't notice much difference when I tested it at thousands of colors. The sounds have not improved or changed since version 4, and having more of them would reduce the monotony since there's not much point to even listening to the sounds now.