| Rebelstar: Tactical Command review |
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"If it ain't broke, don't fix it," as the saying goes. Julian Gollop knows this, having made a name for himself in the turn-based combat genre over the last twenty years with such titles as Rebelstar Raiders, Laser Squad, Lords of Chaos and X-Com. Confining yourself to one narrow genre may be considered repetitive, but when the games in question are classics and produced so infrequently, you are always left wanting another one in the future.
Rebelstar: Tactical Command (RTC) takes the heart of Laser Squad and combines it with the improvements and variation of X-Com, making the whole one of the best games to hit Nintendo's handheld. Whilst the game solely focuses on a pure mission structure (and hence has none of the research and investigation aspects of X-Com), it is overflowing with depth, detail and complexity, whilst not being overly bloated and scaring off any potential new players.
Anyone familiar with Gollop's previous work will not have much problem settling into the gameplay mechanics of RTC, with the same action point (AP) system, line of sight, opportunity fire and individual skill levels all still present and correct. Needless to say that might sound like a load of gobbledygook to a lot of people, so here's a brief rundown about how the whole engine works.
Each character under your command receives a set amount of action points (AP) per turn. AP is used to perform any action within the turn, such as moving, firing a weapon, picking up items or equipping. Saving (or more precisely not using) certain amounts of AP per turn allow a character to be placed in "opportunity fire" mode (or Oversight as it is called in RTC) which means should an enemy come into view, your unit will automatically try to shoot them.
Shooting (and targeting in general) come under the "line-of-sight" rules, which means what it says on the tin. Enemy units will only appear visible should a clean view be available to them from any of your units, and generally cannot be shot at otherwise, unless your unit is equipped with a grenade or similar.
RTC, like many modern games, starts out with a number of training missions. This is of benefit not only to the new player to get them fully up-to-speed with the game mechanics, but allows old-timers a chance to refamiliarise themselves and understand some of the new features or changes made since the previous games.
Indeed, the game is very friendly to those who have not played any of Gollop's other games, which can be only a good thing in gathering as many new fans as possible. Aside from the training missions that explain all that is needed, there are some new features such as the visible line-of-sight option (clicking R shows you exactly what squares a unit can see at any time) which makes the game a little less intimidating to play and enjoy.
The key aspect of the game is in the development of the squad throughout the missions. Performing certain actions (and especially killing stuff) gives a unit experience and when enough is earned, the unit will level-up in RPG fashion. This also earns a skill point which can be allocated to one of a number of attributes, such as the various gun skills, medic (so a unit can heal others), close combat, leadership or stealth (makes a unit harder to spot and harder to hit). How you develop the squad is up to you, but a variety of skills is a must and key to balancing out any attributes required for the missions ahead.
About a third of the way through the game, the ability to customise the equipment being taken and where to deploy the team comes into play. This adds another level of flexibility and freedom to your decisions on how to approach the objectives. Want to go undetected? Load up with some pistols, sniper rifles and choose team members with stealth skill. On the other hand, you could go in with vast amounts of explosive shells and tear the map to pieces. Ultimately of course the choices here will be partly defined by how you are developing the individual members as time goes on, but regardless of skill levels, anyone can use most weapons and items available.
The missions themselves are very tight and defined which makes them easy to pick up and play and helps to keep them focused. Unlike, for example, a number of missions in X-Com where it would take a while to find the last alien to eliminate, the maps are in general not that big which allows for a good balance between strategy and engagement. There is no feeling of it being too sprawling yet there is no feeling of claustrophobia either, or the need (or forcedness) to be constantly engaged with the enemy; there is room to retreat or regroup as needed. The game lives by its maps and these are close to perfection for what is required.
If there is one thing to fault RTC on, it would be the presentation. The cutscenes are simple layered graphics which look fairly rushed, there is only one piece of main music which can get repetitive after a time, and there is the occasional positioning issue with the cursor when switching actions. There is also the odd quirk or bug present, should you dig hard enough to find them (or be "lucky" enough to run into one by accident).
None of this directly impacts on the overall quality of the game, especially when facing another human opponent. It is one thing to break the CPU AI and figure out how to win, but against another real person, the game comes into a new dimension. Laser Squad always worked best in two-player mode, and the same applies to RTC. No two games will be the same, and with a choice of all four factions and all the maps present in the story mode, it will take some time to play through them all. Hopefully though you'll trust your opponent enough to hand over the machine as soon as their turn is finished!
RTC may seem a step back to the X-Com hardcore, but there is no way the poor GBA would cope with it all. What has been delivered is a new game for a new generation that is as compelling, addictive, challenging and playable as those that have come before it. The price currently being asked in the US ($20) is merely another incentive to buy. Thoroughly recommended and the campaign for a similar game on a more powerful platform begins now. |
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System: Nintendo GameBoy Advance
Genre: Strategy
Developer: Codo Technologies
Publisher: Namco
Players: 1-2
Version: United States
Reviewed: Oct 2005
Writer: Mat Allen
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Pros:
- Clean, concise, easy to understand interface
- Complete control over strategy and team development
- Head-to-head play available with only one GBA
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Cons:
- Presentation is somewhat lacking
- The odd bug but for a game this complex, it's minor
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