Universe at War: Earth Assault - PC, Xbox 360 (360) Previews


	Platform PC, Xbox 360 Genre Strategy Publisher Sega Developer Petroglyph ETA Fall 2007
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Universe at War: Earth Assault

I’m sure my jaw dropped just a little when my one and only question – about a massive unit which takes up a full third of the screen – was answered with, “No, there’s not that much zoom functionality, that’s how big that base is.” (Emphasis added.) It’s a good thing the user interface is as streamlined as it is – players wouldn’t be able to tell what’s going on if it were intrusive.

I’m paraphrasing from some scribbled notes I made after the E3 demo of Universe at War: Earth Assault but one of the Petroglyph guys explained that the base was borne from a desire to create three very different (but balanced) factions. One faction seems to be a hi-tech hybrid of robots and pure energy – to leap around the battlefield quickly they build nodes that can be connected so entering one node fires the unit off to the end point. A careful commander could construction such a “highway” behind an enemy base for a lightning strike.

The second faction, which features the aforementioned mammoth mobile base, draws its resources from the environment (which includes hapless humans) and the base that slowly thunders across the map, which can be fitted and retro-fitted with weapons and equipment to suit the battle (essentially jumping all over the tech tree). This adjustment of equipment and “tech” during the course of the

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game is available for all sides, which should up the ante considerably when it comes to tactical choices. The fact sheet notes that this “advance on the traditional rock-paper-scissors model of balance gives players even more control over how they respond and adapt to their opponent’s strategies.”

The last faction is a race of ancient beings that have had visits to

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Earth in the past, and have subtly influenced world culture. One unit looks a bit like a dragon; another resembles an angel. Besides the minor role humans appear to play in the game, these could be considered the most “human” faction, but that doesn’t account for the massive power they have at their disposal.

How these three campaigns will be strung together to form some kind of story could result in an engaging experience if handled correctly, but the basic premise is that the three factions are fighting over Earth. It’s a setup we’ve seen multiple times, but for some reason trashing the planet never gets old.

Any game with three playable species immediately creates a nightmare of balancing issues, but Petroglyph has gone further by making the sides as different as possible – it doesn’t even look like the sides will have any similar units.

Petroglyph’s last game – Star Wars: Empire at War and its expansion – featured two layers of strategy: the Galaxy, where broader strategy comes into play, and surface battles, where the more traditional real-time strategy conventions apply. Though it wasn’t part of the E3 demo, Universe at War looks like it will feature a similar scope. The official fact sheet states:

The entire globe is at your command, as you manage resources, armies, and territories in the real-time strategic mode. As your heroes lead your forces into enemy territory, you will be taken into fast-paced tactical battles where the emphasis is on combat and action. A seamless integration of both the strategic and tactical mode allows you to call in reinforcements from other territories while engaged in ground warfare and take tactical troops back to the strategic level when you win so you can use them in later battles.

I have absolute faith that Petroglyph can deliver on this – strategizing in space then zooming to the surface for a battle – but the multiplayer features are difficult for me to wrap my poor brain around.

Statements like “innovative new multiplayer features inspired by today’s top MMOs and competitive online environments” and “a persistent world” have been made before, so I asked the developers what this actually means. Adam Isgreen, Producer, explains “I think what applies in that context is the research tree and the ability to "spec" your faction along certain tech routes. We don't have a persistent on-line world you're all trying to conquer -- that'll have to wait for a sequel!” He goes on to explain some of the multiplayer modes specific to Universe at War, which includes DEFCON. As Adam explained to Firing Squad, when DEFCON starts, “everyone’s at DEFCON 5 with no research. After a few minutes, every player advances a stage, dropping first to 4, then 3, then 2, and finally DEFCON 1. With every stage drop, all tech in each tier comes on-line for every player. After you hit DEFCON 1, everyone has every tech in the game at their disposal. The counter is visible to all players at all times, so you know when everyone’s tech will advance. It leads to some really tense games of when to attack and when to wait for new tech.”

As Universe at War is being designed for Xbox 360 and Windows Vista (Live Anywhere) there will be Achievements across the board, but what’s unique in this case is that some Achievements are associated with a medal, which can in turn be “played” at the beginning of unranked multiplayer matches (excluding DEFCON) to really change-up the gameplay.

On the face of it and from what I was shown at E3 – the graphics are great – Universe at War has just about everything a real-time strategy fan could want, plus a few quirks to differentiate itself. Fortunately the wait will be a short one – Universe at War: Earth Assault is scheduled to ship this Fall.

- Omni

(August 17, 2007)