And so another year comes to an end. And with the end of the year, Game Tumor goes into hibernation and I am liberated from the pressures of coming up with more posts for this corner of cyberspace (at least until next year....).
So what has 2018 has to show for itself? Well I had the pleasure of casting more games from my Hall of Shame: Homeworld and God of Thunder were both beaten at long last, Trails in the Sky SC was finally concluded and Oxenfree turned out a massive delight; I finally entered the current console generation with the purchase of an Xbox One; mini retro consoles are proving to be a huge success; and Blizzard has made a major mistep that has thrown the internet into all sorts of chaos.
But whatever.
You may have noticed that this post marks the 900th post to this blog. Yeah, I can hardly believe it myself. So after nine years and 900 posts this blog is still going.
It just refuses to die!
One would think that I would eventually run out of things to say (especially considering that I'm shooting out fewer posts annually than previously) but apparently not. One would think that, seeing as this blog has lasted longer than the usual internet time span, that it's time has well and truly gone but no. I suppose as the wonderful world of gaming keeps trucking on, i will have things to say. And as long as I keep having games left unplayed, this blog will keep on going.
So here's the future and I hope to speak you all again when the curtain rises on 2019.
Showing posts with label Homeworld. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homeworld. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Homecoming
Another game has been cast down from my Hall of Shame. Clean out your desk Homeworld, you're outta here!
Original image located here. Accessed 24th October 2018
Man has this been a long time coming. It was released in 1999, I got the game off the shelf in 2009 and then I complete it in 2018. Of course I could've waited out another year but why on earth would I do that?
Anywho, this game is nothing short of impressive - even with the time of nineteen years. I could say that the novelty of the 3d would be enough but the game truly excels with it's narrative, it's presentation and the music - notably the use of Barber's Adagio for Strings and Yes' The Ladder.
Indeed, this is game that has truly benefited from a revamp by Gearbox, adding to the beauty and immersion tenfold.
Of course these words are typed through the perspective of a) having played through the revamp and b) the distance of nineteen years since it's original release. But what I find particularly fascinating is that time was not ravaged this game at all. It still has an impressiveness that a lot of modern games can only dream of and is still as compelling, and still quite capable of being heart rendering.
In fact, one gets the feeling the destruction of Kharak is the PC's answer to the PlayStation's death of Aerith.
Monday, June 29, 2015
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Yes Means No
So Homeworld Remastered is now upon us so one would think I would make a beeline for it.I have talked it up in the past right?
But strangely no: I'm not rushing out to get the Homeworld Remaster - or at least dropping everything and getting the Steam code.
Why? Well I did consider it until I realized that the ace end credits theme The Ladder had been omitted. That may seem strange enough to be a deal breaker but dammit, I want my game to end with some rockin' prog rock dammit!
But apparently Gearbox (or someone) couldn't obtain the license to use it.
So what does that men? Did Yes say No?
But strangely no: I'm not rushing out to get the Homeworld Remaster - or at least dropping everything and getting the Steam code.
Why? Well I did consider it until I realized that the ace end credits theme The Ladder had been omitted. That may seem strange enough to be a deal breaker but dammit, I want my game to end with some rockin' prog rock dammit!
But apparently Gearbox (or someone) couldn't obtain the license to use it.
So what does that men? Did Yes say No?
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Take the Controls
Seems Homeworld isn’t the only IP getting a new lease of life: Stardock Entertainment has picked up Star Control for a revamp. Inspired by the success of the recent XCom reboot, Stardock wants to reboot Star Control and is even looking to draft some of the original development team in for the job.
I assume that this will be a reboot of Star Control 2 – for the original game was a ‘space battle’ game whilst its sequel builds upon the previous game incredibly (there was a Star Control 3 but people choose not to talk about that one….). I myself am delighted by this news I’ve been playing Star Control 2 a lot this year and found it much to my liking. True the game is already available for free online in the form of the Ur-Quan Masters, but if this reboot generates new interest in this classic then I’m all for it (It’s been a long time coming too).
In fact it would be interesting to see how this reboot stands up, when everyone’s been busy playing Mass Effect. Sure the element of space exploration may invite comparisons but whereas Mass Effect is an action RPG built around a central character, Star Control 2 is more about building a fleet, finding locales to visit, ship combat and building relations with other alien races so they’ll join your cause.
Mind you considering how many goofy alien races populate the Star Control 2 universe, one can only wonder how they’d work in a 7th/8th generation game.
I assume that this will be a reboot of Star Control 2 – for the original game was a ‘space battle’ game whilst its sequel builds upon the previous game incredibly (there was a Star Control 3 but people choose not to talk about that one….). I myself am delighted by this news I’ve been playing Star Control 2 a lot this year and found it much to my liking. True the game is already available for free online in the form of the Ur-Quan Masters, but if this reboot generates new interest in this classic then I’m all for it (It’s been a long time coming too).
In fact it would be interesting to see how this reboot stands up, when everyone’s been busy playing Mass Effect. Sure the element of space exploration may invite comparisons but whereas Mass Effect is an action RPG built around a central character, Star Control 2 is more about building a fleet, finding locales to visit, ship combat and building relations with other alien races so they’ll join your cause.
Mind you considering how many goofy alien races populate the Star Control 2 universe, one can only wonder how they’d work in a 7th/8th generation game.
Monday, July 22, 2013
We're on our way home
I heard it through the grapevine that Gearbox, having purchased the license to the Homeworld series, are now going to release new versions of Homeworld 1 and 2 - and in HD new less.
My response?
YES!
My response?
YES!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Going Home
Recently I dipped into my backlog of unfinished games and what did I pull out? A gem from the late nineties known as Homeworld!
I must admit that prior to playing this, I had little knowledge of it (as is often the case when addressing the ever-present issue of my backlog).
In fact the only thing I knew of it was through a friend: Back in 2002, I played him Mars from Gustav Holst's 'The Planets' Suite and he recognized it as the theme to Homeworld Cataclysm. Later, he showed me how to play Homeworld - and upon seeing it, I was impressed to see an RTS set in space where the main base was a massive mothership, the legions at your command were mini-space ships and the whole game incorporated the z-axis. From there, however I knew next to nothing about Homeworld and didn't pursue it further. Years later however I happened to see the original game in a store in Melbourne and snapped it up without much in the way of a second thought. This was back in 2009 - meaning the day I finally go to play Homeworld was ten years after I first became aware of it. Go fig....
Anyway, about the game itself: Firstly, I'm impressed by the graphics in that they've aged quite well. Okay so they may look pixellated in places but it certainly still looks good now than many of the other games from the same era. Also impressive is the presentation with the voice of the mothership, the artwork used in the cutscenes and the interface. I like the use of formations in the combat ships and how upgrades and resources are implemented through the ships. And, of course, there's the use of the z-axis and how it's utilised so well. On a paper it may sound like a bizarre idea to have the z-axis in a RTS but here it works a treat
Of course so far it hasn't all been good: Sometimes the graphics grow so small that it's hard to see what the hell is going on - this is particularly frustrating during the combat sequences when your ships are getting blown to bits and you're trying to get your head around it.
But still this is a first-impressions and so far Homeworld still has a lot going for it - and enough to warrant further investigation.....
I must admit that prior to playing this, I had little knowledge of it (as is often the case when addressing the ever-present issue of my backlog).
In fact the only thing I knew of it was through a friend: Back in 2002, I played him Mars from Gustav Holst's 'The Planets' Suite and he recognized it as the theme to Homeworld Cataclysm. Later, he showed me how to play Homeworld - and upon seeing it, I was impressed to see an RTS set in space where the main base was a massive mothership, the legions at your command were mini-space ships and the whole game incorporated the z-axis. From there, however I knew next to nothing about Homeworld and didn't pursue it further. Years later however I happened to see the original game in a store in Melbourne and snapped it up without much in the way of a second thought. This was back in 2009 - meaning the day I finally go to play Homeworld was ten years after I first became aware of it. Go fig....
Anyway, about the game itself: Firstly, I'm impressed by the graphics in that they've aged quite well. Okay so they may look pixellated in places but it certainly still looks good now than many of the other games from the same era. Also impressive is the presentation with the voice of the mothership, the artwork used in the cutscenes and the interface. I like the use of formations in the combat ships and how upgrades and resources are implemented through the ships. And, of course, there's the use of the z-axis and how it's utilised so well. On a paper it may sound like a bizarre idea to have the z-axis in a RTS but here it works a treat
Of course so far it hasn't all been good: Sometimes the graphics grow so small that it's hard to see what the hell is going on - this is particularly frustrating during the combat sequences when your ships are getting blown to bits and you're trying to get your head around it.
But still this is a first-impressions and so far Homeworld still has a lot going for it - and enough to warrant further investigation.....
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