Genesis Rising: The Universal Crusade
Preview
The Human race is on the verge of conquering the whole universe with a unique mix of RTS, RPG and adventure
by Irish Jim
previewed on PC
Blood... must have blood!
This game will have many features familiar to most strategy gamers, including diplomacy and trade, but your most important resource in the game is blood! This is used to fuel (go figure) your living spacecraft, and can also be sold for currency to buy more ships. Expect to keep specially engineered units of organids that are dedicated to harvesting (yecch!) blood from space stations and transporting it back to your mothership. You can bet there will be some escort missions built around this requirement.
You can also purchase DNA, which is used to upgrade your ships. Each ship class will have a different number of DNA slots, and therefore numerous combinations of upgrades, including combat and defensive modifications, speed and maneuverability, and the aforementioned harvesters (I cannot resist calling them bloodsuckers!). You will be able to see the effects of your genetic engineering in real time, and this will help you to craft the most effective force to accomplish your goals. You can even change their genetics on the fly, so you will be able to react to changing battle situations. In addition, you will be able to explore the ends of the universe in search of new, rare DNA upgrades.
Like most real time strategy games, combat in Genesis Rising will involve assigning your units to attack enemy units, then sitting back and hoping you did your job correctly. There is something gratifying about watching one of your elite, hand-picked units decimate an enemy, and this game should be no exception. What will set it apart is a full 360 degree battle environment, and close up combat action. The developer is also promising arcade-like action, in order to appeal to gamers who might not normally enjoy real time strategy games. It's definitely different from your normal top-down strategy games with toy-soldier units, but it's more than the usual RPG or adventure as well.
OK, I can conquer the universe. Then what?
Genesis Rising will feature the expected single player campaign with 30 different missions and three unique endings, depending upon the path followed. There will also be a 16-player Multiplayer mode, in which you will get to choose from three different Factions. The Humans are, of course, the race you play in the single player mode. The Defiance are the race of aliens that are in rebellion against the Human conquerors. Finally, the Inquisition are a group of human outcasts who once fought for control of the Human race. There will be numerous multiplayer maps built into the game, but there is also promised a full map editor, so you can expect to create some of your own, as well.
The graphics are looking very polished, with lots of details like different color lasers flashing around the screen, ships exploding in zero-gravity, and the organids' metamorphoses taking place on screen, right as you are watching it happen. This is sure to be a game that will appeal to many different gamers, and I hope that it lives up to the advance impressions. It is scheduled for a September 2006 release, so there won't be a very long wait to put it to the full test.
