Supreme Commander
Preview
Command astonishingly huge armies
by Marko Susimetsä
previewed on PC
Just another RTS? Perhaps not
Ever since the genre was first started, RTSs have followed pretty much the same formula: First you build, build and build, both your base and your units as fast as you can and then, usually after you've built the maximum number of units allowed, you send the horde against your enemy. And as soon as your units start dying, you build new ones and send them to strengten the main army. After playing a dozen or so of such games, you become rather indifferent towards the whole genre. Sure, there have been some games that have tried to break free from the micromanaging and other pits in the genre, some by combining it with FPS and others by introducing some turn-based elements into the fray.
Now, attempting to shine through all the contemporary RTS games, comes Supreme Commander, promising epic battles instead of small skirmishes, strategy where there was only tactics, and big maps instead of small backyards. Supreme Commander comes from Gas Powered Games and THQ and if you know one name from amongst the developers, it will be Chris Taylor ? the man who created Total Annihilation in 1997. And if you don't know what Total Annihilation is and you love RTS games, you were either born after 1997 or lived under a rock for the past decade. But, let's get to the point and start with the always necessary...
...Backstory
It is the 37th century and humanity has conquered pretty much the whole galaxy. But when there was little more to conquer outside the human space, the humans turned against each other. For the past millennia, humanity, now split into three factions, has been waging a war against itself. The Cybran Nation, Aeon Illuminate and the United Earth Federation have been unable to find a satisfying compromise between their different systems and beliefs ? in fact, the only thing that the three factions agree on is that the only solution is to get rid of the other factions for good. And now, after a millennia of warfare, the Infinite War is finally at its turning point. You, as the Supreme Commander, hold the key to finally end the war.
Factions and their armies
Of course, this being a game, you have a chance to decide which of the three factions will be blessed by your superior leadership abilities. The UEF is led by 54-year-old President Riley, the Aeon Illuminate by 27-year-old brunette Princess Burke and the Cybran are led by 1304-year-old Dr. Gustaf Brackman... Or rather, Gustaf Brackman's brain that is suspended in some sort of fluid and connected to a vast computer system. Now, based on just this information, I have only one question for you: which of these three leaders would be the best equipped to reward you after you have led her... eh... their armies to the victory? Oh, well, some of you may not think the way I do and need some more information of the tools of war that you are given to command...
The three warring factions will be more or less equally footed when the game begins. They all begin at tech level 1 and progress slowly, by building more and more structures and factories to support higher tech levels. All in all, there are 4 tech levels and by the time the game has progressed that far, the three factions will be completely differently equipped. Despite their differences, all factions will have land, sea and air forces.. And these units will be numerous. Unlike in most other RTS games around, you will actually see armies consisting of hundreds of machines of war, skies filled with fighter and bomber craft and seas filled with battleships and submarines.
Reputedly, the UEF will be the easiest faction for new players, who just want to get out there on the field and start fighting, although the other factions will be just as powerful, if not more so, when you have mastered the best strategy to use when playing them.
