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UFO: Aftermath
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Graphics & Sound:
After last month's gushing preview in which I waxed poetic about the wonders X-COM, the game's spiritual follow-up (or at least that's how I like to think of it) UFO: Aftermath is finally here -- and damn is it great to get back to my gaming roots. Featuring a nice mix of RTS, turn-based gameplay, with an equal blend of RPG and straight-out strategic gameplay elements, it is one of those games that doesn't come around that often and more than likely won't get the recognition it deserves. UFO: Aftermath's graphics range from good to fantastic. The game sports a very solid look that holds well with the game's post-war theme. Aliens have just destroyed most of the world, and it looks like it. Buildings are wrecked, there's debris everywhere -- things just look bleak. Your soldiers aren't the best looking thing on the map, and tend to lean more towards the more angular, polygonal side of things -- but at the same time are animated as well as anything I've seen on the PC. I also enjoyed the more creative, original look of the game's aliens. There's also a nice variety -- so you won't find yourself simply blasting away at either the green alien or the blue one. Getting back to the game's environments, most areas can be (are usually are) destroyed. Walls can be reduced to crumbling piles of concrete and cars to twisted scraps of metal -- of course, if you happen to take out a few aliens along the way, that's cool too. The game's soundtrack sets a nice, brooding atmosphere that goes along nicely with the game's depressing landscapes. Sound effects are realistic and crisp. The voice acting does leave a lot to be desired, and sounds a tad cheeseball at times, but it's not much worse than you've heard anywhere else. |
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Gameplay:
As the name suggests, UFO: Aftermath takes place shortly after man's first contact with extraterrestrial life. Expecting the more cuddly, good-natured aliens of Stephen Spielberg, Earth opened it's arms to these new visitors. Unfortunately, they weren't in the mood to sit in a circle, hold hands and sing Kum-Ba-Ya. Instead the visitors unleashed spores into the atmosphere which in turn blocked out the sun. A week later, these spores began making their slow decent to the Earth, slowly choking out all existing life on the planet. Small groups of humans were able to band together in underground bunkers and began to plan their revenge. You are a leader of a small group of specialists out to stop the alien's takeover and complete annihilation of the human race. At it's heart, UFO: Aftermath is exactly what gamers remember from X-COM. You begin in your command center with a satellite view of the entire planet. All of your useable command, research and engineering centers are also marked. Completing missions allows you to claim more area under your control, granting you new bases. Bases also allow you to create anti-biomass centers, which assist you in repelling the spores and claiming more territory. Each of these bases provide you with support, weapons and armor. You are also given access to an in-game clock. As time passes in the game, you'll unlock new missions, new soldier classes (or just raw recruits) as well as any upgrades your scientists may be working on. Once you select your mission area, you are charged with outfitting and leading a small group of commandos. At first, you are given access to a small selection of troop types and weapons. Over the course of the game, you'll be granted better weapons and will eventually be able to use both alien weapons. Eventually, your scientists will be able to merge the two technologies and create hybrid human/alien weapons. Mission types are rather varied, but most follow a simple search and destroy goal. |
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Difficulty:
As a hybrid of gameplay types, UFO: Aftermath is rather hard to judge on difficulty since some aspects will come easier to some players than others. Beginners will have a particularly difficult time at first, given the game's steep learning curve. Much like chess, the game's interesting combat system requires you to think a few cycles ahead, requiring a different mindset than most other games. On the other hand, X-COM vets will find the game a nice fit. None of the game's aspects takes a particular prominence over the other, which helps to get players settled into what is going on. The game also does a nice job of easing you into different situations, choosing to instead present you with things are the appropriate time, rather than letting you do everything at once. Time and patience are key elements to success in the game. I did, however, find that some of the mission parameters were a little muddled at time and usually had me shooting at anything that moved in order to end it. Planning out your team is also important to successfully completing a mission. |
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Game Mechanics:
Getting your troops around the playing field is an interesting blend of RTS and Turn-Based action. Soldiers are issued orders and they are carried out in real-time. As these orders are carried out, the game runs in a real-time system. Once the orders have been completed, the game pauses and reverts to a turn-based system. I found that this system worked well, although it did have a few flaws. The game's path-finding A.I. left a little to be desired, and sometimes resulted in my troop getting stuck behind a wall or other obstacle. This usually left him with a big, red bulls-eye on his back with no chance of fighting back. The flow of the system also takes a little getting used to. On paper it seems simple, but there are a few subtle nuances you have to get used to. It would have been nice if the system were a little easier to understand at first glance, as well. Thankfully, the game doesn't use the Action Point system from X-COM -- otherwise movement would have been a nightmare. The game's research aspect is one that should be intimately familiar to most X-COM fans. As previously mentioned, each base is comprised of four different buildings. Command centers allow you to recruit new military units which you may chopper in and out of areas. Research buildings allow you to build things faster as well as giving a significant boost to your research and development speeds. Engineering buildings are where most of your weapon and armor development take place. Anti-Biomass buildings help you to hold land and stop the spores from spreading. As you develop new weapons and armor, the game automatically outfits your troops. All-in-all, UFO: Aftermath is an excellent strategy game. It's fluid joining of several play types into one game helps to give it a fresh look that should appeal to real-time, turn-based and squad-based strategy fans. As if you needed me to say it, this game is a must-buy for X-COM fans. |
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-Starscream, GameVortex Communications AKA Ricky Tucker |
Minimum System Requirements:
Required: Windows 98/2000/XP, Pentium III 500 Mhz or Higher, 32 MB 3D Video Card, 750 MB HD, 8x or Faster, 128 MB RAM Recommended: Pentium IV 2 Ghz or Higher, 64 MB 3D Video Card , 1 GB HD, 256 MB RAM |
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Test System:
Windows XP; Pentium IV 1.7 GHz; Radeon 9100 128 MB; 40 Gig HD; 640 MB RAM |
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