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Earth 2150 By John "Award" Del Percio, Sept 12, 2000
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Developer :TopWare
Publisher :SSI/Mattel
Release Date :June
Demo Available : Yes - Download
Table of Contents

· Introduction
· Closer Look
· Facts
· Final

Strategy As It Should Be

Earth 2150 is absolutely stunning. It is the first 3D RTS I can actually say I like. It includes everything that I've always thought should go into an RTS, and is nearly perfect in every way. Regardless of its technical merit; however, the question of whether or not to buy it, is a bit more cloudy. It mostly depends on you. If you're the type of RTS player who thought StarCraft was just so overwhelming, then odds are you'll go insane trying to contemplate the complexity of Earth 2150. If you thought Total Annihilation was too hard, and StarCraft was as difficult as it should get, then also, you may want to consider something easier. If, on the other hand, you found StarCraft a bit simplistic, and found Total Annihilation and Dark Reign a bit more to your liking, then Earth 2150 is the game you've been waiting for since TA came out. It is simply the best mix of graphics, sound, gameplay and strategy to hit the RTS market in a very long time. It's unfortunate the the company didn't have the massive production and marketing budgets that a company such as Interplay can provide. If it had, it would likely be the most awaited RTS of all time, and one of the hottest sellers. Not having that budget put them at a serious disadvantage, and as a result, the game won't achieve anywhere near what it's sales potential could have been. Nevertheless, this is the game that all you strategy junkies have been dying to sink your teeth into.

Rating

Personal Note

Graphics - Sound - Gameplay - Depth - Multiplayer  Reviewed by John Del Percio
GRAPHICS
98 %

Simply stunning. I have not seen land based 3D RTS to have this kind of graphics in a very long time. There are only three minor points that bring the score down a bit. The first is the model textures. They could certainly have done with a bit more detail on them. Also, OpenGL support is a bit sketchy. When I tried it, it didn't bother dithering textures at all. It didn't look as good as in D3D as a result. And one last note is that the lights on air units should move in the trajectory and angle of the craft emitting it, not stay fixed on one location on the ground. Picky, I know, but I really wanted to see that.

SOUND
96 %

In general, the sound effects are terrific. They obviously have some good sound designers over at TopWare. Unfortunately I can't say the same for the voice acting. Some of it wasn't so hot. The computer voices sounded good, but the humans weren't as great. Not to mention that the phrases and tones they said them seemed more appropriate for WarCraft or StarCraft than for a true realistic RTS.

GAMEPLAY
100 %

You just don't get better than that. Detailed, highly strategic, and overly addictive play (I've seen far too many hours slip by me on this one). Possibly the best RTS since Total Annihilation.

DEPTH
80 %

Story? What story? Earth 2150 suffers from Quake and Total Annihilation syndrome. Aside from the general theme, there is no story. I was able to at least give it an 80, though, as they worked well with what little story it had, and every ounce of you believes it's true. The continuous main base also makes the depth far more appropriate.

MULTIPLAYER
98 %

Very good, well designed, strategic, and fun. You can certainly set up some good, balanced battles with this game. This is when the tunnels become really useful, and you can break out all the special strategies, including turning off your lights so your opponent can't see you as easily.



While a really strategic strategy game isn't for everyone, if you like them, this is the best game to come along for awhile, and I don't really see any in the near future that will rival it. It's nice to see a well planned RTS on the market again, as I'd about given up hope for the tired genre. After seeing one clone after another, Earth 2150 has revived my hope in the RTS genre. I also am proud to announce it as a nominee for RTS of the Year, and Game of the Year.

Overall Rating

 



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