Galactic Reign becomes the first 'universal' Xbox game for Windows Phone and Windows 8

In a contempo editorial, I complained that Microsoft has largely stopped announcing or publicizing Windows Phone games in advance. Well, this week nosotros take a prime example of that. Galactic Reign from Camber Six and Microsoft Studios has just showed on Windows 8 and RT with Xbox features and will appear for Windows Phone seven and 8 devices (also with Xbox features) later today.

Microsoft teased the game back in October simply made absolutely no mention of platforms, so nobody really knew it was coming, and especially non as a multiplatform release with connectivity features. Only other than the lack of proper PR, a new game showing up on Windows Telephone and Windows 8 with cantankerous-platform asynchronous multiplayer is always practiced news, so nosotros'll stop complaining. For now.

Since the Windows 8 game launched alee of the mobile version, nosotros've already put several hours into information technology. Head past the break for our full impressions, plus details nigh ownership the game on one platform and playing it from another!

Strategy in space!

As the title might clue you in, Galactic Reign is a sci-fi strategy game. It'southward sort of a distant cousin to Skulls of the Shogun, only without the story way. In fact, the just single-player component here is the Battle Academy. This manner presents a series of sixty challenges, all aimed at educational activity players the relationship between the game's various ships and weapons.

Each challenge starts out with a fleet-edifice phase in which players outset create blueprints for ships to use in boxing. The assortment of ships and equipment they tin can be outfitted with varies from challenge to claiming. Once a blueprint or 2 has been selected, the ships tin then exist built. You become a certain amount of resource units to spend. Simply tap the plus-minus button on a send or adjust a slider until your points take all been spent.

Video killed the strategy star

In one case the fleet is prepare, the boxing starts. Players don't actually command the battles – they simply sit back and allow their ships take on the opposing forces. Here's where Galactic Reign differs from pretty much every other game out there. Instead of rendering the boxing in real-fourth dimension, the game renders the battle in the cloud. The results are then streamed to your device as a video. You can choose to 'scan' the video, which adds tactical overlays and allows you lot to jump to any bespeak in the boxing.

This video-based system allows Galactic Reign to showcase impressive-looking space battles on relatively underpowered Windows RT devices. Notwithstanding, the obvious downside is that players have to wait for the video to procedure on the cloud so download. It's non a fast organization; the game actually says this process can take several minutes. You tin start some other challenge or play multiplayer while the video processes and downloads though. Once it's done, you lot find out whether you won the boxing and how many stars you earned.

Thankfully those unnecessary videos can exist skipped or simply disabled in the Options screen. I applaud Camber Six and Microsoft for trying something new, but rendering videos in the cloud so streaming them to devices is far too slow to be practical. Strategy fans would happily accept much lower-fidelity battles rendered in-engine – merely look at Skulls of the Shogun and Spectral Souls. Faster is meliorate.

Crossing platforms… in space!

Galactic Reign wouldn't be much fun if not for its multiplayer fashion. Online battles take identify asynchronously, and the game does back up matchmaking. Windows Phone and Windows eight players tin can fifty-fifty compete against each other. Nosotros tin can't test that cross-platform back up until the phone version becomes bachelor later today, but the experience should essentially exist the same on each platform.

In multiplayer games, both players start at opposite sides of a galactic map. Each player commands up to four fleets equally they motility from planet to planet along the map. These fleets can colonize the planets they arrive on, as long as you have the resource toll to spare. It takes one to plough to successfully colonize a planet, at which point it adds to the player's resources production.

To start with, you'll simply have access to a few types of ships, weapons, and accessories. To unlock new pieces for your armada, yous'll demand to put resource into research. One turn later, the researched item becomes available to use. Since each ship is strong and weak against other types, it's of import to pack your fleets with a variety of ships and armaments. There'due south no limit to how many ships you can add to individual fleets, though of course actually building ships costs resources too.

As both players move across infinite and grab upwards planets for themselves, they'll somewhen cross swords, and so to speak. Occupy an opponent's colony long enough and you'll take information technology over for yourself. But when two opposing fleets meet each other, a boxing ensues. Sheer numbers equally well as a balanced array of ships will make up one's mind the winner. Check the results screen to see who survived and who lost a fleet from the come across.

Achievements (also in space)

Given the multiplayer focus of the game, most of its xx Achievements focus on the multiplayer style. The long-term goal is to win 25 matches against other players. Several Achievements advantage specific scenarios such equally colonizing iii worlds in one round, researching all technologies in a single game, and building v dreadnaughts in i game. Nearly will go down like shooting fish in a barrel, just some will likely require a little boosting with a friend.

Windows viii Impressions

Battle Academy mode. Note the grainy decal beneath my Gamerpic.

While I played Galactic Reign on a PC, it'south conspicuously designed with tablets in mind. The text messages stretch all the style from the left edge of the screen to the correct, which is really uncomfortable to read on a xvi:nine brandish. Slant Half dozen should consider adding an option to view text in thinner columns for people who lack amazing peripheral vision. Also, the decals (avatar images) that players select to represent their multiplayer forces appear depression-resolution and dithered on a 1080P brandish.

Another issue is the lack of proper volume control. The Options menu allows music and audio effects to be toggled on or off, just there'south no way to just adjust the game's volume. I don't want to turn my estimator's volume down every time I play a game. Nosotros tin can safely assume that the Windows Phone version will accept the same problem – and nosotros already know Windows Telephone lacks independent volume command for games and apps.

Other than those issues, my only real complaint is the lack of a proper single-player mode. The plow-based strategic conquest found in multiplayer would work perfectly well against AI players. In all likelihood, the project just didn't have the budget to develop proper AI or a story campaign.

Nevertheless, Galactic Reign's asynchronous multiplayer battles are great fun. The ability to play against PC, tablet, and phone users should make for an addictive strategic feel. The trial version of Galactic Reign provides full access to multiplayer with a single alien race, then anyone can see if it'south right for them. The full game costs $4.99 and provides access to two additional races. The Windows 8 game is a 195 MB download. Get it hither from the Windows 8 Store.

1 purchase for both platforms!

The Windows Phone 7 and 8 version of Galactic Reign volition too price $4.99 when it goes live. Still, according to the game's official FAQ, players only need to buy one version in order to access information technology on both platforms! The only catch is that you don't earn Achievements on the other platform unless you buy that version likewise. Not perfect, but information technology'due south a start.

We'll study back when the phone game becomes available, and look forward to a Windows Telephone-specific review soon also!

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Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/galactic-reign-windows-8-impressions

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