Tag: Strategic »

When I first reviewed Aliens Versus Humans I found it to be full of promise, but the lack of a Geoscape and base maintenance of any kind sapped some of my enjoyment. What’s already there is great stuff, but in the back of my mind - and most likely in the back of everyone else’s - it just wasn’t the complete experience. However, Leisurerules has been hard at work since the initial release and are preparing to hit the App Store with their 2.0 update early next month. Just in time for XCOM: Enemy Unknown if all goes to plan. I’ve had the fortune of being able to check it out early, and I can honestly say it’s not going to disappoint.

So why is Aliens Versus Humans 2.0 special enough to warrant such attention? Because it’s essentially a totally different game. The original AvH missions are being sectioned off as “Training Missions,” while the real meat of the game has been designated “Onslaught.” In Onslaught players can expect the kind of portable X-COM experience they’ve always wanted. The Geoscape, ‘pedia, recruitment, research, staffing, manufacturing, and base construction (with multiple bases) is all present and accounted for. It’s practically perfect X-COM in all its immaculate and frustrating glory, only now you can play it whenever and wherever you want. And I helped.

Jim Coughley (coding, artwork, sound, music, testing), contacted me after my review of AvH had gone live, we had a brief back-and-forth regarding our mutual love of the original series and thoughts about what AvH could use in terms of various improvements, then before I knew it I was asked to help out as an advisor for future versions. In other words I take a look at various builds and offer feedback. According to Jim, this was largely due to my love of the series as well as the way I “…didn't hold back in [my] comments and criticisms and [my] feedback came with sound reasoning…” And now I take a moment to blush (seriously). The lack of a Geoscape was a major (and fairly obvious) issue but we’ve also discussed smaller things like interface tweaks and menu layouts. As someone who loves video games, and especially X-COM, this has been an awesome and surreal experience all-around.

I’m obviously proud (and possibly a little biased) about how Aliens Versus Humans is turning out, but that shouldn’t keep you X-COM fans from checking it out. It really is fantastic and once the 2.0 update goes live it should fill that strategic alien-fighting gap quite nicely. But if you’re still not sure there’s always the free version, limited to early missions only and no Onslaught mode, to try out which is slated for the same release window as 2.0 (early October).

Many people are familiar with domination-based games in some form or another. Some might involve occupying territories with ever-expanding armies while others allow for more subtle tactics such as cultural assimilation, but it’s a concept most have come across. Although as widespread as the general idea may be, I can’t say that I’ve ever seen it combined with something along the lines of Mahjong. It’s certainly a little odd, but it’s also interesting.

Michael Schacht’s Web of Power Card Game: The Duel is one such bizarre hybrid. A number of tiles representing various countries are spread across the game board for the payer and their AI opponent to gather. Tiles can only be grabbed from the outlying edges, however, so in order to reach any desired pieces in the middle a path must be cleared first. After acquiring a tile (or two if they’re for the same country and posses two country symbols between them), claim tokens can also be placed to “call dibs” on a specific tile or simply attempt to control an opponent’s movement. Throughout this constant back-and-forth it’s also possible to collect special tokens that will improve the worth of gathered pieces belonging to specific countries.

There’s something almost captivating about a game in Web of Power. While it might not be much to look at there’s an awful lot of planning that goes into each and every turn. Assuming players take it seriously, that is. This is not a game for folks who dislike planning and strategizing, but anyone who loves to spend several minutes setting up their next move (and possibly even laying traps through subtle manipulation) will doubtlessly enjoy themselves.

I could complain about the complete lack of any form of multiplayer in Web of Power, as I have with many Skotos Tech games, but this game can be so tough I’m almost glad I don’t have to contend with another person. A bigger issue, however, is that it’s much more of a complex board game than many iOS users are probably used to. The manual alone is several dense pages of text, much of which won’t make sense without actual context and there’s no tutorial on offer. It can be learned, and when it is it can be rewarding, but it can also be massively intimidating in the beginning.

Web of Power is definitely an interesting and thought-provoking game, but it’s also not too terribly accessible. Those who are willing and able to invest the time to learn will be sure to enjoy themselves but everyone else looking to dabble in a bit of strategy should probably start with something a bit less complicated. Or at least a bit more newbie friendly.