Empire At War -- the new SW RTS

[Mad78]

One day i guess they may actually make a game which is perfect in those terms.

[Trejiuvanat]

This is the official LucasArts Announcement:

LUCASARTS ANNOUNCES NEW PC TITLE STAR WARS®: EMPIRE AT WAR™

 

Marin County, Calif. – January 21, 2005 – LucasArts revealed today that it will give PC players the opportunity to control the fate of the galaxy in an all new real-time strategy (RTS) game titled Star Wars®: Empire at War™ (tentative title). Set a few years before the events of Episode IV A New Hope, the game will let players rewrite history as well as experience the aftermath of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, the creation of the Rebel Alliance, and Darth Vader’s rise to power. Star Wars: Empire at War is scheduled for a release in Fall 2005.

 

Using an entirely new game engine created by the Las Vegas-based developer Petroglyph, the game will feature beautifully rendered land and space battles set on memorable planets such as Hoth, Tatooine and Dagobah as well as never-before-seen environments taken directly from the Star Wars films and expanded universe novels. In the game, players can choose to join either the Rebel Alliance or the Galactic Empire, building and setting up tactical forces that can be unleashed on the enemy in real-time 3D. All of the gameplay and action within Star Wars: Empire at War is a persistent, meaning that strategic and tactical elements from previous events will have a permanent effect on the galaxy.

 

As players build, manage and progress their space and ground-based units, troops and vehicles, memorable Star Wars hero characters will begin playing a role in key situations. In addition to the single player campaign mode, the game will include a two-player Empire vs. Rebellion mode and up to eight player online skirmish modes. For more assets and information on Star Wars: Empire at War, please visit http://www.lucasarts.com.

 

And it has also found itself a page on the lucasarts site. http://www.lucasarts.com/games/swempireatwar/

 

Two playable factions (when fighting over 20 worlds, what else could one expect), interesting is that there will be hero chars.

[Vero]

Wow....actually sounds interesting. Hope it lives up to it

[Grand_Admiral_Thrawn]

From the looks of the screenshots I'm inlcined to believe that it may not actually be restricted to 2D space combat since it is quite obviouse that the ground combat is 3D. Some of the space screenshots also show things to be at a different angle. Of course, wheather or not we can move on the Z axis has yet to be realized. I think that all of you who are being critical of the game are doing so at too early a stage, basing your arguments on past LA games and what you have read others report on the scant detailes the public has been provided with.This is not KOTOR, it's not Jedi Knight or Jedi Outcast, and it's certainly not X-Wing Alliance. It's "Empire at War". Hell, it can't even be compared to Force Commander or Rebellion. Why? Because they're different games that focus on different features.

 

Now, there seems to be a good deal of "This is almost a dumbed-down version of Rebellion" and "Conquering a planet with 100 guys is stupid!". Who says you conquer the planet with only 100 guys? "Oh, but the screenshot clearly shows very few men!". So? You have one battle with 100 or so guys. Who's to say there won't be more? I am confident your gaming mags didn't tell you that there will only be 20 missions in a campeign, and that you'll only fight once on each planet.

 

Don't count too much on ground fighting either, looks to be like it's just going to be lots of base building... plus conquering a planet with only a few hundred troops seems stupid to me.

 

So, what exactly do you consider an RTS to be other than building a base and attacking with a slightly less than realistic number of troops. I know, I know, this is where you bring in your vaunted Rome: Total War, but that's not the type of game your average gamer is looking for. Firstly because it's not an RTS. There is an RTS aspect to it (the battles), but it is still an SG thanks to all of the map work. Secondly, R:TW is too complex for the average gamer. That's why Rebellion wasn't a great success and why LucasArts hasn't made another. From what I've seen, the gound fighting will be better than what we've seen in an RTS in a long time (though the exact dynamics of the gameplay may change this).

 

All-in-all, I think we have a good game to look forward to. We get a mix of space and ground combat that spans over twenty planets allowing us to changethe history of the Star Wars Universe as we know it. While we don't play the role of Galactic Governor, we do get to do everything we love in Rebellion, plus the much lacking ground aspect of battle (now you get to see why your Dark Trooper Regiment was beaten by those damn Sullustians!). We all needto step back and realize that you can't incorperate everything into one game, and that we are a long way off from Igor's idea of a perfect RTS (because in the end, what sort of RTS really matters if not that ?).

[Mad78]

I perfectly agree GAT.

[Guest JediIgor]

We all needto step back and realize that you can't incorperate everything into one game, and that we are a long way off from Igor's idea of a perfect RTS (because in the end, what sort of RTS really matters if not that ?).

 

No, but I suppose you'd rather they cut features from games... right?

 

I mean, if a game five years ago had a "feature" such as a map editor, then a game now doesn't need the map editor, right?

 

Well, in my opinion, there is absolutely no reason why a game should have less features than a counterpart from five years ago. Argue all you want, but their budgets nowadays are numerous times better, and I know it's not all going towards marketing.

 

To address the rest of your argument, if you want to be optimistic that's fine. Just don't come crying to me when you turn out to be wrong.

 

You might say what if I'm wrong? Well, I'll be pleasantly surprised. Win-win for me .

[Voo]

Ok we're looking at a game in "early Stage " of development so theres lots that can change.

 

Also i've read the PC Zone UK (5 page) Preview and this game does sound impressive, they've also stated that the engine doesn't have any problems displaying lots of units on the screen at one time.

 

Ok tell you what i 'll write up some snippets

 

Petroglyph and Lucasarts have yet to decide the exact size of the game's battles, but its an issue that they're spending plenty of time perfecting, "We won't be having battles containing thousands of units as we're not looking to have that big horde feel where no unit feels special. We'll be having units that feel very important like Star Destoryers , which come with their own special tatical possiblites. We don't have any problems displaying lots of units on screen with our new engine, so we can make our battles as big as we want to. Saying that though, we want to make sure they're fun to play too" explains Brett

 

And theres abit about the space combat since it seems to be a discussion

 

But as Brett explains, these levels should avoid the often-daunting complexity of Homeworld's fully freeform space skirmishes.

"We have our units on planes, It's a 3D world, but in terms of the camera angle, space battles won't feel too dissimlar to the ground battles. We don't want you spinning around on both axis and getting lost in the 3D world." However, one way in which these space-based battles will compare closely to Homeworld's is through the extensive strategies made avalible to you. These include tactics lik concealing your ships in asteroid fields while you lie in wait for unsuspecting enemy to float by, or the ablility to target specific parts of enemy captial ships such as their engines , in order to severly hinder their manoeuvrablity.

And i'm sure its mentioned somewhere you can play both sides in Single player, yeap found it

 

"It doesn't have linear missions like most traditional RTS games. Instead, it has a persistant real-time world in which you're trying to conquer planets and essentially take over the entire Star Wars galaxy, whether you're playing as the Empire or the Rebellion"

 

hehe this game does sounds really good i didn't want to snippet too much cause it is breaking a form of copyright, but they do go on to talk about ground stuff and how theres alot of special tatics on the ground too

 

And i do hold out hope for it, this is being made by the people who made RTS what it is today, (remeber Dune 2? C&C?) same people

[Vero]

Yea the only thing i hope they fix is the Star Destroyers lasers....there blue in the SS's and they are usually green if im not mistaken

[Voo]

That could be the Ion's firing but yeah it does seem like they are firing red, i'm sure they'll sort that, like they've said, its still Early Development

 

Plus E3 is comming up soon, lets wait and see what gets shown there in vidoes and that

[Valorum_Kore]

I'm seeing this game as having alot of promise... Now we have to wait for E3 before we can even see an update... Man I want this one to be good...

[Trejiuvanat]

21 Jan 05 Scoops don't get much bigger than this. Having sent our Bothans on an infiltration mission into LucasArts' virtually impregnable fortress, we've managed to get our hands on the world's first concrete details on Star Wars: Empire At War. This is an RTS still so early in development, so carefully guarded that the title you see boldly emblazoned across the top of this page and on the front cover is still unconfirmed at the time of going to press.

 

And as if that wasn't exciting enough, we've also discovered that the game is being designed by the newly formed development house Petroglyph, a team forged from some of the game industry's most talented individuals, including several former Westwood employees who worked on many of the Command & Conquer titles. Add to this the guidance of LucasArts and the titanic war-based possibilities provided by the Star Wars universe, and you've got the recipe for what may be an RTS so planet-shattering that it could make the Death Star look like a water pistol.

 

But let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet, at least not until we've discovered and deliberated over the details, ogled at the screenshots and endlessly discussed the possibilities of what's in store. As part of their mission, our Bothans (most of whom died while trying to deliver this info to us) managed to hunt down and interrogate Brett Tosti, LucasArts' producer on Empire At War, who revealed numerous tantalising morsels of information for you to chew over.

 

CAN YOU FEEL THE FORCE?

Empire At War will be set during the classic Star Wars period, predominantly centring around the events of Episode IV: A New Hope, though there will be

a certain amount of crossover from Episode III. "The game begins two years before A New Hope," states Brett. "We'll be trying to weave stories around the characters and events from that film, so you'll see how certain heroes came to be where they are or how one planet came to be under one side's control. You can also expect to see Acclamator-class assault ships - as seen in Episode II - fly alongside Imperial Star Destroyers from classic Star Wars."

 

Star Destroyers? Acclamator assault ships? That can only mean one thing. Space and planet-based missions bundled together in one strategic package. In fact, a quick scan (go on have a look...) over these pages confirms that the game is promising to be the first ever strategy game to meld the epic 3D space-based battles of Homeworld with more traditional ground-based RTS missions. This

is something which, if done right, could just propel Petroglyph's project into a new real-time strategy game dimension.

 

But how will Empire At War manage to stand out from an already hugely competitive RTS field? "It combines the gameplay of modern RTS games with the rich Star Wars universe, but it's crafted in such a way as to introduce innovation and remove some of the repetition and tedious aspects that have crept into the genre," says Brett.

 

"It doesn't have linear missions like most traditional RTS games. Instead, it has a persistent real-time world in which you're trying to conquer planets and essentially take over the entire Star Wars galaxy, whether you're playing as the Empire or the Rebellion," he continues. "There are two sections to the game - troop-moving/planning and combat - but unlike, say, Rome: Total War, which uses a different engine for each section, we're using the same engine for both to make sure they feel connected. The engine automatically adapts to suit each gaming mode." Sounds a little like a real-time Civilization campaign interspersed with 3D real-time battles to us. "Exactly. Once you've moved your ships into position and decided to fight, the engine moves into Combat Mode until the battle is resolved," confirms Brett.

 

So how about the space combat sections, what can we expect from those? "Space combat is an integral part of projecting force across the galaxy and as a preparation for land invasion," reveals Brett. "Space battles have a unique character to them. They're about massive capital ships manoeuvring to bring turbo lasers to bear as they blow each other up, one piece at a time. All the while, the more nimble fighters and corvettes dogfight in their own dance of death in a quest to get a clear shot at unleashing proton torpedo attacks on the larger ships."

 

Judging by these early in-game screenshots, space battles are looking like being epic affairs, intergalactic slugfests between titanic destroyers complemented by dozens of buzzing, smaller fighters. But as Brett explains, these levels should avoid the often-daunting complexity of Homeworld's fully freeform space skirmishes.

 

"We have our units on planes. It's a 3D world, but in terms of the camera angle, space battles won't feel too dissimilar to the ground battles. We don't want you spinning around on both axis and getting lost in the 3D world."

 

However, one way in which these space-based battles will compare closely to Homeworld's is through the extensive strategies made available to you. These include tactics like concealing your ships in asteroid fields while you lie in wait for the unsuspecting enemy to float by, or the ability to target specific parts of enemy capital ships such their engines, in order to severely hinder their manoeuvrability.

 

Just thought I'd put this up for more discussion.

 

Also a link to some screenies... Including a weird Force Commander Box Cover picture and some hobbits... http://www.computerandvideogames.com/openpic.php?nid=136644&article_id=114117

[Guest JediIgor]

Well, I just thought of another reason for being disappointed.. GALAXY at War? There's only 20 planets, and Dagobah is one of them (uh.. why?)

 

I also doubt it's the first game to have ground battles and space battles (surely a 4x in the past has done both of those).

 

Has anyone checked out the GameSpot interview? It's so funny, it's like the guy never played the Total War series. I love how he's claiming persistency (i.e. keeping troops between battles) is something new! Total War did it for ground battles, Homeworld did it for space battles..

 

Still, the game is looking better and better, even though the coverage is too overhyped.

[Grand_Admiral_Thrawn]

Well, I must admit I'm confused as to why they would have Degobah as one of the planets. I think the only thing you have to fight there is trench foot...

 

As for there being only 20 planets, so what? How many planets have the C&C games had? Or any of the Total War games? Hell, none of the Star Trek games have had anywhere near 20 planets! I think we're fortunate to get that many and still have diversity in terrain. Sure, they could have millions of planets that we can play on and just say "Uh, yeah, that's Beldonna IV... yes, it looks exactly the same as Eriadu Prime, but you wanted more than 20 planet!". Come on...

[Vero]

Aye i have to agree with GaT...i really dont think u need more then 20 if you are now going to have to fight the ground battle for the planet instead of just sending transports down full of troops and such. It seems like it should be a good game and i am hoping that it will

[Voo]

Degobah could be there cause it may have something to do with Ep3, cause isn't Yoda ment to fight some really evil jedi there thats why theres that dark force cave on it (where luke sees DV and kills him to find its him) its also mentioned breifly in the Books when lukes revisited the planet.

 

It could be just there to reference people, you'll prolly find its on of the first planets you'll play on (sorta learning the ropes) and find it'll give you reasource or troop moral bonus

[Guest JediIgor]

Well, I must admit I'm confused as to why they would have Degobah as one of the planets. I think the only thing you have to fight there is trench foot...

 

As for there being only 20 planets, so what? How many planets have the C&C games had? Or any of the Total War games? Hell, none of the Star Trek games have had anywhere near 20 planets! I think we're fortunate to get that many and still have diversity in terrain. Sure, they could have millions of planets that we can play on and just say "Uh, yeah, that's Beldonna IV... yes, it looks exactly the same as Eriadu Prime, but you wanted more than 20 planet!". Come on...

 

Actually Rome: Total War had over 60 provinces, so I don't see how you can start comparing that to this.

 

I never said they should have millions of planets either, but something along 50-100 would be nice. They might start to resemble each other, but their importance lies in geographic location and their economic worth, not in whether or not one of them looks like another in terrain (terrain should be randomly generated anyways).

 

So, 20 planets is not an excuse . Rome: Total War has battles for every province and it doesn't get boring . Of course they'd have to implement hyperspace routes and the like for a planet's location to actually be important (I'm guessing they're either gonna go with the "you need to be next to the planet" or "you can go anywhere" tricks).

 

Also, Voo, even though Dagobah may be of great importance in the movies, there is absolutely no reason why it should be in a strategy game. It's an uninhabited tiny swamp bowl with no technology, nobody even tried to conquer it historically (well, i guess the rebel alliance *did* have a base there in one of the star wars kids books).

[Krytos]

20 planets, in my opinion, will be enough assuming there is a descent amount of space on each planet for bases, defences, traps and battle grounds. The same really goes for space, as long as the battle areas are larger than Imperium Galactica II - I will be happy.

 

Nevertheless, 20 planets would limit any strategic planet taking, blockades and cutting planets off. It would be nice to have a simular game that focuses on the same style of game EAW, though on a larger scale. Hmm, that sounds a lot like Rebellion 2

 

Still aching for a Star Wars game where you can implement large scale strategies such as cutting off trade lanes, setting traps, hit and run tactics and ground battles . . . oh well, one day . . . one day

[Trejiuvanat]

Couldn't help but smile when I noticed this opinion on one of the sites linked from the main page:

 

Updated version of Star War: Rebellion

Phenix42 (01/15/2005)

Rating: 0

Anyone remember the game Star Wars: Rebellion? Well, basically, it was the EXACT SAME GAME as this! And the best part? It rocked! Indeed! Heck I STILL have the game and I STILL play it despite it being ancient. The only bummer is that the interface was slightly comples and there were some minor issues. Actually, there used to be a site with suggestion on how to make a better SWR 2... compiled from fan suggestions, and this game sounds like it was developped directly from thos suggestion

[Evaders99]

All it needs is a link back to us

[Mad78]

Which site was it Trej?

[Trejiuvanat]

The 1up.com, IIRC.

 

I wanted to message him, but the stupid site required me to register, and realizing that I hardly need another registration at a site I most likely won't visit anymore dissuaded me.

 

It's the link E posted on the main site, scroll down to the user's hyped opinions and there he should be phoenix##-something was his name.

[Jahled]

The 1up.com, IIRC.

 

I wanted to message him, but the stupid site required me to register, and realizing that I hardly need another registration at a site I most likely won't visit anymore dissuaded me.

 

It's the link E posted on the main site, scroll down to the user's hyped opinions and there he should be phoenix##-something was his name.

 

Perhaps the larger Star Wars community might need to be reminded Galactic Conquest is still very much alive...

 

I'm up for reminding the world this site still exists, and Rebellion still rules the roost in so far as it's unique angle on the Star Wars genre... a banner or two

[Vero]

So when is this game supposed to come out again? Sometime this year hopefully?

[Bill]

I read that this game is going to be 3-D, I hope it's nothing like Force Commander because it sucked.

[Trejiuvanat]

So when is this game supposed to come out again? Sometime this year hopefully?

 

Lucasarts page says Fall 2005.