Strategy Gaming Online - Reviews : Dominant Species

Subscribe to our
Free Newsletter!

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

REVIEWS

Dominant Species

DEVELOPER :
Red Storm

PUBLISHER :
Red Storm

Have a 2nd opinion? E-mail us a 2nd opinion review and most likely, we will post it.

Requirements:
Pen. 166MHz, 32 MB of RAM

Recommend:
Pen. 233MHz, 64 MB of RAM, TNT or Voodoo2 Card

Few would doubt that in Starcraft the traditional 2D Real Time Strategy game has pretty much reached the pinnacle of it's evolution. The graphics, while simple, are about as good as you could ask for in 2D. The strategic content, while totally lacking in realism, is superb. And above all, the mechanics and balance have been honed to the point where a game between two good players seems almost like a work of art in itself. Yet as always the train of progress rolls on, and inevitably people will want something bigger and better, something new and innovative. Enter Dominant Species.

While we have already been introduced to 3d-action/strategy in the form of Battlezone and Urban Assault, traditional RTS games have been slow to make the transition to 3d. Myth, while being by definition real-time and strategic is not exactly what you would call traditional. Of course what I'm talking about is the classic Command & Conquer / Warcraft style of game, where you harvest resources, build your base, and produce units to fight. Total Annihilation took the first step, introducing terrain that had an (albeit modest) effect on mechanics, and true 3d units, but this was mainly for the purpose of eye candy and flexibility. Dominant Species takes the next definitive step by becoming totally 3d.

In Dominant Species you take on the role of a floating maggot with spooky black eyes called a Mindlord. You are one of an ancient race of telepaths who rule over the planet Mur. For generations Mur has existed with various groups of Mindlords battling one another for control of the planet's universal resource - Anima. Anima can be used to grow buildings and critters, which can then in turn be used against your opponent. However something new has come to Mur and it wants the Anima for itself - Humans. Known as the Invaders, these podgy little astronauts have been scooting around in their vehicles, shooting up Mur's natives and stealing Anima from under the Mindlord's noses. Of course you aren't going to take this on the chin, you're going to make a war of it...

The single player campaign I found to be a lot of fun. Beginning with three training missions, which really do an excellent job of teaching you the basics (thankfully, as veteran RTS players will have trouble initially coming to grips with the controls), and then moves into the narrative, encompassing your fight to save Mur from the invaders. Missions range from easy, simple goals (kill 'em all) to occasionally frustrating objective-based assignments. The first full mission you get for example requires you to locate a friendly Mindlord and escort him back to your camp. Problem is once you find him the Invaders show up gunning for him, and protecting him from their guns with only a few melee units is challenging for the inexperienced. In typical RTS fashion as the missions progress you gain access to a wider assortment of units, 27 in all, though they are basically variants of 9 different classes. Beginning with wimpy little dog-like critters (all of them 3 times the height of a man, mind you) you quickly advance to flying dragons who shoot lightning, beast that breath fire, right up to the awe-inspiring "Monger" class of units.

Multiplayer was a new experience for me, as I had never really played this type of game before. The first thing I discovered was the importance of terrain. In this game terrain varies wildly, and things such as hills, oceans and vegetation are very pronounced. Indeed what sometimes appears to be a short trip on the mini map turns out to be a lengthy track, with creatures doubling back and winding their way through valleys etc. Resource gathering is very much like with Total Annihilation or Dark Reign, in that the various resource points (Anima Fountains) provide you with a virtually limitless supply of resources of a period of time. Hence conflict nearly always revolves around defending and acquiring these items. With this in mind, certain maps become veritable strategic gems, with tactical choke points, high ground, and cover coming heavily into play around these hot spots.

Graphically the game really does take the genre into the next generation. With a 3d accelerator the graphics are beautifully rendered and smooth, animation is very clean, and the models are suitably weird and wacky. Massively over-exaggerated amounts of green goo and crimson gore splatter all over the place as units die, and stain the ground a la Myth. Invader units crash and burn, exposing hordes of little astronauts that can be trodden on and toyed with at your leisure, whilst the massive Hive monsters kind of explode into nothing, sending slime flying everywhere. Conflicts themselves are good fun to watch, as melee units accelerate into a charge before settling into a lengthy slogging match with their opponents, and ranged units hang back slinging bullets, lightning bolts and other miscellaneous ammunition into the fray. The only fault I can pick with the graphics is with the bugs that sometimes occur when units, and to a far greater degree buildings, make contact with the ground. The polygons don't blend well, leading to jagged edges and flickering. This is tolerable however, given the overall splendour of the visuals.

Sounds, as is usually the case with strategy games, were disappointing. Generic grunts and "roars", along with a few synthetic splatters and incredibly poor machine gun fire (it sounds like a chopstick being beaten on a block of wood) really didn't do the experience any good at all. I mean, why can't they get something like the T-Rex roar from Jurassic Park? Music was almost non-existent, aside from some gentle rubbish that sounded like something from the Weather Channel. Overall a huge disappointment in this area.

Yet sound and music really are the game's only real weak points. Solid gameplay, genuine innovation, quality graphics and enough depth to keep me playing for weeks firmly outweigh its weak score in sound and music. The future of RTS has arrived ladies and gentlemen, and from where I'm sitting it looks to be mighty fine.

Reviewed by AJ Dunlop

Summary
Pros: Innovation, excellent graphics, good strategic content Cons: The audio sucks, period.
Interface : 7	Gameplay : 9	Graphics : 9
Audio : 3	Multiplayer : 8	Overall : 8.2