Fractured Space

One genre that took off in the last couple of years is MOBA, given the fact that there are so many games one can choose from nowadays. Not just that, but you can even decide whether you want a classic fantasy MOBA or something else entirely, or even a MOBA played from a first-person point of view, as it is the case with Blizzard’s critically-acclaimed Overwatch.

Fractured Space is a MOBA with space sim gameplay mechanics, in which heroes are replaced by spaceships and elven forests are replaced by the cold vastness of the cosmos. It may sound slow and complicated, and maybe even cause a few PTSD-like flashbacks for EVE Online players, but the fact is that Fractured Space is both fast-paced and intuitive, at least most of the time. Hence, everyone should be able to enjoy it, regardless of your fondness toward space sims in general.

As you might have guessed, spaceships are the elements you’ll be focusing on most of the time, which means that it’s important for them to come in a satisfying variety and be enjoyable to control. Thankfully, that is definitely the case here, because there are many different ship models to choose from, not to mention the fact that you can customize them with personalized weapon loadouts and various other tidbits.

Since the ships are large and pretty difficult to put down on your own, regardless of how impressive your weapon loadout may be, team tactics are a must if you wish to come out victorious. As such, the map is split into two lanes, and each lane has multiple zones you can warp to. These zones hold special objectives that can be tackled by the whole team, so it’s important to stay together and do your best to work with your teammates.

As for the graphics, Fractured Space is very impressive in this regard, given the fact that it uses Unreal Engine 4. The ships are very detailed and large, while the environment has the ability to create the proper atmosphere for a space sim. Granted, it’s a bit of a bother to see all that open space and not be able to explore it, but then again this is a MOBA and nothing more.

In the end, Fractured Space may be in early Alpha at the moment, but even in this state it appears to be very polished and refined, which is great news. On top of that, the gameplay has the right percentage of fun and simulation, making it a real pleasure to pilot huge spaceships and engage in epic battles.