Homeworld Demo

Space is by no means small, especially when you consider the fact that even light takes billions of years to travel from one end of the universe to the other. However, this might also be good news for primitive civilizations like us, since it would technically mean that more advanced alien races are not able to easily get here and eradicate us, in case that happens to be their purpose.

Homeworld is a real-time strategy game that tells one such sad story about an alien planet, whose inhabitants one day find a buried spaceship underneath the ground. However, the game is also a sturdy example of a good RTS, even if the mechanics are slightly different than what you would usually see in the genre, mainly due to the fact that space is not as easy to approach as the good old Azeroth in the Warcraft series.

The story is mighty interesting on the other hand, since it features a far away planet by the name of Kharak and the race of aliens that populate it, called the Kushan. One day, they happen to uncover a gigantic spaceship on their planet, which significantly boosts their technology knowledge and, in a matter of years, they manage to build an enormous mothership and launch it into orbit. Loaded with 600.000 members of the Kushan race, the ship goes on her maiden voyage, only to stumble into a fleet of vicious aliens, who also destroy their home planet by the time they manage to come back.

The rest of the story revolves around the mothership and its mission to lead the last surviving members of the Kushan race to their true home world, which is believed to be somewhere deep within the galaxy. This mothership usually serves as your main building throughout the game, since everything else is built around it and it can also hold a variety of other facilities, which can be used to build smaller ships and slowly gather a fearsome battle fleet.

Naturally, you also have to gather resources and pay attention to the map, since the basic RTS mechanics are still there, just very well disguised as something else. The combat is much more intense, however, since you can apply a variety of strategies and tactics, while also witnessing a very daring and beautiful display of color and special effects. Speaking of which, the graphics engine was pretty advanced for the time, as well as quite capable of rendering a staggering amount of detail.

All things considered, Homeworld does manage to keep the RTS spirit intact, even if it moves it in space and tackles with it quite a bit. However, the intriguing and well-written story, good graphics and steady gameplay make the game a must-have for every strategy fan out there, as well as every science-fiction enthusiast.