We've seen some changes in the gaming industry this year, one of the most notable being the movement from the realism/military themed games back to the Sci-Fi "roots" of PC gaming. With the release of big Sci-Fi hits this year, such as Unreal Tournament 2k3/2k4 and Tron 2.0, and huge upcoming titles like Half-life 2 and Doom 3, the industry is starting to move away from most of the games on the shelf having something to do with World War 2, and to be honest, I think it's about freaking time.
Anyway, two more big games in the Sci-Fi category threw demos out to the masses this week. The first being a big-hit sequel from Sierra, in the form of Homeworld 2. Bringing full 3-dimensional, real-time strategy back to the playing field, Homeworld 2 will once again put the noble Hiigarans in defense of their recently reclaimed home planet against the more than formidable Vaygr. Now with a totally new 3D engine, streamlined interfaces, and new multi-player modes, Homeworld 2 promises to a major contender for real-time strategy game of the year. Grab the brand new demo from Sierra, or you can use the usual file whores.
The second recently released demo is from Techland and is a first person shooter entitled Chrome. Whilst my trying to come up with a good synopsis for it, I decided that the Chrome homepage does a much better job, so here are a few choice excerpts:
Chrome is a tactical FPP shooting game whose action takes place in the future during the colonization of the newly discovered solar system of Valkyria. An unusual and dramatic story takes place among the huge and wild terrains of the five planets, within the residential complexes of the first settlers, deep within mines rich with precious minerals and inside the headquarters of the powerful corporations fighting among themselves over the unique riches of Valkyria. Each player has at his disposal a large arsenal, equipment and implants which allow him to choose specialized styles and tactics to complete each mission. With silent weapons, a camouflage suit and special features to sharpen physical reflexes and improve sensory abilities, the player can turn into silent assassin and strike his enemies unnoticed. With a heavy plasma gun, a dermo-shield and transplanted muscles the player can also be transformed into a human tank allowing him to storm past enemy lines. Multiplayer including all features of single player mode, allowing 32 players to enjoy the game. Huge arsenal of armor, implants, wide range of vehicles, broad and varied terrains. Chrome multiplayer is a classical, dynamic set of games like Death Match, as well as more complicated, based on objectives, team fights.
Grab the Chrome demo from Fileplanet or Fileshack. I'll be throwing down on the demos tonight as soon as I get home from work, and if they're even remotely worth writing anything about, expect to see some reviews posted here tomorrow.
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