Monday, October 12, 2015

Rebel Galaxy

I'm playing (five hours so far) the review copy of Rebel Galaxy, the newest game by Travis Baldree.

I'm not sure anyone has a better pedigree. Fate, which was one of my favorite gaming surprises ever. Torchlight and Torchlight II.

Here's something. I've finished every game Travis has released. I can't say that about any other developer in gaming.

Rebel Galaxy is certainly a departure. Fate, Torchlight and TII were all similar games (unfairly simplifying, say "Diablo with a wicked sense of humor"), but Rebel Galaxy is not like them in the least.

Rebel Galaxy is much more like a streamlined Elite mashed together with Star Control II. Maybe a little Sundog in there, too?

Regardless, it works.

I'm going to take an unusual path through the game, because it seems like all the Streamers are emphasizing combat-heavy paths. Instead, I joined the local Merchant's Guild for 10,000 credits and am currently running trade missions, trying to build up a little cash while trying not to get blown up.

I'm going to write about this for most of the week, but let me just say initially that in an era where the most visible space sims (Elite and Star Citizen) are huge and complex, Rebel Galaxy comes off as a breath of fresh air. It's still huge, but the learning curve is much, much smaller.

It's not intimidating in the least, and everything you need to do fits on a standard gamepad.

This is going to be one of the must-have games of the fall: beautiful, rich and accessible.


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