Either way,Planetfalllooks lovely. It’s a
turn-based 4X strategy game that swaps
the series’ familiar medieval trappings for
futuristic fixtures – and is also Triumph’s
first outing under Paradox’s umbrella. Sas
stresses the importance of diplomacy this
time round, while continually referencing
“casus belli” – an act which justifies
war, and a staple feature of Paradox’s
grand strategy games.
Whether you play as scavenging
droids, bioengineering Amazons, or
vanguard forces fresh from cryosleep – to
describe just a few of the factions – you’re
tasked with rebuilding a fallen galactic
empire. Campaigns are about resettling
on procedurally generated worlds. Players
are free to craft their own landscapes, and
preset templates will also be available.
Upon landing, Planetfall follows the
series’ blueprint of growth and expansion.
You’ll spread yourself across planetary
sectors which yield various benefits. Sas
explains that geological features, such as
cities and ruins, can improve defence,
while other more fertile land can be used
to harvest food and resources. Playing to
its sci-fi principles, invading hostile robot
camps is always a dangerous move – butconquering them and repurposing their
hardware is a payoff worth considering.
To this end, the potential for
experimentation Planetfall has over its
medieval counterparts is intriguing, and
feeds into its customisation options. The
bioengineering trait, for example, lets you
spawn hybrid alien-humans, whereas new
equipment means leaders can start off in
armoured vehicles.
Planetfall’s futuristic facade and
turn-based, grid-set combat means
comparisons with the likes of XCOM are
inevitable, Sas tells me. “That’s
unavoidable,” he says. “I think what’s
different with XCOM is that our battles
need to be concise, they can’t last for one
hour. They need to allow for a large variety
of [participants], be that critters,
monsters, tanks, airstrikes. Once you play,
I think you’ll notice numerous, quite
significant differences between the two.”
Despite comparisons, Planetfall carries
new systems of its own. Staggering, for
example, occurs when you hit an
opponent hard, causing them to lose one
of their action points and also offset any
special attack they may have lined up. It’s
not always best to focus all your
firepower on individual enemies,
though, as you might want to spread
attacks around to reduce the
efficiency of everyone on the field.FUTURE ISLANDS
In our demo the dev plays Prometheans
taking on a cyborg race. The former
specialise in planetary extermination, I’m
told, which means calling in pyrex missiles- a gas used by the Prometheans for this
purpose – is a wise tactic. Upon impact,
the area is filled with a flammable gas.
Anyone standing within has a reduced
chance of landing hits. If they don’t escape
by their next turn, they’ll explode.
Planetfall’s sci-fi details should make for
interesting combat scenarios.
Planetfall is due sometime in 2019.
Between the sci-fi combat, the high-
concept races and factions, the siege
battles and the emphasis on procedurally
generated worlds, this is an exciting
prospect. Triumph’s teases of force field
ops, space dwarves and a space-age Las
Vegas strip only add more intrigue and
promise to the already ambitious pitch.
Joe Donnelly
T
hink Fallout, but on a galactic level,” says
Triumph Studios CEO Lennart Sas
during my hands-off demo of Age of
Wonders: Planetfall. That’s an ambitious
way to begin a presentation, but I’d argue that ‘Age
of Wonders in a sci-fi setting’ is already an
appealing enough elevator pitch.Triumph Studios’ 4X strategy
series goes galacticAGE OF WONDERS:
PLANETFALL
PLANETFALLFOLLOWS THE
SERIES’ BLUEPRINT OF
GROWTH AND EXPANSIONRELEASE
2019DEVELOPER
Triumph StudiosPUBLISHER
Paradox InteractiveLINK
http://www.aow-planetfall.comNEED TO KNOWFIRST
LOOKThe sci-fi trappings suit the
Age of Wonders formula.Age of Wonders: Planetfall
PREVIEW
Who invited this guy to the
turn-based post-apocalypse?