This article is written by #StarCome#Baizang
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Space, since ancient times, is one of the fantasy stages of human beings, and countless classic plays have been born on this stage, and space colonization is undoubtedly one of the most commonly appeared on this stage.
But with the development of science and technology, this fantasy is gradually entering reality. And Mars is our ideal colonization planet at the moment. The story of this game also takes place on Mars.
Painting style
It is also strange to say that the manufacturers of games on the market that do this kind of theme are basically classic American painting styles, and the overall feeling is more intense, giving people a deep feeling, but it is not depressing, it can only be said that people are not very comfortable, it may be that the theme of alien colonization itself is this depressive type.
Frankly speaking, I still like the relaxed and bright style of playing this type of game. If I have a full score of 10 in this style, I can only give a 4 points. (xp is different, do not like to spray)
Set
The game currently has five different modes, each with multiple different difficulties to choose from, and you'll earn a Medal of Honor for each difficulty you've completed, and the badge collection can be used to unlock different modes and higher difficulty options. Basically, it meets the needs of most players, as for collecting medals, emmmm, it varies from person to person.
As for the gameplay of the game, it is nothing more than a planetary modification on Mars - after all, the name is "Huan Yan Star". Once you enter the game, it's the same cliché - building bases, expanding, building buildings, and transforming the environment. It's nothing to say, it's a cliché.
But if that's all there is to it, there's no need to recommend it, the game itself has made some changes, and the more characteristic is the addition of a set of random mechanisms similar to "Roguelike".
In fact, it is used by manufacturers to replace the technology tree system commonly used in the simulated business category, and frankly this setting is still quite interesting, and the completely random building and resource leaders really make the first and middle of the game more interesting.
However, given that the game itself is not completely random, that is, it is still repetitive, so it feels like playing more will have some "formula quick pass" play, specifically look at it after the release.
Card drawing mechanism
The most important mechanism of the game is actually to draw cards, the source of various buildings in the game comes from the draw cards at the beginning of each turn, the player draws one card at the initial time limit of each turn, with the establishment of special buildings, you can choose more options per turn, and the number of buildings that can be obtained each turn will also increase.
In addition, satellites, animals, plants, bacteria and other resources also need to draw cards to obtain, plus the cards held by the player are limited, so how to deal with the cards in your hand is what you need to think about the most.
The choice of buildings and resources is still important, because the game eliminates elements such as politics, so it adds a resident satisfaction mechanism.
You build nuclear power plants in residential areas and open up wasteland in residential areas. It will make the people dissatisfied with you; and the attractions, theaters and other civilian facilities that you build for the people will in turn increase the satisfaction of the residents.
The bottom line of resident satisfaction will continue to increase with the time of the game, and once the satisfaction of the personnel of your Mars colony is cleared, then it is good, congratulations, the game is over, and the Mars plan is officially postponed.
scenario
Limited by the size of the manufacturer, the game currently limits the goal to score achievement, construction material collection, cultivation of animals and plants, environmental transformation of several large blocks, different script victory conditions are different, each script also has a specific subdivision difficulty.
Saying that it is a different script is actually that you are developing in different directions during the construction process. As for the difficulty rating, the most intuitive embodiment of this setting in the game is the difficulty of the increase in resident satisfaction, and it can be said that it is more difficult for resident satisfaction above level 3 to rise.
The system of the Mars colony in the game is actually a democracy, every ten years is a cycle, each cycle needs to choose the ruler, each ruler around its background story, with special skills, such as forced overtime, religious beliefs, biological research and so on.
Once the term of office is over, only passive can be retained, (can be seen as the influence of the previous ruler on the colony), personally feel that this setting is still quite interesting, and there are indeed a few roles that are very good-looking, hehehehehe.
Play experience
The overall flow of the game is still very complete, and after playing a lap down, it feels like there is a beginning and an end. The gameplay is also decent. Personally, I feel that the game "Radiant Alien" belongs to the "light management" type of game, compared to some of the genre's masterpieces, the game abandons some more abstract elements.
For example, the political, economic, military and other elements commonly found in games such as "Civilization 6" and "Stars", these changes certainly simplify the process of the game, but at the same time also remove some of the playability.
At the beginning of the game, I was still wondering what was playable in the later stages of the game after removing the traditional three grand narrative processes (i.e., the political, economic, and military) mentioned above. However, after playing it later, I found that the game "New Star" not only did not lead to a decline in the overall playability, but also improved the fun of the game in the first and middle periods to a certain extent. It's eye-opening.
shortcoming
There are still some problems with the game's random settings, and the main source of buildings is draw cards. It is impossible for every player to have good luck, this kind of mission-driven game often has requirements for buildings, once the direct GG is not drawn, and sometimes it is like going to jail.
The art design is somewhat monotonous, the repetitive design still exists, and the painting style is slightly single.
Some of the script descriptions are also a bit pale, and individual buildings have a great impact on the game experience, etc., which require official follow-up.
summary
To be honest, the quality of the game is still very good, after all, I personally feel that the production team can make such a quality in the case of insufficient artistic conditions, and it can still maintain a high degree of playability after removing the traditional three grand narrative processes, and even make a little novelty, which I think is rare and valuable.
If you have limited time or you don't like too complex systems but still want to play some of these games, then this game may be a good choice for you, for now, the game's mechanics have tended to be perfect, the overall process is still biased towards the short and medium term, the production team is also consciously adding new content to the game, or more recommended for everyone to buy.