What a difference a year makes. The last twelve months of O.R.B.'s development has allowed Strategy First's to evolve this real-time strategy game in every possible way. Looking in on a late beta build at the developer's Montreal studios last week revealed that the 3D real-time strategy epic has made huge strides from what were rather humble beginnings. A complete overhaul of the graphics, the addition of a detailed storyline with Biblical aspirations, and a reworked interface that emphasizes ease of use made us take a long second look at a title that has come a long way in a short period of time.

Large-scale military engagements are a big part of O.R.B.

"O.R.B. has really changed since the last time we released a demo for the media," said producer Paul Gadbois on a rare break from a schedule that has predictably turned punishing as the game nears gold certification. "It frustrates me a little when I see people in newsgroups and Web forums saying bad things about the game, because they don't have any idea how much it has changed. They really don't know anything about this game at all. What they're familiar with doesn't exist anymore."

Gadbois seems to have a valid point. What we saw of O.R.B. bore little resemblance to the brief demo builds that made the media rounds from the summer of 2001 through last spring's E3. Presentation values are a lot higher now, placing this updated build on a level playing field with other contemporary real-time strategy games. This is most readily noticeable in the attention paid to the setting and atmosphere. The story of the Malus and Alyssians has been fleshed out, so they are more than just generic alien races who go to war upon discovering that they share a solar system. An epic story involving an ancient holy book called the Torumin has been woven into the single-player campaign. This tome reveals much of the shared background of the two races, although there are key differences that make them distrust one another. The Malus, in particular, are fearful of the Alyssians because they assume that their neighboring civilization represents the "Great Deceiver" of the Torumin.

Massive capital ships dwarf tiny fighters.

This tale is bolstered by strong cinematics. Cutscenes using the game engine currently preface all of the campaign missions, and they do an admirable job of establishing a space opera atmosphere. Scripture from the differing versions of the Torumin is often used to set a forbidding tone, in a way that is somewhat reminiscent of the ominous quotes that Looking Glass sprinkled throughout the Thief games. So even though O.R.B. takes place among the stars and features futuristic alien races, the creators seem to have established an almost gothic mood. A certain quality in the storytelling makes the demo build stand out from your garden-variety RTS in space.

Attractive graphics reinforce this unique look, so you likely won't confuse O.R.B. with any other game. Ship design appears to be more industrial than that seen in other space-based strategy titles. Both Malus and Alyssian vessels are intended to be seen as serviceable, not stylish, and are accordingly blocky. While this trait is particularly noticeable in the Malus fleet--appropriate because the race specializes in raw offensive and defensive power--even the sleeker Alyssian craft are the obvious result of assembly-line technology. Adding exotic spice is a mysterious alien race called the Kyulek. Strategy First wants to leave readers in the dark about this hostile species, as it plays an important role in the campaign plot, although it does appear that these aliens make their ships out of some organic material. Both the alien vessels and their bases certainly appeared to have been grown in the beta build. Ships from all three races make good use of lighting effects for weapon fire and engine exhaust. Gadbois showed us one large engagement that featured hundreds of flashes of colored light that rendered the scene equal parts fireworks display and equal parts battle.