E3 06: Paraworld Impressions

LOS ANGELES--Dinosaurs and real-time strategy--when you think about this combination, you probably wonder why it hasn't really been done yet. That's about to change with Paraworld, a new PC strategy game from Sunflowers that we got a peek at during E3 2006. Paraworld puts you in a parallel dimension where men and dinosaurs coexist. Three tribes: the Norsemen, Dust Riders, and Dragon Clan, vie for control of this world, and all can field armies that combine human soldiers as well as dinosaurs and other large beasts used as mounts.

The game's units are as fanciful and creative as a child reading his first dinosaur book. In the demonstration we saw, we got to see units like a wooly mammoth carrying a mounted ballista on its back, as well as cavalrymen mounted on two-legged, carnivorous dinosaurs. Mounted brontosauruses can use a stomp ability to knock over tree lines and create surprise avenues for invasion. Other dinosaurs we saw could catapult eggs over tree lines, which hatched small raptors--these can effectively harass gatherer units hidden in the back of bases. The gigantic titan units unique to each tribe were perhaps the most impressive of all. The Norsemen can unleash a giant triceratops with mounted archers firing arrows from its back. The Dragon Clan's brontosaurus titan one-ups that with gatling guns and a mortar mounted on top of it, while the Dust Riders' T-rex can terrorize and eat enemy infantry.

Aside from the use of dinosaurs, Paraworld distinguishes itself with a unique army controller. This appears as a tool bar along the left side that lists all your units, arranged by their current rank. As you fight and defeat enemies, you will collect skulls which are used as currency for you to manually promote your units, by dragging them from the bottom ranks and dropping them in the top ranks, which will bestow them with higher stats. The very highest rank is reserved for only three units, while lower ranks can be filled with larger portions of your army. This adds a strategic element to the game, as you must carefully choose which units you want to promote to the highest levels. Bringing your titan up to the top or one of the game's nine hero units usually makes the most sense, as a fully promoted titan or hero can bestow bonuses upon your entire army. An in-game day-night cycle that affects the disposition and behavior of neutral dinosaurs on the map rounds out Paraworld's major distinguishing features.

Aside from a lengthy campaign, Paraworld will also offer eight-player online multiplayer, with modes that include deathmatch and team deathmatch, as well as domination and a defender mode, where several human players try to attack and take down a single human-controlled army. Currently, Paraworld is scheduled to ship on the PC at the end of August.