"Savage Moon: The Hera Campaign" is a 2009 Tower Defense real-time strategy game.
I wasn't planning on reviewing this game but I feel it is slipping by unnoticed by many, and I don't know why – is it because FluffyLogic forgot to make a great poster for this title with some premise of what this game is all about - something cool and flashy or dark and scary always attracts the eye:) Is it because the game itself isn't flashy enough for facebook/twitter/LOL generation? I do not know. But it is a really solid portable strategy game.
I was not aware of this game and was pleasantly surprised. PSP had some attempts at RTS but I was waiting for a game with graphics like "Savage Moon: The Hera Campaign" and once I saw screenshots here on Gamespot I knew I had to have it. This game introduced Tower Defence – subgenre of RTS (real-time strategy) games which is a lot of fun, it led me to try out Fieldrunners, PixelJunk Monsters and Vector TD.
The gameplay: You gather resources from Imoons and build defense towers around mining colony to fight Insectocytes (bug like creatures). Sounds simple, but there is much to be considered - the placement of towers and blocking towers, there are also upgrades to weaponry (increase firing range, anti-air towers for flying creatures).
There are nine types of towers: Machine Gun, Mortar, Anti Air, Blocking, Maser, Repair, Amp, Orbital and Sniper, you can upgrade or sell towers. There are ten types of insectocytes with different strengths, speed and abilities.
You loose if too many insectocytes pass to the mining base before you can repair it - you don't have to wait for something to happen like many turn-based strategy games PSP has to offer that's the fun of RTS the waves of insectocytes will be coming no matter what, you can also advance them to get bonus credits. Before starting the level you select how many resources you'll need, you get more credits in the game for killing Insectocytes.
Campaign has twenty levels, you can set difficulty to easy or normal, after you complete the mission the same map/Imoon can be played in Vengence mode where you fight Insectocyte waves in increasing difficulty till you loose – fun because it is never the same you can try different strategies. There is a "Tech + Creature Library" where concept of the game(play), towers and insectocytes are described.
You will find detailed explanations of the gameplay and the story under "Options" – "Instructions".
The graphics and Music: I like the tone of this game - it is serious, gloomy and warlike, too many games go for the child friendly look and I think 3 out of 5 times it is a mistake (best examples are PSP Minis who is trying to destroy zombie genre with games where zombies look cute, which is sooooooo wrong - zombies are scary, bad and eating flesh) anyway back to Savagemoon, terrain textures would look better with higher resolution but I really do not know the limitations of PSP and maybe this is as good as it gets, but overall the game, character design, towers, effects and animations are pleasant to look at, it's 3D you can zoom in to see details, it is lowpoly of course, but all my favorite RTS games with the best gameplay are lowpoly and for the PSP screen the choices that were made as far as modeling and texturing goes are reasonable.
Music is fitting the game - has this spacey feel to it, you can unlock more tracks by winning Imoons. Sounds of firing and Incsectocytes are good repetitiveness is expected but war isn't music :)
I'm wondering if there were any other gamers who felt the need for this game as much as I did but now I'm really exited to have it. I was looking for a real-time strategy PSP game for quite some time, I can't emphasize REAL-TIME enough not turn based.
First time I played till four a.m. and stopped only because the PSP battery light started flashing:) That to me indicates FluffyLogic did it right.
What would I like to see added to this game:
1. User created content, a must, some sort of level generator, map/mission editor something in that vein, I am 3D modeler so even if a third party software might be needed I'm all for it, user created content makes the game going, I mean examples like Spore, Trackmania Nations, Unreal Tournament mapping and modding is a living proof.
2. Statistics: I think for strategy games more detailed statistics is needed, Central Command or save file's "40 percent complete" do not do it justice, I want: kills, credits earned from killing specific creatures, most used towers etc, I want a trophy/achievements room.
3. Custom music. (I do not mind the music the game has but I noticed on FluffyLogic website they have like SavageMoon remixes which are in mp3 would be good they could be put to used too, plus favorite music is very individual thing so why not keep an option for people who like to play games only if Jimi Hendrix "All along the watchtower" is playing:)
4. Bigger maps, more maps/Imoons, more insectocytes, more towers, more upgrades :) we gamers always want more :)
I would recommend this game if you enjoy games like Fieldrunners or if you like me are looking for a strategy game.
Nuff said. Excelsior!
-Korado3D (2010 March)
http://www.youtube.com/korado3d