Sometimes you have to make a risky decision to make your dreams come true. At least, that's the case for the team at Carbon Games.
A team of less than 10 people, they broke away from Titan Studios after
the completion of Fat Princess, and set out to create a new strategy
game they hoped would be published on PC and consoles. The result is AirMech,
a spiritual recreation of the Sega Genesis title Herzog Zwei. It takes
the same formula from one of the earliest RTS titles ever, adapting it
to work as smoothly as a twin-stick arcade shooter, but with all the
excitement that the original had with its mix of frenetic action and
tactical gameplay.
AirMech supports up to six players in free for all fights, team-based
battles or even one-on-one skirmishes. No matter the mode, each person
directly controls their own AirMech, using its unique transformation
ability to adapt to varying situations. Using automatically generated
resources – there's no harvesting in AirMech -- you can build units like
any RTS game, jump into a quick radial menu to select the desired troop
type. However, the units won't automatically deploy to the field, so
you have to use their mech's flight mode to soar over a base, gather
whatever unit was built and drop them on the battlefield where they're
needed. Basic orders like attack, defend or capture can be issued to
each unit, though you cannot directly control them. The goal is to use
vehicles and your mech to support infantry, defending them so they can
invade and take over bases on the battlefield, culminating in the
destruction of the main enemy bastion.
Your role on the battlefield isn't just to ferry troops around, but also
to provide support and turn the tide of a fight. While flying, your
mech can shoot other flying commanders, and can transform into a walker
to support and defend ground troops. Walkers are excellent offensive
fighters, and can turn the tide in a base defense or an attempt to
capture an enemy fortress, but are incapable of dropping troops on the
battlefield. Of course transitioning between the two forms is as easy as
a button press, so any good commander is constantly switching between
the two in order to balance direct effect and troop deployment.
OK, so now you know the basics of how AirMech plays, but what's
important is whether the old Herzog Zwei gameplay stands the test of
time. I'll admit, I've only played one-on-one skirmishes, but playing in
the Alpha (which you can sign up for now)
proves that this tried and true formula still works today. AirMech
matches are nice and short, taking somewhere around 20 minutes to
complete. The whole time I find myself on the edge of my seat, since
moment to moment there's always an urgent task. It isn't a revolution in
game design, but it's easy to learn and an entertaining take on a genre
that often intimidates the hell out of potential players.
Don't mistake AirMech for being too easy, though – there's plenty of
strategy hidden beneath the surface. For starters you can select from an
array of mechs, and each of them has different stats that affect how
they'll play. A helicopter mech has more health than, say, a jet, but it
also is a heck of a lot slower. The stats of each mech are also further
augmented by the pilot you select, allowing for a decent amount of
customization.
Your army can also be customized. While infantry is always needed (it's
the only troop type that can take over bases on the field), the type and
number of infantry units you bring is up to you. You can bring in fast
moving, lightly armored infantry, or take standard infantry and a number
of tanks and armored cars. It's up to each player to decide what army
load out suits their playstyle, and what will be good for efficient use
of resources. I doubt all the customization in AirMech will result in
the depth of a title like Starcraft, but once enough people have their
hands on it the strategies and exploits players dream up I'm sure will
impress nonetheless.
AirMech comes out sometime in the beginning of 2012, and Carbon Games
hopes to have it on PC, Xbox Live and PSN. Plenty of companies have
tried to bring the RTS genre to the consoles, but AirMech's simple
mechanics work better than most. The controls feel great, and the
scaling back of direct player control over units feels like a wise
compromise. And hey, if you end up playing it on PC, it's already a lot
of fun, whether or not you have fond memories of its predecessor or not.
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