14 DAY TRIAL // Spacecom might be one of the most promising indie strategy titles I have played in a long time, and after spending time with the title from Flow Combine for this preview, I certainly eagerly await for the full version to be out, which should happen before the end of the year.
The first thought that popped into my head while playing the strategy experience was that the studio took a look at Sins of a Solar Empire, one of the best titles in the genre, and decided to strip it to its essence.
The player has access to three types of fleets, one for space battles, one for destroying enemy systems and another designed to invade them, and can see a complex network of solar systems and planets that need to be conquered and defended.
Some of the planets have resources, while others include shipyards or repair facilities, and Spacecom asks gamers to survey the star network and decide which areas they need to control in order to achieve the mission’s objectives and declare victory.
The title from Flow Combine, which is being created with help from 11 Bit Studios, does not ask the player to control tactical battles or planet development and always keeps the focus on the strategic layer, with an emphasis on fast decision making.
Spacecom has a series of single-player missions that teach the core mechanics and then drop the players into some more advanced scenarios, designed to test their planning and their execution skills.
The game seems a little slow at first and I used the faster time flow options offered, but as the number of planets and enemies increased, I needed to slow it down in order to be able to respond to all threats and plan how to deploy my troops to protect my core worlds and slowly expand.
Spacecom is easy to learn because it relies on a limited number of units and planetary options, but this very simplicity makes it hard to master.
There seem to never be enough ships to go around for all the objectives, which means that it’s important for the players to scout ahead, make sure that their strikes use the minimum number of units required for victory and always protect their flanks.
The single-player can be fun, but the meat of the game from Slow Combine is the multiplayer, because human opponents have the habit of springing surprises at a strategic level that the Artificial Intelligence simple cannot deliver.
Take a look at Spacecom in action below, but take into account that the game is still in development, so some elements might change before the launch version is made available.
