It's hard to stay friends with all the included factions

Apr 26, 2014 01:15 GMT  ·  By

Initially, getting the various races in The Last Federation to like the player seems like a long-term but rather easy process because, after all, do enough favors for a faction and ultimately they will see that it’s better to join a large alliance than fight it.

But after playing the game from Arcen for a number of turns, it becomes clear that one of the biggest obstacles standing in the way of a peaceful future is the variety of government models present in the solar system and the way they set priorities for the factions that have adopted them.

The Andors have a parliament where constantly changing parties lead and the player needs to watch them to do the deals he is interested in and no bribery is possible.

The Boarines have a regent that never changes and who bases his priorities on the status of his planet, which means that a lot of improvement work and some bribes are required to make the faction open to the creation of the federation.

The Burlust have competing warlords, the Acutians CEOs and each race requires careful long-term planning and carefully considered actions.

The development team has managed to introduce a lot of variety in The Last Federation and it takes time to understand the ways mechanics interact with each other, but the process never feels tedious.

I had the same feeling playing that I remember from the times I was watching Star Trek episodes when I was younger, piecing together information about the Romulans or the Cardassians in order to get a bigger picture about the way their civilization worked.

The Last Federation complicates matters even more by making it hard to please one race without annoying another, especially when fighting against pirates or spreading tech.

Pirates in the game are better described as privateers and, while it might seem like a good idea to eradicate them, it can turn more military-minded races into powerful enemies.

Spreading tech across the solar system also sounds like a positive step, but it often leads to negative reactions as well.

The Last Federation and its diplomatic and governmental mechanics are not easy to manipulate to reach positive outcomes, but as a possible alliance starts to take shape, the difficulty level makes the entire process feel much more rewarding.

Unfortunately, the hate of the Evucks remains strong despite my attempts to appease them after my initial betrayal.