great game! (Star Trek - Armada (PC))

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Product:	Star Trek - Armada (PC)
Date:	30/08/00 (3 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: cool graphics

Disadvantages: repetitive sound

I bought Star Trek: Armada a few days after it shelved; my friends and I were sweating to get the plastic wrap off and install it. When we gave the game a few rounds the majority of us were not disappointed!


in short,this game is bar none the most tactically involving RTS ever. Although opinions vary, I believe that battle tactics are more effective and executable than even the likes of Blizzard's work. This is what makes this game truly shine. Most of the stuff in Armada is stuff that's already been done before with most games, like the resource system and the environmental effects, but the unit balancing and special abilities are something to witness in action. An example of how this throws into tactics is this: A friend of mine and I were playing multiplayer. We were fighting over some really valuable territory due to its literally unlimited resource (infinite dilithium). I beat him even though he had stronger firepower than I because I activated my unique specials and because I was prepared to detect his units (they were cloaked so I upgraded and used scouts to detect them). My special attack that the Akira Class federation ship had was a weapon that shoots a bouncing torpedo that gathers energy and deals most damage to the last target, so when his units were grouped closely in the brawl I used them. I also used artillery fire wisely to help whittle him down and I barely came out on top.

Star Trek: Armada is worth its weight in gold, especially if you have a video card to witness its really high-end graphics. I gripe here though since there is evidence that the game is rushed. The ideal system that will play Armada without a hitch is generally anything with a PIII not using the 810 chipset, and a Voodoo 3 card. The rest of us Nvidia users will have to wait until a stable patch is released, and that time is unknown. So if you purchase the game and you think to yourself "What gives? My system is really high-end!" that's
because this game was rushed to the market and aimed to work for a small percent of it. That gripe is fixable and non-game related, so this is why I think Armada deserves a high review score.

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