Groundbreaking (Supreme Commander (PC))

Member Name: smooth_criminal_

Product:	Supreme Commander (PC)
Date:	09/05/07 (476 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great visuals, groundbreaking scale, and superb gameplay

Disadvantages: High end system required for best performance

Games like Supreme Commander, it is safe to say, do not come around very often. The enormous hype, anticipation, and mass hysteria that has surrounded this game since its announcement is a testament to its rarity. After a few years of no real improvement and few new benchmarks, real-time strategy needed a game like Supreme Commander. It needed it not just to push the boundaries, but to shove them violently to the wayside in a moment of awesome gaming splendour, mocking the memory of everything that has come before, and setting the standard for years to come.

In its size and scale, this game is groundbreaking; in its visual quality and presentation, it is stunning; and in its gameplay it is unrivalled in the genre. For the hardcore fan of real-time strategy and the average gamer alike, Supreme Commander is a must. Innovative, engaging, and polished, this game is superb across the board, and thoroughly deserved of both its pre-release hype and a place in gaming history.

Graphics

Supreme Commander proudly boasts some of the finest graphics in the genre, which is an impressive achievement considering the scale of its maps. The attention to detail is superb, with even the largest environments remaining convincing. Mountains, cliffs, woodland, lakes, and a variety of other standard RTS visual features are designed and placed remarkably well, and the ability to zoom right in really allows one to appreciate the care that has gone into the game's graphics. The water effects, particularly, are beautifully done, and will be welcomed by those used to the lacklustre displays seen in some other titles.

Unit design is probably where Supreme Commander is at its most ambitious. The standard tanks, buildings, aircraft, and artillery are brilliantly crafted, but I felt the game really reached visual excellence when I was introduced to the enormous naval and experimental units. The Cybran aircraft carrier, for example, which is far larger than any of the game's land or air units, is beautifully and intricately designed, and the Cybran experimental spider unit is another visual treat, with its legs and hull looking convincingly bizarre and alien.

Perhaps the only downside to Supreme Commander's magnificent visuals is, obviously, the enormous demand that they place on one's computer. With the unusual combination of unprecedented scale and wonderfully detailed environments, the game needs a high-end system to maintain the graphical quality without suffering from a dire frame-rate. With fairly low settings, my computer, which was one of the most powerful on the market a year ago, could just about handle it, but, ideally, one should seek an upgrade for the best experience. Fortunately, this game is worth it.

20/20 - Demanding but superb graphics

Sound

It is perhaps because real-time strategy is often not quite as intense as other genres, particularly first-person-shooters, that sound is not the first thing one thinks of when playing a game like Supreme Commander. Nevertheless, Gas Powered Games have done well here too, delivering a high quality audio, as well as visual, display.

The sound effects, particularly weapons fire, and most notably the sound of enormous artillery shells hurtling down onto the enemy in almost apocalyptic fashion, are very impressive. Everything from laser beams to rocket fire sounds convincing, adding significantly to the player's immersion in the game. Furthermore, in-game music is well executed, remaining low-key enough not to distract from the action, but providing a sense of urgency and excitement that is important in this genre, particularly on the rare occasions when firefights are not erupting all over the screen. Even the voice-acting in the singleplayer campaign mode is of a high quality. On the whole, Supreme Commander delivers impressively in terms of sound quality, and cannot really be faulted.

19/20 - Impressive display across the board, particularly in terms of sound effects, adding to the game's immersive appeal

Gameplay

Supreme Commander is a real-time strategy game set in the distant future, meaning the player operates from an overhead perspective and is put in charge of a futuristic army. One must manage resources and base construction as well as basic warfare, and it is nearly impossible to win a game without striking a reasonable balance between the three, making the game more complex than your average blaster, but ultimately more rewarding and satisfying, particularly for the tactically minded.

There are three basic gameplay modes available - singleplayer campaign, singleplayer skirmish, and multiplayer - and these are all of an excellent standard. But what is common to all these modes, and what impressed me the most, is Supreme Commander's sheer scale. Nothing like this has been seen before in the genre, and it is what got the gaming community buzzing in the months prior to release. The smallest maps are larger than the biggest maps seen in rival titles, and the largest maps provide for strategic warfare on a colossal and unprecedented scale.

This, of course, adds an entirely new dynamic to the game, encouraging the player to build multiple fortifications across the map and making one think much more carefully about long term strategy. Suddenly, transporting units quickly from one side of the map to the other becomes an important issue, and things like aircraft carriers become necessary to refuel air units that can't fly the full stretch. In order to make the large maps as manageable as possible, the player can use a split screen mode, and the game even supports dual monitors, which is a real bonus if one wants to become the ultimate master tactician.

The size of the maps, and what this adds to the strategic depth of the gameplay, is truly groundbreaking, and makes this game essential for any fan of the genre. But, in addition to the scale of Supreme Commander, the combat itself is also remarkable. The player can choose between three different factions: the Aeon Illuminate, the United Earth Federation, and the Cybran Nation. Each is fleshed out, in terms background, in the singleplayer campaign, and each possess unique features and advantages. My favourite is undoubtedly the United Earth Federation - probably the most traditional and conventional faction - but there are benefits to all three, with the Cybran Nation being the most technological, and the Aeon easily the most bizarre and alien. The variations between each are a real bonus, and allow every player to choose what works best for them.

The vast range of units available adds to this considerably. Not only did I find at my disposal an assortment of land, sea, and air units, including the traditional tanks, walker bots, battleships, submarines, and fighter jets, the different tech levels that can be reached enhance the variety even further, as units become increasingly advanced. Each faction has different specialities as well; the Cybran Nation, for example, prides itself on its experimental spider unit - a gigantic spider that can devastate an entire opposing army with its enormous laser beam. The UEF, meanwhile, prides itself on artillery, able to deploy gigantic guns capable of hurling shells all the way across even the largest maps.

With such variety, strategic balance is essential, and Gas Powered Games have done a superb job here. The Cybran Nation can protect itself against UEF shells by constructing protective energy fields around important structures, and the UEF can hit back at the Cybran spider unit with its own experimentals. Furthermore, the awesome destructive power that can be wielded with nuclear weapons can be counteracted fairly effectively with anti-missile defences. This balance is a key aspect of the game's appeal and success, keeping Supreme Commander interesting and challenging by not making it too easy to win or lose in one quick sweep.

Furthermore, the different difficulty settings allow for increased flexibility. One can play on either easy, medium, or hard, allowing the player to set their own pace as they get used to the game and its challenges. Supreme Commander also allows the player to select the kind of AI they will fight against, with the different options being a surge AI, which surges the player with waves of low-tech units, tech AI, which techs up fast and uses advanced technology to win the day, and a medium between the two. The AI itself is extremely advanced, and often seems notably intuitive; at times it provided me with a real challenge, and, in its ingenuity and adaptability, was almost like playing against a real human.

Supreme Commander's multiplayer is also excellently done, and the majority of the things mentioned above apply here as well. Various game modes are available, with the players being able to set victory conditions before a battle starts, and there is support for up to eight players per game. Once again, the sheer size and scale of the maps make for a truly unrivalled experience. A fast internet connection, however, is a must for getting the most out of the multiplayer experience, with relatively quick broadband being essential. On the whole, Supreme Commander, with its enormous scale, brilliant AI, and variety of units, is a superbly designed game, and offers an unforgettable gameplay experience.

25/25 - Groundbreaking gameplay, unrivalled in the genre, and particularly notable for the scale of the maps involved

Lifespan

Supreme Commander boasts a lengthy and entertaining singleplayer campaign for each of the three factions, as well as unlimited skirmish battles, and, of course, multiplayer. Not only is the game thus fairly long in itself, its replay potential, and indeed value, is tremendous.

The player could probably expect to complete the singleplayer campaign for all factions in roughly two weeks, depending upon how many hours one is prepared, or perhaps compelled, to spend on the game. However, the skirmish mode and multiplayer together make the game effectively unlimited in its longevity. With this in mind, and with excellent replay value, Supreme Commander does not fail to disappoint.

25/25 - Lengthy singleplayer campaign, skirmish mode, and multiplayer make for an excellent lifespan and great replay value

Originality

The aforementioned scale of Supreme Commander provides the basis for its innovation and originality. Nothing so ambitious has been attempted before in this genre, and it was a bold move by the developers, certainly worthy of considerable praise. But it is also the game's brilliant AI and outstanding experimental units that make it stand out from the crowd. Nothing I've seen elsewhere can compare with an aircraft carrier that can submerge itself, or a giant mechanical spiderbot capable of unleashing unthinkable destructive power upon the enemy. This game really is remarkable, and sets new standards in all sorts of places.

9/10 - Innovative and original - pushes the boundaries of the genre to new levels

Overall

This game smacks of excellence, and is bound to be a candidate for game of the year. The outstanding visual quality, impressive sound effects, innovative scale, and sheer imagination make Supreme Commander a different and exciting experience. This title will almost certainly go down in gaming history as something that not only provided thousands of gamers with hours of unrivalled entertainment, but also something that opened up the genre to the awesome potential that faster systems now make possible.

All gamers should give this a try, and it most certainly has proved, for me, a thoroughly addictive experience. Not to be missed.

98%


Key Facts:

Price: £29.99 (Amazon, February 07)

Certificate: 12+

Publisher: THQ

Developer: Gas Powered Games

Genre: Real Time Strategy


MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

Microsoft® Windows® XP Service Pack 2, Vista
1.8 GHz processor
512 MB RAM
8 GB available hard drive space
128 MB video RAM or greater, with DirectX 9 Vertex Shader / Pixel Shader 2.0
support (Nvidia 6x00 or better)
Sound card, speakers or headphones
Broadband internet connection (DSL/Cable).

RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

3.0 GHz Intel or equivalent AMD processor or better
1 GB RAM or better
8 GB available hard drive space
256 MB video RAM, with DirectX 9 Vertex Shader / Pixel Shader 2.0 support
(Nvidia 6800 or better)
Internet connection with Cable/DSL speeds

Summary: All gamers should give this a try