he Kharakans are confused. For thousands of years they have believed that their beloved planet was home. But Kharakan scientists uncover evidence that indicates this is not so. Curiosity gets the best of the aliens, and they decide to build a huge mothership capable of carrying a half-million of their people to their supposed homeworld--a planet called Hiigara.
Their plans advance well, but when the Kharakans launch the mothership they are attacked with incredible violence. The bad news is that launching the mothership violated an ancient treaty signed with the galactic empire. The treaty forbids the Kharakans to develop hyperspace travel. The good news is that...well, at least the mothership survived. Homeworld is the story of that surviving ship's travails as it, its 500,000 inhabitants, and its ragtag fleet search for Hiigara.
Gamers control the mothership--and the fighters, destroyers, carriers, and other ships it spawns--as they fight their way through the 16 missions of Homeworld's linear campaign. This is real-time strategy; as much time is spent acquiring resources and producing units as is spent battling the bad guys. Yet the idea of real-time strategy in 3-D space is a new one. Players control their fleet (and the trouble it gets into) from any angle and from multiple views.
The game includes a robust multiplayer engine, and the WON.net game service usually has a robust number of gamers willing to duke it out in Homeworld's space.
Evolution, not revolution
Homeworld is a beautiful game. Its space is alive with colors--swirling pink ion clouds drift through ink-black skies and lasers pierce the endless night with blood-red flashes.
But it takes more than a pretty face to seduce today's gamers, and Homeworld has plenty of gameplay brains behind its beauty. Although the campaign is linear, each mission is linked by not only a better-than-average story, but the persistence of the player's forces. Resources and units are carried from one mission to the next. Hence, the imprudent commander may win a battle but take such heavy losses that the war will be lost.
Neither is the game's artificial intelligence a slacker. The computer's units will attempt to bait their human opponent, and the AI often eschews frontal assaults in favor of flank attacks. Unfortunately, friendly units could use a parcel of the AI enemies' brain power. Frequently, friendly craft will sit idly by as the craft adjacent to them takes a pounding. Still, the interface is simple enough to let gamers get their units where they want them, when they want them, fighting who they want them to, without a lot of help from the computer.
Exquisite graphics, the 3-D space environment, and the innovative campaign aside, Homeworld is still a standard real-time strategy game--players collect resources, build war machines, and conquer their enemy. The changes are evolutionary, not revolutionary. Still, the evolutionary changes are well done, the story is well written, and the game is stunningly beautiful. That should be enough for most.
