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Stars beyond reach.2/26/2023 ![]() ![]() There is also an element of “simulated citizens” here that you don’t quite get in some 4X titles. So you want to either build those downwind, or build hazmat buildings around them, or both. As with SimCity, you have to think about the effects of pollution of industrial stuff on the buildings that surround them, for instance. Your empire is thus a lot more visible, and your buildings have position on the map that matters relative to one another. In this game, every building takes at least one tile, sometimes more - bringing out a lot of that SimCity feel. What can you share with us about this and how has it influenced the game in the end?Ĭhris: If you look at Civilization, a single hex is a city, right? And there are a few improvements on a few tiles around that. SS: You have also mentioned SimCity a few times as a source of inspiration for some of your design choices. Making it so that players could feel reasonably competent just in navigating the game at the start is really important to me with this one, and then the uniqueness hopefully unfolds naturally from there. For this game, I think that there is a parallel in that it “feels” like Civilization in a lot of ways - despite it being really really different - so there’s an immediate sense of being at home to some degree. Before we discuss any new ideas or ways you’ve approached game design, what can you tell us that will be familiar to the fans of the genre?Ĭhris: With our game AI War, I think it was a case where it “felt” like most RTS games that you’d played before, in terms of controls and so forth. ![]() This is both good but can also be off-putting for some players that like more traditional mechanics. SS: Arcen Games is known to think outside of the box, creating unique mechanics. There’s no crutch of “well the player will have to make this choice fast, so the details of the choice don’t matter much anyway.” Designed properly, a good 4X can instead really challenge the player to think at their own pace - and ideally, for experienced players of a game, they can speed through turns while making really meaningful decisions. That said, the opportunity for depth in this genre is unparalleled within strategy. I don’t mind an abstract representation - I’m a big fan of Risk, for instance, and that’s about as abstract as you can get - but when I can’t “see the state of the board” in any remotely meaningful way by looking at the game map, that does bother me. I think that a lot of games in the 4X genre tend to be too submenu-driven for my taste, if that makes sense. There are definitely more RTSs that I have liked historically, but in terms of my very favorite strategy games, there’s an even mix between 4X and RTS. What were your motives to do so?Ĭhris Park: For me it really depends on the game. SS: What are your opinions about the 4X genre? You’ve obviously toyed around with the genre in the past and are now going forward with a title that seems to be closer to the traditional 4X formula. For those who want an even more direct and detailed description of the game, the following interview may be helpful. You can go to the game’s official page if you wish to get a more stylised features description of the game (warning: Arcen has a sense of humour with everything they do, despite the things that happen in their games are far from being a joking matter, usually). As always, Arcen doesn’t like to stay in the box of established conventions and this game hints to being no exception. Despite all this, the game is still a full 4X title, which means this is not SimCity with 4X elements but a 4X game with SimCity-like elements. Just like City Builders, the game has simulated populations you need to oversee their needs like crime control, health, and pollution. However, unlike Civilization: Beyond Earth or Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri, this title seems to take a page from the City Builder genre where the player expands out their settlements by placing buildings and districts as they sprawl out. Stars Beyond Reach is a turn-based, sci-fi themed, planetary scale 4X strategy game. Stars Beyond Reach was showcased in our List of Games you shouldn’t miss, and with the release fast approaching, we thought it was appropriate to get more insight on the game. We decided to ask Chris Park, the lead developer, a few questions to get a better grasp of the game. Arcen Games latest title still in production, Stars Beyond Reach, is nearing release. ![]()
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