Arcen Games announce their next game: Stars Beyond Reach

Huw the Poo · October 31, 2014, 04:13:39 PM

QuoteWhat Is This Game?

The short: 4x, hexes, hex-shaped map, 14 races planned (8 playable), 3 leader options per race, no units (think SimCity), sci-fi but planet based, and (probably) with co-op multiplayer.

The even-shorter: Think Civilization meets SimCity meets AI War meets New Stuff.

Arcen Games finally take on 4X! As usual, it sounds like they're trying something a bit different which will ultimately polarise people. Personally I can't wait. I'm willing to bet it will be their best game yet and it will be pretty much an instabuy for me.

tgb · October 31, 2014, 05:08:44 PM

My experience with Arcen games is that they look great on paper, and are fun for a few hours, but don't hold up or have any longevity. Fortunately they are budget-priced. I hope this next one is different (other than the pricing).

James Sterrett · October 31, 2014, 05:39:29 PM

I have an identical yet opposite experience with Arcen. The games look great on paper, a fun for a few hours, and then I see the yawning chasm of depth opening up in front of me and.... run away. Except Bionic Dues, which is pretty easy to grok.

Huw the Poo · October 31, 2014, 06:45:09 PM

I'm firmly in their target audience, but I did struggle initially with The Last Federation. It almost seemed like they were trying to be obtuse with that title. However I've been playing it again recently and I had that "so that's it" moment and haven't looked back. I absolutely adore Arcen Games, I think they're an amazing developer, and Stars Beyond Reach looks like the most promising game yet. I can't wait!

Boggit · October 31, 2014, 07:40:18 PM

I pretty much share Huw's view. For me they take a subject and put an interesting twist on it in a way no one else does. They are very original in their thinking. O0

James Sterrett · October 31, 2014, 10:32:54 PM

Don't get me wrong - I have a deep respect for Arcen and I keep buying their games. They just get a lot less playtime than they should because I shy away from the time commitment to really understand them. My fault, not theirs.

Huw the Poo · November 01, 2014, 03:02:41 AM

James, I would urge you to try The Last Federation. It's a lot to learn but the game does its best to ease you in gently, and once you have the lightbulb moment, you realise the potential the game has. I think TotalBiscuit was right in his video review when he said that it's one of those games that produces really interesting stories every time you play. I'm enjoying it immensely at the moment and will definitely get the upcoming expansion which will introduce two new interesting game modes. :)

James Sterrett · November 01, 2014, 08:01:45 AM

I have it. I bounced after a few hours, lost trying to figure out how to influence various parties and what actions influenced what. Lazy? Yup. Doesn't stop it being a very clever piece of work.

spelk · November 05, 2014, 10:05:22 AM

Snuggle up to the Skylaxians and you'll be ok. :)

I'm always stoked when Arcen announce a new game. I know I'll be there when it comes to purchase day. I just dig what they're trying to do, and they always give me something entertaining even if its not got the longevity or complexity of AI War.

sandman2575 · November 05, 2014, 11:24:13 AM

Quote from: Huw the Poo on October 31, 2014, 04:13:39 PM
Arcen Games finally take on 4X! As usual, it sounds like they're trying something a bit different which will ultimately polarise people.

Lord knows Space 4X is a genre that could use some serious outside-the-box thinking to shake it up. I enjoy a number of 4X titles, but man, the conventions have gotten really, really stale...

PC strategy gaming still awaits the genius dev who can escape the shadow of Sid Meier...

Huw the Poo · November 05, 2014, 04:18:39 PM

Quote from: spelk on November 05, 2014, 10:05:22 AM
Snuggle up to the Skylaxians and you'll be ok. :)

I'm always stoked when Arcen announce a new game. I know I'll be there when it comes to purchase day. I just dig what they're trying to do, and they always give me something entertaining even if its not got the longevity or complexity of AI War.

I couldn't have put it better myself. Their sheer ingenuity, coupled with astonishing agility around bug-fixing and willingness to implement community feedback, make them a model developer punching way above their weight. AI War is usually my go-to game too, when I get enough of their newest game, but I think The Last Federation will last a lot longer. The new game sounds promising as hell too.

Sandman, good points. If anyone can do it, Arcen can. :)

Oh yes, I have very high hopes for this one! I might even see if I can beta test it.

RooksBailey · November 06, 2014, 04:02:34 PM

Quote from: sandman2575 on November 05, 2014, 11:24:13 AM
Quote from: Huw the Poo on October 31, 2014, 04:13:39 PM
Arcen Games finally take on 4X! As usual, it sounds like they're trying something a bit different which will ultimately polarise people.

Lord knows Space 4X is a genre that could use some serious outside-the-box thinking to shake it up. I enjoy a number of 4X titles, but man, the conventions have gotten really, really stale...

PC strategy gaming still awaits the genius dev who can escape the shadow of Sid Meier...

I love Arcen, but mostly for their superlative AI War. I've tried other games of theirs but none of them have ever grabbed me like AI War, albeit, I haven't tried The Last Federation yet - where is that demo?!? >:(

But when it comes to innovative 4X space games, I think AI War and Code Force's Distant Worlds are the only two that have truly attempted to do something different. And in my opinion, both have succeeded wonderfully. People are constantly looking for the next MoO when they should be looking for the next AI War or Distant Worlds! :)

Nefaro · November 06, 2014, 08:28:22 PM

I really enjoyed the gameplay of Bionic Dues, although the weird Exo (Mech) switching and associated artwork wasn't that impressive. If it had better artwork for the Exos, or maybe even just the map, I wouldn't have anything to complain about. I'm not talking about the type of artwork they use, just the style for this specific game. I suppose it's more theme related.. I expected big gun-toting Mechs and instead got some floating pixie-like robots. Want smash bang pew pew! I think they adjusted the Shield weakness in the last updates along with some other niggles, so I should jump back into it.

I've not played enough The Last Federation yet to get that moment of realization. I can see there's an excellent strategy game in there. The one thing that turned me off a bit was the faction manipulation gameplay. That was pretty much Soldak's Drox Operative all over again, and I didn't enjoy it much in Drox. It's an interesting concept, but just not that amusing in practice. I've not played TLF enough to say that holds true there, too, so I could be wrong.

Huw the Poo · November 07, 2014, 03:00:59 AM

I normally don't like faction mechanics in games - not because of the concept, just that they're always so poorly implemented - but I think TLF nails it. I suppose it was easy for Arcen because there were fewer than 10 of them so it could all just be hard-coded in, but each faction is very different and they way you interact with each is very different too. It really works in TLF in my opinion; instead of feeling like you're playing against a bunch of generic races with slight differences, each race in TLF feels different and they have their own personalities.

Nefaro, I definitely see where you're coming from with Bionic Dues. It wasn't what I was expecting either, considering your units are supposed to be mechs. I haven't given it a fair enough crack of the whip yet. Maybe I will soon.

When I'm rich and famous I'm going to pay for a whole team of professional artists to work for Arcen. ;)

spelk · April 07, 2015, 01:36:57 PM

New Alpha footage of the game...

and I guess this is a bit of advert/viral comedy? to promote the game? or something?

I like the look of the game's combat, although it is all a bit garish and overly curly fontified (if that is a word)...

more info here:
http://arcengames.com/stars-beyond-reach-first-video-and-tales-of-woe-part-1-of-3