Homeworld/Spoilers

• One thing I *really* like is the way that the single-player missions feel like one big long mission.  The way that you keep your cash, ships and research level between each mission and the next is excellent.  Having each new research possibility introduced when the storyline requires it, and then stay researched for the rest of the campaign, feels much more fitting and realistic than the typical RTS's missions where you start the research tree from scratch each time.  (I gather the ships available to the faction you play are rather different to the original Homeworld ships, although fitting in the same classes of fighter / corvette / frigate / destroyer / capital ship / etc - so this means at least some of the research introductions will be genuine new surprises to players of the original Homeworld, unless you've spoilt yourselves ;) by playing Cataclysm multiplayer games.) 
  

*Genuine suprises* is a minor understatement. With exams over, I picked up a copy of Cataclysm from HMV, and...well, fine for the first two missions, then I encounter the Beast for the first time. Standard Homeworld tactics just *don't work* against it's infection beams, and I find myself as suprised as the Higaaran (Taidaan, and Bentusi) admirals would have found themselves, if it actually happened. I keep forgetting, and trying to salvage damaged Beast capships....I've realised that the way to go is by exploiting superior Somtaaw strike craft technology (ACVs and MCVs are great, and the Beast doesn't seem to have realised it can link it's own Acolytes yet), but it's remarkably impressive. --SF

Yes, salvaging Beast Workers or Processors doesn't work either >:-(  ACVs are indeed great. I'm coming to realise that pretty much every strike force (that I can construct so far) would benefit from ACVs - even more than Wraiths in StarCraft.  But you encounter Beast ACVs, lots of them, don't you? Like on the Bentusi trading station mission 5?  --AC

Currently the mission I'm trying to do (so far, I can either protect the carrier, destroy the Beast Heavy Cruiser, or keep a reasonable force together. Pick any two.) --SF

You may like to note what happens (quite silently, without drawing your attention to it) when the Beast Heavy Cruiser dies. It took me about 3-4 playthrus to notice. Taking appropriate action shortly beforehand helps a lot. --AC

And it just feels really cool to keep the one massive enemy Heavy Ion-Cannon Frigate which I stole by my own ingenuity, and benefit from it through several future missions until I let it get it destroyed or taken over. It's much bigger than anything I can build myself at this stage in the campaign. --AC

I did that, too. Unfortunately I got almost all of my modules blown up by that attacking Raider fleet, and so I'm pretty much crippled even without the Beast having shown up... --SF

Which Raider fleet is that? I got most of my modules blown up at the end of the Nebula mission 6 when I was being greedy and trying to harvest loads of stuff without noticing that, when I destroyed their big guardian, all the other ships over by their base immediately set a course for me... I hyperspaced out with my Command Ship on about 15% health.  I found Misson 7 incredibly tough though, and ended up going back to the start of 5 to try to accumulate rather more resources (and salvage the big guardian this time round). --AC

Heheh. You know in mission 2 they tell you "get out before a big Raider fleet arrives", and then six frigates and 60 fighters show up? That fleet. Captured one frigate and destroyed the rest, but at severe cost... --SF

Paah. You've barely got any modules by then anyway ;) Yeah, I've rebuilt my Hangar Module and Engineering Module at least twice so far, and I suspect they won't be the last times.  --AC

It actually sounds like it's using more of the 'almost rts elements' from a FlightSim than otherwise.  Still though, what mechanism is in place to prevent you from developing all tech and creating a practicaly infinite fleet in the first mission (by keeping a single enemy fighter alive, for example) and thus rendering the rest of the game trivial?  And how does whatever this mechanism is manage to avoid feeling totally artificial?  --Vitenka

Two things: the fact that it's plot-driven, and that the resources on any given map are quite limited.  It's not until mission 6 or 7 that you can build up enough resources to hit the supply limit.  And the research options only become available when the plot makes sense for you to get them.  Eg holographic Mimics which look like other ships are only researchable once you've recovered enemy ships which did that to you. You can only build your own Ion Beam Frigates once you've captured something which your scientists can work out a way to attach to a Frigate hull.  And some of it is need-driven: "There's a giant enemy destroyer blocking our way out of this nebula (which we're sneaking through).  We need some kind of stealth leech ship which can sneak in and gradually deactivate its weapons without being detected. Our engineers think they can come up with such a ship, called the Leech.  The research is ready to start on your command..."

The supply limit is still quite artificial.  I'm kinda used to that though.  Overall the restrictions are a lot less artificial than most RTS ;)  --AlexChurchill

I never ran up against the supply limit in the original. There weren't enough resources on the map that I was ever that overflowing with them, considering I was constructing pretty much all the time. The game expected you to harvest everything you could and produce the biggest fleet possible. I believe my armada that entered the last mission was something like a carrier, 2 Heavy Cruisers, 4 Destroyers, 2 Missile Destroyers, 25 assorted frigates, mostly Ion Cannon, 10 or so Corvettes (plus 6 Salvage), and 80+ assorted fighters. I needed to restart four times before I got it right.

Wow. Constructing all the time is pretty impractical for 7 of the 9 missions I've played; the other 2 it's only reasonable because you're having lots of fighters/corvettes destroyed by hordes of enemies, whilst also having your resource gatherers able to gather unattacked.  I'm not able to build destroyers or higher yet, nor ion cannon frigates. I saw my first Missile Destroyer last night, on the enemy's side. I'm terrified, and fully plan to salvage it and take it over once I've somehow dealt it enough damage :)  And four restarts sounds like what you'd hope for out of a final mission... you wouldn't want it too easy, would you??  --AlexChurchill

... mmm.. sounds... no.  Still not the type of thing I'd like.  Shame.  --Vitenka

Fair enough.  As you say, shame; but we're different people :)  --AlexChurchill