Darwinia - WTH?!

[ThunderPeel2001]

I finally got around to downloading the demo of the venerated game Darwinia. I've so many things about it "re-inventing core gameplay", taking gaming back to its source with a brilliant blend of creativity and intelligence.

So installed and was ready to experience something new....... only to discover it's just C&C with fake "retro" graphics!!!

Did I miss something here?! I thought this was the gaming moment of the millennium! I hate PC magazines!

[Thrik]

Sounds like you were expecting a bit too much from it because of the hype. While it is a very nicely presented and fun game, it's certainly not something that redefines gaming or even real-time strategy.

Hype aside, the fact remains that it's an indie/budget title and thus doesn't have the production values of your average C&C. If that's what you were hoping for, well, too bad I guess.

[ThunderPeel2001]

Thanks for the info, glad it's not just me. I hate hype.

Hype aside, the fact remains that it's an indie/budget title and thus doesn't have the production values of your average C&C. If that's what you were hoping for, well, too bad I guess.

How could you have possibly gleaned that I was let down by it's production values?!?

[SiN]

Darwinia certainly is a great game. It is innovative I think, but not in a way that's immediately obvious.

The gameplay is definitely back-to-the-basics C&C meets Syndicate. A good thing in my opinion, as I enjoyed those games way more than I do modern RTSs. And unlike most modern RTSs, the combat actually feels very vicerial. It's the most intense combat I've seen in an RTS since the days of old-skool C&C.

The storyline is very nicely done too ... I know it doesn't seem like much, but Introversion really put alot of effort into making this completely coherent universe. The darwinians themselves are pretty awesome too ... the well done story means you really care about them.

Other than that, there are a few things here and there that make it interesting ... most notably, the fact that there really isn't a gameover state to the game at all ... it's possible to screw up bad enough that it's not possible to finish the level, but never explicitly lose. The fact that the game still stays intense and gripping despite there not being a gameover-state is *very* good game design.

Also, the save-game system is completely transparent, which is a big plus in my books.

So yeah, there's lots to love about Darwinia, and it isn't terribly expensive (I imported and it still cost less than a retail game) so it's definitely worth a shot. It'll take a while to get into it, but you really need to play the game to understand why it's so great.

SiN

[miffy495]

The demo really isn't that much like the final game, either. It's an isolated level that doesn't even actually appear in the story mode. I found Darwinia to be a lot more arcade-y than C&C and quite refreshing. And you really do start to care about your Darwinians. I got more of an emotional impact from seeing the sky obscured by thousands of Darwinian souls floating upwards after a particularly gruesome battle than any WWII game ever game me.

[doremi]

I hate it when they die or fight among themselves(red darwinians killing green darwinians. The sound they make when they die, yikes.

[Wrestlevania]

The demo really isn't that much like the final game, either.

Hmm. Kinda swaying me to give Darwinia a second chance with that, as I really didn't get much out of playing the demo either.

Personally, I'd agree that the hype surrounding the game was more than a little gratuitous; a case of many 30-something hacks strapping rose-tinted goggles to their faces and stubbornly refusing to take them off until they'd gorged themselves on gaming memories from their then-mis-spent childhood. [burp!]

Still - not to take anything away from the huge amount of effort apparent in making the game - it's polished and individual, and certainly deserved the attention more than most. Trouble is it ended up with perhaps a bit too much attention for its own good. I know thousands of people love it though...

[MrHoatzin]

I recently tried to play Populous and I walked away wanting to play Darwinia. The only real beef I have with the game is that they could've gotten an artist to sit down and pick some colours for them. All the colors in the game are awfully rabid and wrong and kinda tedious.

[loonyboi]

I absolutely loved Darwinia. It's not a revolutionary game in any way other than its presentation...but man, that presentation's awesome.

[ThunderPeel2001]

While I think the presentation was pretty nice (I really dig the look), it's certainly not enough to make me buy, or even enjoy, a game. I'm long past being impressed by graphics... I think! At least I can't remember recently forcing myself to play an average game because it looked good (Another World when I was younger, yes, and probably plenty others too!)

The fact that it has 'old skool' gameplay doesn't entice me one bit, either. What's the point? I still pick up and play 'old skool' games for next to nothing, so it seems pointless to 'redo' an old style of game with little or no innovation. I still play Manic Miner from time to time, but that doesn't mean I was to spend £20 on playing a revamp with slightly better graphics.

Saying all that, though, I think SiN may have hit the nail squarely on the head. Thanks for that, SiN! I think you pointed out all of the possible addictive and interesting aspects of the game that were probably not immediately apparent from the demo (especially to someone who believed the hype - doh!). I appreciate that this game is perhaps a little deeper, a bit more involving and perhaps better crafted than I first noticed. In fact, I'm quite interested in playing it now...!

I DID pick up on something while I played the first time, and it was the only interesting thing from the demo, but the whole idea and, yes, presentation was pretty neat. What I'm talking about is the idea of a unique computer simulation "living" in your machine. It's a tad "Little Computer People" or whatever, but it was quite nicely done. If I wasn't so let down with its apparently generic gameplay I might have taken more notice.

With my expectations adjusted accordingly I think I might take a peek at this 'old skool', but (apparently) expertly crafted, game.

Thanks for that, SiN, Miffy495 and DoReMi!

I hate hype so much, but there's times when you can't ignore it, and somehow Darwinia's got to me. It's funny because if I'd found Darwinia of my own accord, I probably would have been enamored with this uniquely presented little indie game, instead of being let down with the gameplay! Damned PC magazines!

[miffy495]

That may be a part of it. I found Darwinia pre-hype and loved it to death. Then again, I enjoyed the demo level, so I'm not really sure where to go from if you didn't like it. If you do give it a shot, I hope you like. I'm thinking I'll order Uplink from their website in the near future for the hell of it. Anyone played?

[Wrestlevania]

I'm thinking I'll order Uplink from their website in the near future for the hell of it. Anyone played?

Yes: it's quality. Great atmosphere, very absorbing and nicely polished.

[Redwall]

It's been suggested that all the praise for Darwinia was simply because most of the industry initially ignored Uplink. I'm not sure I believe that, but there may be some merit to it. Uplink is awesome.

[andreadst]

Darwinia is strange game...it's too repetitive but somehow it manages to get you hooked. The "old-school" gameplay is too much of an excuse for simplistic gameplay and some aspects of it are clearly underdeveloped (you never get the feeling darwinians are really "alive" as they dont' interact with each other). And the terrible pathfinding makes you want to cry.

But the stylish experience (even if some sound effects do get annoying after some times and don't make me regret the Adlib soundcards era) makes it quite a freshing one and the the game is quite short, so you don't have time to really get bored.

The mains problem lies in the gameplay: once you understand that you can gradually conquer almost every island by: 1)killing viruses with soldiers 2) create an outpost 3) start producing and advancing from there; there's no challenge anymore. Oh, the red "evil" darwinians were cool as they added some tension to otherwise repetitive levels.

Despite all the criticism, it still has that "thing" that makes a nice gaming experience and one I reccomend, if only to see "something different".

Introversion is working on Defcon, a "War Games" inspired game that seems really nice, I'm looking forward to that.

[doremi]

The presentation was great in the sense of how they told the story of the darwinians. Very cinematic. The graphics were pretty screwy when i played it(video card problems).