By Vincent Haoson (Vincenthaoson), Onrpg writer
IGG, the company that has released games like Angel’s Online, Tales of Pirates Online and 2029 Online has released yet another space themed game in their roster, Galaxy Online.
What’s with Galaxy Online?
Galaxy Online is a strategy game that is set in a world where different factions are vying to be on top. As you enter Galaxy Online’s world you get to be a representative of one of the six factions that the game has. Each faction has its own advantage and storyline.
The factions include: The Kadry group, the Federation of Eir, the Bakran League, the Rofilla Consortium, the Maya Clan and the Rayman Empire. Each faction has its own history within the Galaxy Online Story backdrop.
As the commander of your own galaxy, you control planets and fleets of ships. You can then hire commanders that would eventually lead your armada into victory or defeat. Galaxy Online puts you into the commander’s seat. It’s your strategy both in military tactics and resource gathering.
Resources
Planets would be your primary source of resources within the game. As you start in Galaxy Online You are given a home area where you can move freely. There are a number of planets in your galaxy that you need to advance and develop so that it can be turned into a resource earning, ship manufacturing planet.
You can also travel outside your galaxy to try and colonize other uninhabited planets. Though this may be more challenging because these planets are outside your “safe zone”, meaning its going to be up for grabs by your faction and the other factions as well.
Inter-galaxy Battle
Galaxy Online’s gameplay is one of the most complex in today’s strategy MMOs. However you are spared of the complications when battles are done. The game is turn based and you would have to think carefully on what you need to do on your turn.
Your attacks are based on the range your ship’s weapons have. That is why setting up your ship carefully determines the outcome of the battle.
As of this moment, the quests and the Galaxy Pirates are your main enemies to defeat. There has yet any announcement regarding the game’s PVP system. Of course what would a spaceship themed game be without space epic space battles, and with the current battle setup it seems the game would sure provide you with RPG-ish like battles.
Conclusion
For an online strategy game, Galaxy Online has a high learning curve. Even with the newbie guide and the Beginner quests, it would take players time to get themselves familiar with the game system.
The games difficulty ushers in a gameplay that you rarely find in strategy MMOs nowadays. This can be both a blessing and a curse depending on which kind of player are you. I have seen players who tell within the faction chat that they were quitting because the game is too difficult, while there are those who encourage and even help out other players.
This in-game situation says something for both the in-game community and the game itself. Galaxy Online may in fact be one of the most challenging strategy MMOs to date and the difficulty of the game pushes players from the usual humdrum spoon-fed gameplay that has pervaded the MMO scene. Meanwhile, the in-game community shows that there is a diverse selection of people you can communicate with this can be both good and bad in the sense that if your luck holds out you can talk to players who are there to encourage and help out. Meanwhile, if your luck sucks then you’d get a face full of snobbish players who would rather make fun of you than help.
Galaxy Online is first and foremost a numbers game. Unlike in other strategy games where you can blindly just buy everything you can buy and be the most powerful player in your server, the game encourages cunning and skill that sometimes absent from other strategy MMOs.
The game also gives players the level of customization through the ship design. You can make the ultimate ship by connecting bits and pieces of available parts in the hangar.
PVE in Galaxy Online is a reminder of old school RPGs. Your ships either customized or the streamlined design has specific attributes, these attributes are then enhanced by the commander you hire. The commanders have their own bonuses and depending on the quality you hire, may save your fleet from annihilation.
This is where the balance of the game may come in question. As some commanders can be acquired through the mix of Mall Points and Science points, the problem with this setup is that the disparity of those who pay and not is obvious, though we have to accept the fact that the game needs also to earn to continue its operations, so I can say that this system is acceptable.
Galaxy Online is a numbers game through and through, and whoever expects that this game is an action based shooter will be sorely disappointed. The game needs time, patience and a little dedication that most of us don’t have an abundant supply of, for a game that pushes both our intellect and imagination, Galaxy Online is one that really pushes the right buttons. However, unlike a lot of f2p games out there, the game doesn’t have its faults.
The game has a lot of areas to improve, and IGG with its history would highly address a lot of things as the closed beta continues. The game still has a lot of rough edges especially when it comes to its new player friendliness and less complicated game systems. But, I must admit it is nice seeing that a space game that is treated in this manner has, so far done everything right, only time will tell if Galaxy Online would clique to the general gaming public.
Pros
– The game gives you the genuine feel of being a commander
– The game has a Newbie guide to help new players familiarize themselves with the game
– The online community is vibrant
Cons
– The slow pace of the game is a major turn off to those who are more into action packed games
– Even with the Newbie guide it takes a while before players can feel comfortable with the game
– The high learning curve for the game is a major turnoff for players who don’t have the patience
