XCOSMOS: Mecha-Scientists At War in Super Sagan RPG

Marie Curie deals massive area of effect radiation damage on death. Isaac Newton emanates a magnetic field which inexorably drags other units towards him. Darwin just ripped up the terrain, which I realise isn't an evolution thing, but I'm totally onboard with Darwin As Militant Terraformer. This is Super Sagan RPG, a free tactical, turn-based squad battler which stuffs history's greatest minds into mech suits and has them battle to death.

The free, browser-based game is the work of Brisbane students Lambert & Blinn, and there's a whole bunch of ideas going on it. The interface could do with another pass, and it has a certain ponderousness which is at odds with the high concept, but y'know, free student project. Despite the silliness, the focus of the game is on a near-mathematical form of tactics, with a particular emphasis on how your units build up 'heat' as they perform actions.

There's a playfully wide spread of units as well - you pick a famous brain, replete with thematically appropriate passive skill, then also assign them a class, such as Geologist or Astro-Physicist, which dictates what attacks they have. There's plenty of smashing and laster-blasting - this is not exactly reverent.

There's plenty to like here, though it's a shame there's no AI or remote play yet, so it's strictly a two player hotseat game in its current form. Hopefully Lambert & Blinn will have the opportunity to take it further, as Schrodinger vs Einstein is a pretty irresistible grudge match.

You can download the current build from here, or play it your browser (requires Unity plugin) here.