Do Not Avoid Gamma Void (It Has Nice Particle Effects)
Snog, Gamma, Void
Could I write about a new space game every single day, I wonder? Ha ha. Stupid question: I already am doing that. Today's is Gamma Void, a 2D space combat game in which you construct your own ships out of parts and then rip them apart again by fighting against an ecosystem of procedurally generated enemies. "Primary inspirations include Legos, insect behavior, and military technology," says the developer's website, and there's a trailer below that illustrates all three.
Those faint, polygonal spaceship parts look reminiscent of Farb's Captain Forever series, but while the latest incarnation of that excellent series has doubled-down on loneliness, isolation, and the brutal anti-climax of suffocating in space, Gamma Void seems more concerned with scale and action and particle effects. Beyond the modular ship building detailed in the video above, the developer's website mentions other planned features:
Beautiful, emergent ecosystem
Procedurally generated open living world full of many different types of AI spaceships, space stations, and synthetic plants, each intent on self perpetuation. Take advantage of impromptu battles between rival factions to recover objectives, or run away after your opponent calls in reinforcements. AI ships can retreat if overwhelmed, scavenge for resources, investigate disturbances, self repair, reproduce, and generally behave as artificial lifeforms rather than target dummies.
Destructive combat
Wield a wide variety of projectile and beam weapons, missiles, rockets and torpedoes, deployable drones, and more against your enemies. Defend yourself with shields, armor, point defense systems, and pure maneuverability. Combat is a mix of skill, tactics, and preparation – an expertly piloted fighter can take down an enemy fleet, but having a well balanced arsenal helps.
Which all sounds quite excellent. There's a Kickstarter coming in September and a proposed "late 2014" release date, but we'll see how either of those goes. In the meantime, here are those particles:
