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Review:

27th February 2004:
Savage
The battle for Newerth has begun! Will you join the Legion of Man or the Horde of Beasts in your quest for domination?
Posted by Chris Snook - PC - UK and Europe

Savage, may just be the beginning of a whole new way to game.

With the successful blending of elements from not just two but three distinct types of game Savage has set the benchmark for what could be the beginning of a more broad based gaming experience.

Set in the far future after an apocalypse and a resurgence in mankind against nature, Savage is a tale of survival, be it the survival of man and his destructive ways or the more feral but holistic survival of the beasts. Also at its core is a tale of family and what they will do against one another, all in the name of right.

Right from gaining the box Savage: The Battle for Newerth looks very good as the European release has included a nifty little Official strategy guide, a CD crammed with bonus material, the main CD and the ubiquitous manual. All this is packaged in a slipcase decorated with nice cover art, indeed the art helps convey the mood of the game.

Gameplay is split between three familiar game modes, Real Time Strategy, First Person and Third Person and it is here that Savage begins to show its unique qualities. Anyone who has played a game online such as Day of Defeat or even Unreal Tournament will be familiar with the idea of selecting teams to play with and going forth to create mayhem. Play within Savage, which is all online or on a LAN, follows this route with one small difference, one player becomes the commander of the army and views the battlefield in RTS mode whilst all the rest of the team experience the game in the 'action mode' which is a combination of first and third person combat.

Commanding the army is a case of resource management, build up resources, build structures and command your troops and workers. The view is similar to that in the Warcraft series and command of the NPC workers is a simple case of point and click, the same goes for your troops, click on them and issue orders. Over time you build up your buildings, and upgrade your units with better weapons and items such as medkits, beast relics and new units. The performance as commander is critical as you hold the bigger picture, the picture those on the ground do not see.

Action mode is more up close and personal, as those troops do battle with the enemy forces. Following orders or not as they decide. Your troops as commander are your teammates and they being human can either agree to or ignore your instructions. It is here that the heart of the game comes forth as Savage is about teamwork and creating advantages and openings for the commander to exploit. In action mode all missile weapons, the humans hunting bows and the beasts magic are used as in an FPS, each side can upgrade weaponry, the unit they are and any other equipment they wish for the cost of some gold, or if they are lucky they can request it from the commander who may or may not approve the requisition. Combat is quick, vicious and deadly. At times too deadly and you can find yourself going through a succession of spawnings. Hand to hand combat is dealt with differently, it is third person, allowing for a wider field of view to determine where your foe is in relation to yourself. In action mode you can become stronger, more powerful as you become a better warrior, you gain levels, each with bonuses associated with them, all for killing the enemy, collecting resources, damaging the enemy structures and battering the local fauna into the ground as you can attack the NPC animals that are littered about some maps.

Terrain in both modes are important, as there are often villages, trees, hills and in some cases mountains to lurk behind ready to ambush the unwary, find a good spot and you can wreak havoc in the enemy camp.

Overall the graphics are spot on for the job. Those in action mode are crisp, detailed and vibrant, with such effects as clouds, lens flares, weapons flashes and big choppy axes and claws, each adds to the feel of the Newerth world, there is even an accelerated day and night cycle making night time raids and forays possible. RTS mode is also much as expected, scrolling is smooth and the representations of the buildings and units are detailed. In some cases also clouds and day/night can be seen on the map, what your team sees in action mode you see, in regards to the world effects.

Sound is superb, the music even more so, I am currently listening to the soundtrack, loaded into my play list. Spot effects are also appropriate and add to the combat experience, there are some background sounds, not too many to distract but enough to make Newerth feel inhabited. Even in RTS you hear the sounds of your men mining, building and damage being dealt to a structure, each building also has a sound associated to it. Voice acting is uncomplicated, where it is needed it is there, where it is not required there is no cluttering of the speakers. One of the actors even does a creditable Gandalf impression when you have gathered enough resources.

There are problems. The biggest is no Tutorial, though this is in part made up by the excellent strategy guide but not totally, the assumption is if you are familiar with RTS and FPS/TPS formats then the controls will be intuitive. A concern for those who are unfamiliar with either genre as the learning curve is at times steep. Pathing in Commander mode is less than reliable, workers often try to take the shortest route to anywhere, even if it means they try to leap from a cliff, which they cannot actually do; in which case they then sit down until you notice that they are idle. There are the occasional map glitches, it is possible to fall through the floor, where there is nothing to do but disconnect and reconnect. Also the manual is less than clear at times, again it assumes that the player understands the basics of whichever mode they are playing in, which indeed maybe true but leaves those who wish to expand themselves floundering with trial and error.

The bonus CD contains extra maps, a complete MOD for Savage, which converts the world into feudal Japan and a copy of the gameshadow utility. There are no subscription charges to play on the servers, which is welcome.

A contender for game of the year, certainly the most innovative.

Chris Snook

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Review Summary:

An innovative combination of types of play, on their own both the RTS and Action modes have been seen before, together they compliment and enhance each other without impacting on either style. With a sharp, unobtrusive plot, mayhem making action with up to sixty-three others online and bonus material, Savage is a front runner for game of the year.

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