While the description on Steam promises the ability to “jump into the fray by taking direct ‘arcade’ control of any ship in your empire,” there’s very little incentive to actually do so. The actual combat itself doesn’t quite live up to it’s presentation. Combat can be quite loud, so you may not want to zoom in all the way if you’re playing late at night. Weapons sound off with the blats and buzzes you’d expect from lasers and misses. ![]() Playing with a minimalist electronic vibe, the score hits just the right balance of being interesting enough to listen to, but not so much so that you’re often distracted from the gameplay. Stardrive’s soundtrack isn’t quite so bizarrely fascinating as something like Homeworld, but it did achieve the rare feat of getting me to pause the game for a few minutes just so I could appreciate the music being played. It’s also clear that Zero Sum put a lot of care and effort into their music. But whether you’re looking at the Diplomacy window, the Research window, or the main screen, you’ll rarely have trouble finding your way around the interface, which is a pitfall a 4X game can easily fall into. The real highlights are the diplomatic screens-stay with me here-where you’re treated to some truly stunning artwork. Stars shine, planets whirl around their orbits, and starships explode in a beautiful cacophony of flashing lights and crashing booms. Stardrive was very clearly a labor of love, and nothing shows that better than the visuals. References to other sci-fi properties abound, from Half Life 2 to Star Trek. My personal favorite was the Volfen-german accented werewolves who look like they’re at the helm of a submarine (wolfpack, get it?). Alien races are a mix of silly and bizarre, ranging from katana wielding Space-bears to Chtulu-esque horrors from beyond reason and imagining. One of the best things about Stardrive is how irreverent it is to a lot of geek culture. It isn’t until you spend a few hours in the game that you’ll start to notice the cracks in the facade that ultimately keeps this one from reaching the heights of its idols Galactic Civilization 2 and Masters of Orion 2. The debut effort from Portland-based Zero Sum Games stands out from the crowd with it’s beautiful visuals, quirky sense of humor, and promises of unique action-based combat. ![]() The thing about Stardrive is that it really knows how to draw you in as the latest entry in a struggling 4X genre (in which you eXplore space, eXpand your borders, eXploit your colonies, and eXterminate your adversaries).
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