| Z: Steel Soldiers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Bitmap Brothers[a] |
| Publisher | Eon Digital Entertainment[b] |
| Platforms | Windows,iOS,Android |
| Release | Windows iOS Android |
| Genre | Real-time strategy |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
Z: Steel Soldiers (originally released forMicrosoft Windows simply asSteel Soldiers in North America) is areal-time strategy game released by theBitmap Brothers in 2001 for the Windows platform and later by Kavcom Limited and KISS forAndroid andiOS in 2015. It is the sequel of their earlier gameZ, and follows the same futuristicmilitary science fiction storyline and battlefield gameplay. The graphics are enhanced from2D to3D.[7][8]
As a result of a breach in peace negotiations, players take control of one side as a leader of an army of robots. Playing the game primarily involves fending off robust opponents during battles to control a location, whilst expanding one's forces.[9] Objectives are met by occupying and holding territory rather than the more typical method ofharvesting resources.[10][11]
Despite featuring solid fundamentals and gaining mixed or average reviews the game had minimal impact. While only receiving onegaming magazine award and garnering some criticism upon its release, the title was still an important technological advance for the development team.
Steel Soldiers is plot driven,[12] unlike the original game, which had little or no plot and consisted of two sides fighting each other for no given reason, while the game cutscenes were focused on comical, humorous situations. After 509 years of conflict MegaCom Corporation (red) and TransGlobal Empires (blue) are set to make peace and sign atreaty; in preparation, forces on both sides have reduced their military presence to a skeletonregiment.[13] The culmination of the peace treaty is the removal of both forces from the contested territory on Planet Rigal. The plot was written by Martin Pond. As the game is played it progresses with elements of intrigue and conspiracy.[14]
The peace initiative is brokered personally by Commander Keeler and TransGlobal's premier, Commander Rieman.[13] After a court martial judgement, the recently demoted Captain Zod, previously Commander Zod in the original Z, has been sending patrols into thedemilitarized zone to spy upon the TransGlobal Empires.[13] The scouts Brad (one of the pilot robots from the original Z; the other one, Allan, is staying in the campbase) and Clarke find a secretlanding strip and promptly shoot down a transport ship after this discovery.[15] The game begins with Zod sending in forces on a mission to retrieve the two missing scouts and find out "what the hell is going on", during which they find a broken box with the word "Omega" on it. Brad and Clarke's radio remains silent and although Zod lacks the proper authority, he is confident the peace agreement will remain intact but his aide Lassar is more concerned.[13]
Developers wanted an accessible strategy game combined with the immediacy of anarcade title. Consequently, the game was designed so a player could get into the action as quickly as possible.[16]Z: Steel Soldiers sports a humorouscomic book style with a realistic 3D environment.[11][17] These graphics are best displayed on a moderately fast or recently purchased computer although game options allow playing the game on olderPentium II systems. This title is not compatible withWindows Vista.[17]
The game features the ability to scroll, rotate, zoom and tilt theisometric viewing position to gain a betterperspective.[11] There is a high level of graphical detail such as reflections, shadows, weather effects and other environmental factors that can slow theframe rate on low end PCs.[18]
The game has an advancedartificial intelligence that makes holdingdefensive positions central to completing each mission.[11][19] There are 30 missions on six different worlds including desert, forest, volcanic, ice, archipelago and wasteland types. Each type of world has varying wildlife and lighting effects.[11] This sequel adds aircraft and water vessels to the units available. With the completion of missions comes the introduction of new buildings and armored units includingrocket launchers, bombers, helicopters and tanks.
When the game is paused players can scroll across the playing area, but places not under their control will not display enemy buildings and unit commands may not be issued. There are threedifficulty levels - easy, medium and hard.[20]Steel Soldiers has no tutorial, however the CD-ROM contains a 59-page game manual. Thebackground music was designed to heighten the game's intensity. The game has ahigh score table and the ability to load and save games. There are options for changing thescreen resolution, agamma correction level setting and mouse sensitivity sliders. A freesingle-playerdemo is available for download.[17] Skirmish mode is a customisable secondary play mode based on a series of separate maps to the missions.Multiplayer games occur on another twenty additional maps.
Players control a group of robotic soldiers and vehicles in a two-sided war. At the start of each mission the current scenario and objectives are outlined.Level objectives vary considerably compared to the original from "Capture Aircraft Hangars and Shipyards" to "reach the EVAC point within a time limit". Some operations are timed with a countdown. Other mission duties are securing a landing area, to capture research facilities and evacuate personnel. The Command Centre is the headquarters and functions as a communications hub. If this building is destroyed the mission ends infailure.[13]
Thegameplay is based around fast-paced battle action without resource gathering.[18] Winning the game requires speed and soundblitzkrieg tactics. The main aim is to gain territory by securing a sector after touching a flag.[8] Each mission begins with an introduction that includes a discussion of the goals and a preview across a sweeping landscape, briefly revealing geographical features and approaches to some strategically important flag locations. The more territory a player gains, the greater the number of units that may be built and provides more land for the construction of buildings. Unoccupied buildings that are neutral are owned with control of the sector. Each flag has a number between 1 and 5 depicted upon it.[14] The number represents a multiplier for the amount of credits a player will draw from that territory, each minute, when captured. Credits are used at factory buildings and research facilities to construct robots.
Other activities include canceling orders, buildingbunkers andgun turrets, issuing repair tasks and selling buildings for credits. Players have the ability to queue commands and set way points so that newly created units can automatically move to a location once built. Each unit and structure inZ:Steel Soldiers has adamage indicator. Colored radius rings markline of sight limits[11] and weapon range boundaries for the currently selected unit.[7] Collapsed status panels include the Message and Information Panel from a leader cam (overhead view), a Unit Info View Panel and Minimap Panel displaying which territories are held by the TransGlobal Empires, MegaCom Corporation or are neutral. These panels are used to coordinate army unit movements, view mission goals andtroop statistics.[13]
On 24 August 2000, the Bitmap Brothers announced a deal withEON Digital Entertainment to publish a sequel to Z, then given aworking title ofZ2.[9] This was after the developers had secured all rights to Z2 from the publisherGT Interactive.[9] The Bitmap Brothers wanted to cater to both fans of the original and to players familiar with the RTS genre.[21] Cool Beans Productions produced several animations, presented ascut scenes between a few of the missions.[11]
This release was the first after a long break in titles for the pc, by the developers and as such was highly anticipated.Developers linked the delay to the substantial improvements between versions.[21] Originally the game was to be released in late February 2001. After its initial release in June, several patches were released to fix a number ofbugs and other minor tweaks were made.
The Gaming Director for the Bitmap Brothers, Jamie Barber has explained that the development ofZ:Steel Soldiers was fundamental to the creation of the more well-knownWorld War II: Frontline Command.[citation needed]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 70/100[22] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| AllGame | 2/5[23] |
| Computer Gaming World | 2/5[18] |
| Eurogamer | 7 out of 10[10] |
| Game Informer | 6.25 out of 10[24] |
| GameSpot | 6.8 out of 10[25] |
| GameSpy | 88%[7] |
| GameZone | 6.6 out of 10[26] |
| IGN | 8 out of 10[8] |
| Next Generation | 3/5[27] |
| PC Gamer (US) | 66%[28] |
| PC Zone | 90%[15] |
After it was released the game received "average" reviews according to thereview aggregation websiteMetacritic.[22] A majority described the game as a funstrategy game with great graphics.[29] APC Zone review awarded a Classic Award toSteel Soldiers and concluded that the game's strong points were the sharp artificial intelligence, good use ofambient sounds and well-designed maps.[15]
A smaller number of reviews were less flattering describing the experience as standard, as one that would bore a veteran RTS gamer.[18][30] Z:Steel Soldiers is similar to other pc strategy games with a military science fiction theme includingGround Control (2000),StarCraft (1998) andWarzone 2100 (1999). Several reviewers commented thatSteel Soldiers offers nothing new to the genre.[19][29]
Z: Steel Soldiers had a weak impact, compared to the more popularWarcraft II andCommand & Conquer.[30] A few reviewers noted tiny annoyances and that the game was predictable while others described the games imperfections as significant. The game has been criticised over its lack of diversity, clumsyinterface and generic sounds.[8] One review described the game as old-school, formulaic and lacking distinctive graphics.[20] The humour has been characterized as caustic and witty.[7] At least one reviewer suggested a game-speed toggle would have been a useful addition for players.[20]
John Lee reviewed the PC version of the game forNext Generation, rating it three stars out of five, and stated that "A boisterous 3D realtime strategy melee, with action, robot management, and rugged terrain, but you've seen much of it elsewhere."[27]
Kavcom Limited releasedZ: Steel Soldiers for theAndroid in 2014 andiOS in 2015.[citation needed]
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