Review | Greed Corp
Format: Xbox 360/PS3 | Genre: Turn-based strategy | Publisher: Easy Tiger Media/Valcon Games | Developer: W!Games | Release date: 24/02/10 | RRP: 800 MSPoints (£6.80) / £7.99 PSN
Greed Corp takes the turn-based strategy genre and revitalises it with a much faster pace and simpler design than what we’re used to. As a result, it achieves an interesting and impressive balance between simplicity and depth.
The premise weighs down the scales on the side of simplicity, this being a turn-based strategy game with minimal units, small scale maps, and only a handful of potential moves to contemplate. The goal of destroying up to three other forces – each representing a tribe with differing mentalities and goals – continues the simple trend, but it’s the combat that embodies it the most successfully.
COMMAND AND CONQUER
There is only one type of offensive unit – the walker – and although each walker is uniquely designed to represent each side’s mentality, they never vary in strength. It means combat is always balanced, which gives way to a multitude of tactics and makes everything rather interesting. Instead of strength of might leading the way, cunning takes its stead.
Even the available buildings exude simplicity, in that there are only three. There’s the armoury, which allows you to build walkers and flying transports (the only other unit in the game). There’s also the cannon and the harvester. The harvester’s primary use is to generate money by consuming the earth’s resources, which in turn damages the ground beneath and around it. Once the ground has suffered too much damage it crumbles away, providing its secondary use as a tactical structure.
As the battlefield gets smaller, due to both the harvesters and the cannons eating away at the ground, choosing good tactics becomes increasingly necessary. It’s not only to conquer your enemies, but also to survive the dynamic nature of the battlefield, and it takes turn-based strategy in the exact opposite direction, back to its usually slow-paced nature.
This is where the weight of depth counters the simplicity. Specifically focused on the tactical requirements of the player, it all leads back to the idea of balance – for as simple as the premise is, in order to make any headway you need to keep your wits about you.
THE SLOWEST ROUTE TO VICTORY
The need to constantly analyse your tactics and quickly adapt proves to be both a blessing and a curse. The action remains fast-paced despite the turn-based formula, and so multiplayer benefits from a challenging yet accessible experience. But the campaign, which spans all four factions, can become frustrating at times, with even the beginner AI giving you a run for your money. It makes the learning curve steep, sometimes uncomfortably so, but with so few units and buildings available it does emphasises their importance throughout the singleplayer campaign.
Its agreeable length provides a great opportunity to develop your tactical skills, and although it can become repetitive, it’s still enjoyable and a welcome addition. But the multiplayer aspect is where it gets addictive. When playing online or locally with up to three additional players, the experience remains as fast-paced and enjoyable as the singleplayer, only with the added fun of human error. Ultimately, it’s the multiplayer you’ll stay for. Considering the AI’s punishing nature, pitting yourself against a fallible human better plays to Greed Corp’s strengths as a fast-paced strategy title.
Still, both the multiplayer and singleplayer modes are great fun, and the fast-paced and dynamic nature makes for a wonderful casual experience. But Greed Corp is all about balance, and it maintains that by providing tactical offerings that make for an equally wonderful in-depth experience. Whichever appeals more, or however much times you have spare, Greed Corp can more than match your strategy needs and will keep you coming back for more time and time again. By Greg Giddens
8/10
