Nuclear Dawn

Nuclear Dawn is a mod based on the Left 4 Dead 2 engine that has run out of control. The title boasts to be a FPS meets RTs ‘without diluting either side,’ to which it certainly tries its best. While graphics aren’t amazing, it’s hardly the point when working on a game that has to be balanced on unique gameplay. Unfortunately, like most mods, this game expects too much from its players and caters directly towards its very specific audience.

It might not be Assassin's Creed, but it's pretty effective.

The game is made by Interwave Studios, which is actually composed of a dozen people and therefore the word ‘mod’ isn’t really applicable in this complete rework that simply uses an engine. But still, the Valve style is present in the sleek but not top-notch visual presentation, with a slight artificial feel to textures. The level design has that same feel, but is made to be expansive and multifaceted in all maps, creating a good playing field for both aspects of the game. Some added effects are lacking however, such as very dated fire graphics or the weapon discharge getting in the way of a scoped line of sight. Additionally, a form of night vision mainly works as a blinding effect, more than its desired class effect. Yet again, the game is primarily based on what it does and not what it looks like. And what it does, it does well.

The first person shooter aspect of the game offers 4 different classes, with subsections for each. There’s the all-purpose Assault, a heavy gunner Exo, Stealth sneakers and an even more varying support class with medics, engineers and flamethrowers.  Each class also has a special ability, such as cloaking or the ability to spot cloaked units. Two factions fight over resources, scattered in 3 forms of points around the map and the goal is to take out the commander bunker from the opposition. While going out and taking out the other guys, players can also try and destroy the enemy’s buildings scattered around the map, as they can help with gaining control over the map. Using buildings to your team’s advantage is the key to victory and that’s where the RTS portion comes in.

The adaptable interface is a nice touch, but can sometimes become a nuisance.

One player can apply to be Commander and get into the commander bunker to get an overhead view of the map. Here the point is to use the resources taken in by the team and use those to create new buildings and build a power network to make them function.  The main portion will thus consist of generating power and distributing it over the map, but the point of this is to get buildings closer to the enemy’s camp. A closer spawn point can be created to put members into the fray easier. Supply bays restore health and ammo and near a spawn point, this can create a tactical outpost. Also, an armory can give players an option to switch their gear without having to spawn and in altering scenarios this can be an edge. And finally, turrets and artillery can be put down to tear through the opposition. Positioning of these buildings does have its importance and is set by certain rules; which in the end does create a good enough real time strategy feel. But this also brings the first main issue of this otherwise great blend.

The Commander mechanic is mostly surplus, as only 1 player can have access to it at a time, so most the gameplay will be the FPS mode. In addition, becoming a Commander and keeping that spot can be very hard if just playing around on random servers in this multiplayer only game. As no one likes losing, simply applying and trying to learn the ropes will come hard to most, which brings us to the next and most prominent problem of Nuclear Dawn: accessibility.

Yes, Nuclear Dawn does offer a great hybrid, but the learning curve is the most unfair to ever grace a game. Even though the game has some nice video tutorials explaining the basics, all will be obliterated once the first match is entered and the reign of destruction meets confusion. In the fast pace of this game, learning the ropes comes at the cost of many deaths and in reality can be summed up in one word: martyrdom. Hours within the game, newcomers will still get mowed down time and again and no one wants to sit through that slaughter; it’s just not fun. The game can be fun though; especially since there is a level system and such. It’s tangible even, because other players can be seen enjoying the game and going with the flow. But to even start a learning curve, players need to climb a mountain top on both aspects of the game and that is unforgivable. Even the level progression is heavily set on doing well, keeping fans and newcomers polarized.

Commander mode: Good luck trying to get there..

So, while Nuclear Dawn succeeds in its goal to meet FPS and RTS in one fluent game, it has a large issue in expecting players to already be playing the game for years. This might work in the mod community, but if it wants to tear away from it with this retail release, it needs to severely loosen the leash. If there’s one game that would profit from having bot play or a campaign mode to learn the ropes, it would be this one. Unfortunately, as it doesn’t, Nuclear Dawn is a fun ride that most will only experience vicariously through others, while getting chewed up and spat out themselves.

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Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed. (@Daavpuke)