World War RTS makes global annihilation fun!

Download Defcon at www.introversion.co.uk/defcon. 

The raw power of nuclear weaponry is hard to imagine. So much force contained in such a small package; the thought is a mix of awe and sheer terror.

During the Cold War, the US and Russia had thousands of them, their fingers hovering over the launch button in anticipation. One wrong move or a few harsh words could have sent humanity plummeting down the evolutionary mountain we’ve worked so hard to ascend.

Introversion Software captures this suspense masterfully with Defcon. All out nuclear war has been declared and everyone has a knife at each others throat. As their slogan clearly states, in this war everyone loses. But maybe you can lose the least. With its slick, techie interface, easy to use and learn gameplay, haunting atmosphere and tricky timing, Defcon is a must play for any RTS or global apocalypse fan. It is a game with a slow, graceful elegance portraying a hellish yet not far fetched vision of our future.

The perfect arc that form as a barrage of nukes fly towards their target is a real treat to see.

Haunting music plays in the background, a weeping melody that sets the mood of the game like a beautiful tragedy. Soft muffled rumbles mark the hit of a nuke as though one were watching the events from space. In truth, the perfect arcs that form from a barrage of nukes flying towards their targets is a real treat to behold. It’s like watching a YouTube video of a car crash; amazing to witness the awesome destruction yet in the back of your mind you cringe for you know noting good could have come of it. The units in-game are straight forward so I won't cover them in too much detail here. Suffice to say that your most important units carry nukes.

All together you have over 100 nukes at your disposal. Your goal is to kill as many enemy civilians as possible without losing too many of your own. Yet with 100 nukes, you could hit every single city on the map at least once and still have nukes left over. I found myself wondering at times what to do with all of them. I had already nuked my targets…what next, nuke myself? How many nukes could one person possibly need?

Though the units are easy to grasp, the timing of the game can be tricky. Timing the attacks of all your units is crucial as the best way to win is to have as many nukes reach your enemy at once. However, cool down times are slow, movement speed is slow, the whole game moves at a snails pace. This makes last minute changes in Defcon nearly impossible to pull off.

Despite the ridiculous amount of nukes in your inventory, careful planning is needed when launching. Launching too many at once could leave you more vulnerable than you think.

Careful fore planning is required to hit your target hard. Without it, the barrage of nukes you sent will reach your enemy one sole nuke at a time, allowing them to be picked off like birds separated from their flock. On top of that, launches are detected by all players; once you launch, your launch site is exposed to everyone on the map. This makes your timing all the more crucial. Silos double as air defense towers and are the only unit available that can shoot down incoming nukes. However, a silo can only do one thing at a time.

Launching all your nukes at once may ensure a few get through but it leaves you wide open for a devastating counter attack. Not only that, the enemy will more than likely be able to shoot down your nukes, leaving you out of ammo and defenseless.

Carrying on their tradition from Darwinia, Introversion Software has pulled yet another charmed rabbit from their magical hat. Despite its simplicity, Defcon still manages to bring a good level of complexity to the table along with its suspenseful and nail biting atmosphere. Watching the action from afar offers a chilling look at the detachment one could feel if they were truly behind the drivers seat of a stockpile of nuclear weapons. It is a world that I pray never comes to fruition, yet I can all too easily picture in my mind. 

Review by Craig Dias

score
  out of 5

Art: Eye catching tech-style interface. Simple design works well

overall
4

Gameplay: Straightforward and easy to grasp. Tricky timing keeps game from being overly simplistic. Tension builds up from the start.

Design: Chilling vision of a not so far fetched future immerses you while keeping you coldly detached from the world.