Earth is out of juice. Still, humanity must be fueled, and you're just the one to make sure your corporation comes out on top in the struggle for dominance of the place where such crucial resources remain plentiful. Such is the world of HeroicFantasyGames.com's Battle of the Sands.
The future. Fossil fuels have been completely exhausted on Earth. Yet they remain essential for numerous human activities. Fortunately, vast resource deposits have been discovered on a desert planet in a colonised system. Six mega corporations are vying for control of these resources.
As Director of Production of one of the six companies, it is your duty to repel the enemy factions and ascertain your monopoly. Should you be successful in this endeavour, you will be in an excellent position to claim the Megacorp Vice Presidency. Should you fail, your career will end abruptly, with consequences so disastrous they do not bear thinking about...
The cache of main features:
• 2D real-time combat similar to that found in the old game Dune 2000. Not all combat situations require you to destroy the enemy. In some missions, you must defend yourself a certain amount of time.
• Not your average RTS: Each mission has been carefully designed to be challenging. Do not expect to breeze through the game. There are 12 campaign missions and 13 stand-alone maps.
• Big picture engine: Rather than a set of tiles, each map that comes with the game uses as a backdrop a beautiful big picture drawn by the game's artist.
• User-friendly interface. Tell the computer to start producing tanks and it will not stop until you tell it to. The interface warns you if your next building would create a power shortage. Single left click to tell a group of units to assemble and move in formation to the clicked destination. Right click and drag to scroll the map easily.
• A well-developed artificial intelligence. The enemy factions do not attack recklessly with a small group of units. Allied factions coordinate their attacks and the computer does not cheat.
• Watch the computer: You have the option to watch the AI factions fight each other. Watch the computer build its base, prepare its army and launch joint attacks.
• In-game help files. As in Knights of the Chalice, the in-game help allows you to jump from one topic to the next using hyperlinks. A right click on many buttons and controls opens the help file and displays the appropriate help entry.
• Map and Campaign Editor. Use the integrated editor to create new maps and scenarios easily. Create new campaigns by assembling a number of stand-alone maps.
There's a demo available (direct link) to sample the richess on offer and the game can be purchased at the official site here.
