Sins of a Solar Empire

"Sins dissapoints"

When I first laid my eyes on the box at Wal-Mart, I was interested so I began to read the box. I was amazed by what I read! Massive scale! Customizable ships! Massive fleets!

Sadly NONE of these claims were delivered.

Scale: I've seen bigger RTS games. Much bigger. This game sorely lacks in its claim of "unrivaled scale". 7/10. It's big, but I've seen bigger.

Customization: When I first read this part. I was immediately entranced and decided to buy the game as soon as soon as my next paycheck came in. When I played for the first time, I was appalled. The only "customization" is choosing which abilities to gain on you capital ships. I was expecting being able to build your own ships from just a basic frame size and shape to start with, adding different abilities and weapons and you saw fit. I was sorely disappointed. 1/10. My big toe has more customization.

Fleet size: I first pictured an unstoppable armada filled with enormous ships protected by a few smaller ships. What do I get if I try that in the game? A good old toss about and I get the short stick. In order to be truly successful, you have to just build a ridiculous amount of the heavy cruisers and maybe a few capital ships. 4/10. Too few unit choices that posses good power.

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Review

Sound: 7/10. It's pretty good. Nothing really special but it performs well.

Graphics: 9/10. I can't say anything bad about the graphics. The detail is amazing. And the planets look so real that I almost feel like I'm really orbiting high above them.

Game play: 3/10. Sins greatly disappoints in this category. The game was nothing as I expected. It would have gotten a 6/10 if it had not let me down so much, and had just made the claims of what it really was. My impressionistic score? 10/10. It would have been an amazing game, pulled down by only its slightly underdone sound and its controls.

Controls: 6/10. Good, but nothing special. The controls are what I would expect in any standard RTS. It has its share of bugs, but they can all be dealt with.

Overall?
5/10. It's what I would expect from any standard decent quality RTS.

Impressionistic score?
If the game had actually lived up to what I had though it was, I would have given it a full 10/10.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 01/07/09

Game Release: Sins of a Solar Empire (US, 02/04/08)