Homeworld 2

"It's like having a year-long constipated tummy..."

I had to pry the CD off of my cousin's hands just so i could end a year of anticipation for this game.

It's like having a constipated stomach...

From the moment you learn that the game was being made, the tension builds up until you can't keep it in anymore and you feel like your gonna implode. Then the relief comes in the form of a game from two very distinct and popular gaming companies. And just like the aftermath of a bad tummy, this one REEKED.

I'm not sure whose fault it was but the combination of Sierra, Relic and Vivendi Universal totally ruined it. Now, Sierra and Relic being respectable game makers... I'll let you decide.

Ok, on with the show...

Graphics (8/10)

As to be expected, HW2 would have better graphics compared to its predecessors. But having a better graphics engine is not the end-all be-all of a great game. There were times in the game when you feel that the game developers got tired of designing color schemes for the ships so they went with bumblebee stripes instead. HWC deserves a 10 because of the ''assimilation'' sequences. This didn't have anything as grand. It only got up to an 8 because ships explode better.

I'd have to separate the Sound from the Music. They belong to to two entirely separate categories.

Music (7./10)

I like the Reggae theme they had going with the game. It was very catchy. But it doesn't come close to the HW opening sequence where they used the theme from Platoon and added a chorale. Now THAT was haunting. Major flaw of the music is that there are some integral parts of the game where there is none. I could say more but that would ruin it for you. Let's just say this... Where you thought the music would've been most vital is where its absent.

Audio (4/10)

This is where it totally bombed. One of the nice aspects of HW & HWC is the great dubbing they have. The pain in Karan S'jet's voice, the turmoil of the captain in HWC, the venerability (HW) and fear (HWC) of the Bentusi, the detached voice of the Exiles in the Cathedral of Kedesh (HW), the evolution of the Beasts. HW2 had none. There was no scene where I was moved by speech. Even the Bentusi's voice didn't sound as venerable. And Karan... dear Karan... I expected so much from her...

Even battle chatter was recycled.

Gameplay (7/10)
The gamemakers should've considered a few things in mind when they developed this game. For one, playing this alongside Frozen Throne is annoying because of the 'Pause' button. A lot of games these days use the spacebar to pause. But HW2 actually uses the Pause button. It's difficult to reach esp. for a lefty like me. What's worse, important hotkeys can't be configured: Pause, QSave (Ctrl+F5), QLoad(Ctrl+F8). Sometimes, when I really need a quicksave, I end up changing my ship's formation. And when I try to quick load, I sometimes miss and press F9 instead which turns the screen black for some reason. The Build Menu can be accessed by pressing 'B' and the Research Menu by pressing 'R'. Pressing R twice will open and close the research menu. But 'B' won't close the build menu! You know what this means? I have to drag the mouse all the way up the corner to close the window! It's annoying! Also the OK/Confirm buttons are vertically challenged. They're so small my mouse has trouble reaching them, if only pressing 'Enter' actually helped.

Another issue is the reverse technology. We see this phenomena in prequels like in Star Trek Enterprise or Star Wars Ep. 1 & 2. It's when the past looks more technologically advanced than the future. For some reason, it happened here in HW2. There's no more dreadnoughts, you can't build them anymore. Only the scouts have EMP, unlike in HWC. No more cloakers, dopplegangers, nada, nothing, zip, zilch. It's like every technology the Exiles have ever acquired from the previous games were thrown out. And don't even mention the technologies available for research...

And finally...

Story (2/10)

This is where it totally reeked. One of the reasons HW was 1999 Game of the Year was because of a great storyline. And Sierra was successful in following up with Cataclysm. This one had nothing. The events are already happening without explanation. Alien races are appearing out of nowhere for no reason at all. And the ENDING! Good Lord Almighty! What was that about?! Story development is actually worse than movie scripts from my country, and trust me, I should know... I'm a Film graduate.

There were too many open ended themes here and questions were not answered. Everything was just taken as is. It's like when you ask your dad how babies are made and he says ''They just are, that's how it is... now shut up.'' It's basically the same thing. So unless Sierra and Relic plan to make a more consistent follow up to this one, then this is the fall of Hiigara.

And if they do plan to make a sequel, I hope they redeem Karan.

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 09/28/03