Homeworld

by Vivendi Universal

Product Features

• Since the discovery of the Guide Stone 100 years ago deep in the equatorial sand of our planet, Kharak, our very origins have come into question

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004T77A
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 8 x 2 inches
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: May 17, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (87 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,538 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Edition: Game of the Year

Amazon.com Review

Relic Entertainment and Sierra Studios' Homeworld forced gamers to view real-time strategy games in a completely different way. Homeworld's events take place in 3-D space complemented by stunning graphics and magnificent sound effects.

While it does adhere to real-time strategy games' traditional balance of resource gathering and unit creation, Homeworld feels unique; Relic has created a vast and interesting universe that's worth visiting time and time again. Having won numerous industry awards (including Game of the Year and Strategy Game of the Year) in 1999, Relic and Sierra have repackaged the original Homeworld into a Game of the Year Edition

The imaginative plot competes with the graphics as the game's best feature. Upon the discovery of an ancient galactic map inscribed with the words "our home," the people of Kharak began construction of a massive mother ship and fleet to traverse the galaxy and reach their true home world. Players construct, maintain, and control the Kharak fleet through 16 challenging single-player missions or against fellow humans on Sierra's WON.net online gaming service. During the solo campaign, you'll face literally hundreds of enemy vessels. All friendly and enemy ships--ranging from small yet dangerously quick interceptors to the powerful and expensive destroyers and heavy cruisers--are rendered with exquisite detail.

If you already own Homeworld, there's not enough here to justify the purchase; however, if you haven't enjoyed one of the freshest games of all time, Homeworld: Game of the Year Edition offers an experience that shouldn't be missed. --Doug Radcliffe

Pros:

• One of the best games in recent years, offering a fresh look on a popular genre
• Fantastic graphics with a 3-D engine that allows you to get up close to dazzling ship battles
• Addictive single-player campaign and easy-to-use Internet multiplayer options

Cons:

• Game of the Year Edition doesn't include extra missions or enhancements to gameplay
• Higher learning curve than standard real-time strategy games (but worth the effort)

Product Description

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible, February 10, 2002

By 

Yu-jin Chia "Yu-Jin Chia" (Cupertino, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Homeworld: Game of the Year Edition (CD-ROM)

Homeworld is more than a technical and gaming masterpiece, but an absolute work of art. If you don't have the hardware to run it at maximum detail, it's time to upgrade. After one good firefight with an armada of ships, you'll be glad you did. The soundtrack is also exemplary- far better than most of the genre. The game is very stable, has remarkably few bugs for such a complex piece of software, and has a remarkably intuitive control system. If you've ever played a real time strategy game, it shouldn't take you more than a half hour to master the controls.

Aside from its technical excellence, the game has a compelling background and storyline. The single play missions are excellent, and the plot really draws you in. They are also quite challenging and- unlike any other RTS I've played- cumulative. That is to say, your fleet carries over into the next mission, so it's in your best interest to not go suicidal just to pass one. Despite the fact that the single play plot is linear, it is still far more engrossing than any other single-play RTS I've gone through.

More than the typical strategy game, this is really one of those titles that has a dominant tactical aspect. Just because you can build tons of units doesn't mean you'll win. For example, you could have a hundred strike craft, but if your enemy has invested in a gravity well generator or missile destroyer, an attack would be suicide. Resource gathering is also far more difficult than in most other RTS titles, and if you don't protect your gathering operations you WILL be dead. Between protecting your gatherers and your mothership, you'll have plenty to worry about. Despite this, the game doesn't force you to micromanage things. You can assign tactics to your units and have them do the thinking, which leaves you to sit back and watch the fireworks. It's the deployment and distribution of your forces that will decide the outcome.

On the aforementioned graphical aspect- it is amazing. The level of detail is on par with Freespace, but you'll see much more of the action and many more units engaging in combat. There are many detailed ships and objects in both fleets, and even more in single play. While the opposing Kushan and Taiidan fleets are nearly identical in capabilities and armaments, their ships look radically different. It's fun to change sides from time to time, just to look at the different vessels.

So, if you haven't tried this out yet, now's your chance. Even if you don't like sci-fi or strategy, you should take a look. Homeworld is bound to impress.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My dream has come true!, June 11, 2000

By 

Mr Snap - See all my reviews

This review is from: Homeworld: Game of the Year Edition (CD-ROM)

I've always wanted to play a really engrossing space sim, something like a movie / game. Well, after playing a lot of games without any engrossing gameplay, I decided to try out Homeworld. I'm glad I did! Homeworld is the BEST space RTS / Sim / Movie I've ever played! I feel like I'm taking part in a movie with the great music, voice overs, and cut scenes. The engine graphics are just amazing! I'm finally seeing the true power my of pc!

With that said, I do believe I will be playing Homeworld for quite some time. There's so much to do and explore, it really is a great game. If your one to try new games without all the hype, give Homeworld a try. It will change your whole attitude towards RTS games. Starcraft just doesn't seem to have any feel now after playing Homeworld.

Game of the Year bundle: The music CD is great! As for the Prima guide, it's as bad as all their other guides. Large print, lack of pages, and lack of rich content. Oh well, it's free anyway :)

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ive seen attack ships on fire off the shoulder of orion....., June 28, 2000

By 

Internet Drive By - See all my reviews

This review is from: Homeworld: Game of the Year Edition (CD-ROM)

I have been playing this game 6 hours a day for the last 3 days. Its all I do when I get home from work. The game, visually, is intense. Watching your squadrons of strike craft in sphere formation engaging enemy fighters while your capital ships pound your enemies frigates, destroyers and cruisers into debris is awesome. My personal favorite is watching the ion beams erupt through an exploding ship. The mechanics of combat are set up better than anything I have seen before. You have a true sense of scale, the fighters are tiny and motherships are huge. You could never pull something cheap like destroying a heavy cruiser with 2 scouts, the ion cannons have it rough targeting fighters etc.. Strategy is very important in this game. You can get stomped if you deploy your fleet the wrong way. Conversly if you execute your manuevers correctly you can smash your opponent with minimal losses. Combat is easy to manage. Definitely not a click-fest. Its enough to keep you on the edge of your seat but not enough to be overwhelming. Once orders are given you can sit back and watch for a few seconds, and its worth watching. Target selection is very easy, there are several different ways to select either you own or your opponents craft. On top of that when it gets hairy you can turn on a tactical overlay that identifies each ship as yours or theirs and what class of ship it is. The interface is pretty tight, you cant get lost, scrolling around in empty space and its very easy to manipulate the camera with the mouse and give orders at the same time. 3D movement which is tricky no matter how you implement it is done as easily as posible, you have to use it to understand it. Its hard to explain without at least a picture. There are flaws to everything and Homeworld is then just like everything else. There are two different clans of ships but only one campaign. On top of that there is only a minimal difference between the two clans. It would have been nice to see a substanial difference between the two clans ships and tactics like you do in Starcraft. The research and technology implementation is only mediocre. You get the chance to research new technologies after certain events in the game. But the research costs you nothing and you have as much time as you need at the end of each mission so the developers might as well have simply given it to you. The one major complaint that I have is that when I jump to hyperspace some of my ships tend to get left behind..... The bottom line is that this game delivers where it counts. The engine is solid and the gameplay is fluid. The missions are diverse and interesting. Homeworld 2 will only be better I imagine, with more diverse units and clans, and better animation. Homeworld does not feel like a finished project to me but the developers have made the right choices in focusing on the engine and gameplay. It lacks the glitz and lensflares, but if you have ever been burned by a hyped up game that fell flat then you know that its whats under the hood that counts. With the revenues and feedback from Homeworld I believe that further efforts by this team will be more refined and even more enjoyable.

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