Terminator: Dark Fate – Defiance

Pleased to play interesting singleplayer and its worth as hell but where the hell is AI vs players multiplayer

RTS, gdzie gracz ma bardzo dużo na głowie. Tak dużo, że właściwie powinien dostać wspomaganie od sztucznej inteligencji, rzecz w tym, że SI zerwała się ze smyczy i postanowiła pogonić gracza.

Mało jest chyba osób, które nie znają choćby ze słyszenia filmów o Terminatorze. Wkraczamy do rozgrywki, gdy konflikt ludzi z maszynami trwa w najlepsze.

Gracz musi zdobywać zapasy, bo jest to waluta w grze. Chcesz podróżować z punktu do punktu na mapie? Podróż jest podzielona na dni i musisz mieć odpowiednią ilość zapasów, by wykarmić swoje oddziały. Nie masz zapasów? - sprzedaj część jednostek. Masz nadmiar zapasów - kup jednostki i wyposażenie, broń paliwo, amunicję, uzupełnienie składów, pojazdy. Podczas bitwy dostaniemy punkty dobrych uczynków. Za nie można kupić doświadczonym jednostkom umiejętności. Przekłada się to na bonusy, ale jednostka będzie potrzebować więcej zapasów.
Wybór należy do gracza.

Co więcej, jednostki w bitwie mają limit amunicji, a pojazdy dodatkowo zużywają paliwo. Trzeba im to uzupełniać przy pomocy odpowiedniego pojazdu. Typów jednostek jest dużo, co z kolei sprowadza się do tego, że nie każda będzie potrafiła kierować np. czołgiem, czy innym helikopterem. Trzeba więc mieć kierowców. Ci bez pojazdu są słabi, ale w pojeździe mocni. Rzecz jasna pojazdy można, a nawet trzeba naprawiać. Walki są po prostu wymagające, bo maszyny potrafią dokopać.

Żeby tego było mało, potyczki na RTS-owych mapach są bogate w wydarzenia. Np. - obroń drogę. Rzucamy siły do obrony zaznaczonego punktu. Niebawem pojawia się znacznik, wskazujący, że trzeba zniszczyć konwój maszyn. A jest on w innym punkcie na mapie. Trzeba podzielić siły. Potem odeskortować strąconego pilota do bezpiecznego miejsca (przez całą praktycznie mapę). Itd. Twórcy zmuszają nas do dzielenia sił. Wydzielimy za mało, to nie wykonają zadania i zostaną zniszczone. Wydzielimy za dużo, to inne punkty będą zagrożone.

Pojazdy nie poruszają się szybko, także nie ma co liczyć, że grupa szybkiego reagowania będzie sobie latała po mapie wspierając zagrożone miejsca. A pamiętajmy, że paliwo i amunicję trzeba uzupełniać. No, to już wiadomo, że wczytywanie zapisów będzie częstym zabiegiem.

Osoby lubiące takie klimaty będą zachwycone. Inne zostaną wyeliminowane przez maszyny.

Technical Aspects
The game is generally well-polished. The audio is excellent, and the visuals are very pleasing—especially the unit models, which are outstanding. The game is well-optimized; I didn’t experience any bugs or crashes, so it’s solid from a technical perspective. The UI is classic RTS—well-designed and intuitive to use. Pathfinding and unit behavior are robust, and the camera works seamlessly. From a technical standpoint, this game is highly reliable.
Game Mechanics
The mechanics strike a balance between realism and traditional RTS gameplay. While it feels more like a game than a simulator, it incorporates realistic elements. Managing units effectively is crucial since ammunition, supplies, and fuel are limited. Every unit holds value, and minimizing losses is essential for campaign progression. The placement of units, army composition, and tactical planning are critical. You can’t simply select all units and push them forward like in many other RTS games, as doing so will result in a massacre.
This complexity necessitates heavy use of active pause. You pause the game, assess the situation, devise a plan, issue orders, unpause, and then observe the results. At first glance, the gameplay might seem straightforward, but it has a lot of depth in planning and execution. This makes it a poor choice for casual play but an excellent one for those seeking complex and challenging gameplay.
Each unit has a distinct purpose, and there isn’t a “best configuration.” Customization options abound, with various equipment, weapons, and skills. Some units are weaker but consume fewer resources, making them useful in specific scenarios. During the campaign, resources are consumed daily as you travel between locations (typically taking 3–6 days). Larger armies and expensive units, such as tanks or advanced infantry, consume more resources. After each mission, you can salvage items from the battlefield to replenish your forces. Additionally, you must ensure you have enough crew for vehicles or equipment for stationary artillery. This resource and unit management adds depth and replay value, especially on higher difficulties with different approaches.
During dialogues, your choices affect future missions and relationships with factions, who can either support or attack you later. This decision-making adds another layer of strategic complexity.
Challenges and Difficulty
While the game’s realism is commendable, it also introduces unpredictability. Missions often include unexpected events, and it’s difficult to anticipate all the potential outcomes. Units can miss their shots depending on factors like range, experience, or type, and running out of specific ammunition (e.g., anti-armor missiles) is not uncommon. You may need to disable certain weapons in the UI to conserve ammo for later stages of a mission. This unpredictability, combined with other mechanics, makes the game punishing for mistakes.
The campaign’s difficulty can be overwhelming, particularly in later stages. The need to manage units with unique equipment, skills, and ranks while adapting to unpredictable mission stages and rewards can become cognitively exhausting. I often had to resort to frequent saving and reloading to progress. Reload times aren’t instant, and maps are vast, which extended gameplay time. While victories were satisfying, some missions were frustrating and required significant motivation to complete. Despite lowering the difficulty (and typically playing RTS games on higher difficulties), I found the campaign challenging.
Story
The story is decent, though I preferred the DLC’s narrative. At times, I wished for fewer dialogues, but they are often essential for understanding impactful choices and their consequences. Dialogue choices affect alliances, future missions, and resource management, so they require careful consideration. You can take on extra missions for additional rewards, but these consume resources and can lead to casualties. While you gain some forces after each mission, significant losses or resource mismanagement can make progression difficult.
Multiplayer
Multiplayer seems inactive, but the skirmish modes are interesting. They include classic modes like control-point capture and unique scenarios, such as one player defending against two attackers in a siege. The gameplay logic in skirmishes aligns with the campaign’s. However, without matchmaking or ranking systems, multiplayer could lead to skill mismatches, as this game emphasizes player skill more than most RTS titles.
Overall Impressions
This game is highly recommended for players who enjoy challenging and complex RTS experiences. The general atmosphere is excellent, with music and visuals enhancing the experience. The mechanics are innovative, making this game feel unique rather than another clone of a popular title. Replay value is high, especially for experienced players.
However, the difficulty can be daunting, especially later in the campaign. Managing units, equipment, and resources while navigating unpredictable missions can feel overwhelming. It’s not suitable for casual RTS players or those new to the genre. The frequent need to reload missions due to random factors or unexpected outcomes can also feel like a time sink.
Despite the frustration, the game leaves a lasting impression. It’s a solid title that stands out in the RTS genre, and I hope there will be a sequel or similar game in the future. I think that reiterating existing gameplay but with more focuss on difficulty balance and maybe adding some narrowement to all the customization (campaign really feels like someone took an RTS game with couple factions and smashed everything into a single one) could result in an excellent RTS. All this customization and variety is nice but requires great degree of knowledge to even finish the game.

Good game - if you like to games like Starcraft, Joint Task Forcec, this game will give you lot of fun.

Bardzo dobry RTS choć jak dla mnie troche za krótki duża mapa mogło być wiecej misji pobocznych np: żeby zdobyć wiecej zasobów.
audio 10/10

Good game

Polecam