Homeworld 3 review – battle beyond the stars
Homeworld 3 – it can be a beautiful game at times (Gearbox Publishing)
One of the most beloved RTS franchises celebrates its 25th anniversary with a brand new sequel and some controversial new ideas.
The one benefit of corporations’ renewed obsession with established franchises and intellectual properties is that while that means endless sequels for anything even remotely successful, it can also lead to the resurrection of more niche titles, which previously seemed unlikely to return. We don’t think the Homeworld series of space-based real-time strategy games has ever been very successful and yet on the 25th anniversary of the franchise here we are again with another one.
The games, and their developers, have a complicated history but the original came out in 1999, at the tail end of the golden era for PC-only real-time strategies. Unlike most others it wasn’t a Command & Conquer clone, but not only did it come out just as the genre was falling out of fashion but the sequel in 2003 was one of the last to be published under the Sierra name, before they were bought up by Vivendi, who in turn merged to form Activision Blizzard.
At that point developer Relic Entertainment and the rights to the series were acquired by THQ, who then went bust and Sega ended up buying Relic (who left recently left Sega to go independent). At that point, Borderlands maker Gearbox bought the rights to Homeworld and put new developer Blackbird Interactive, who are staffed by many ex-Relic veterans, to work making a remaster collection, the spin-off Deserts Of Kharak, and now, finally Homeworld 3.
That is a very complicated backstory for a series most people have probably never heard of, but the original concept for Homeworld is a lot easier to grasp. It’s basically Battlestar Galactica in all but name, as you’re put in charge of a fleet of giant starships trying to rediscover their ancestral home. At the start of the game your range of ships is severely limited but by gathering resources from asteroids and destroyed enemies you’re able to create new craft, from nippy fighters to larger capital ships.
That relatively straightforward concept was quickly overcomplicated with an increasingly impenetrable plot and while Homeworld 3 does try to hit many of the same plot beats there are far too many low quality cut scenes, filled with uninteresting lore and sci-fi melodrama, that quickly makes the story a chore.
Thankfully, the gameplay is considerably more interesting, despite some notable changes from the originals. The thing with Homeworld is that since everything takes place in space the action is in full 3D, and navigating in three dimensions – especially where there’s no up or down – is difficult and not something modern video games usually demand of their players.
To make things less disorientating, all of Homeworld 3’s missions have some kind of terrain beyond just empty space. Whether it’s colossal space stations or moon-sized chunks of ice, the backdrops in Homeworld 3 are generally less abstract than its predecessors. Trying something new is always to be encouraged but not having any of the main missions in outer space feels like going too far, especially as many of the superstructures start to ruin the illusion of scale and the sense that you’re ordering around giant spaceships.
However, the introduction of terrain does lead to some excellent mission design, as you set up blockades, build and deploy remote turrets, take out enemy factories, and use floating debris as cover. It’s reminiscent of the glory days of the X-Wing and TIE Fighter series, and other great space combat simulators like FreeSpace, which used 3D space and their sci-fi settings to create gameplay experiences that would be impossible in other games.
All the ships designs are great too, with most craft having unique abilities, such as bombers that can turn themselves invisible or cruisers that can switch off their weapons to boost those of everyone around them.
However, far too many of the ships seem like they’re made of paper, like those ridiculous Resistance bombers at the beginning of The Last Jedi. Even the biggest spaceships can take surprisingly little damage, which also ruins the sense of being in charge of a mighty space armada.
At times it also feels as if the game is being a little too helpful with the controls, with the ability to select multiple enemies at once meaning the AI is making most of the moment-to-moment decisions in terms of who attacks what. You could just choose not to do that, but knowing the option is there is awfully tempting.
Ironically, that’s by far the most convincing use of AI in the game, as the path-finding is dreadful, forcing you to constantly make manual waypoints to get everyone where you want them. The opponent AI is also very robotic; Homeworld 3 gives you plenty of freedom in how you approach each mission but the way the AI responds seems heavily scripted, which ruins the sense of accomplishment when you outfox it.
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Another niggle is that the game almost never allows you to mop up at the end of the battle, so if you’ve only beaten a mission by the skin of your teeth you’ve suddenly got to mine like crazy at the beginning of the next one or you’ll have no chance of completing it. Which makes no sense because in story terms there’s absolutely no reason you wouldn’t just hang around and hoover up the spoils of your victory.
We’re sure Homeworld 3 didn’t have a very big budget and with that in mind it’s easier to forgive some of its failings, although the fact that there are only 13 missions in the story campaign is definitely a disappointment. However, there are plenty of alternative modes, including skirmishes where you can set-up space battles without any terrain, if you want.
There’s also the new roguelike War Games mode, where you start with a randomised ship loadout and try to unlock more abilities as you pick up buff-providing artefacts. It’s a fine idea but given the inflexible enemy AI it can all seem a bit rote – although it is more fun in co-op.
Homeworld 3 is at once a worthy sequel, a good real-time strategy game, and a mild disappointment. It’s filled with niggles and unforced errors and yet the strength of the central concept, and the quality of the mission design, shines through. We’ve no idea if there’ll ever be another entry in the series – we’re still shocked this one exists – but we hope the armada never gets home.
Homeworld 3 review summary In Short: A flawed sequel, that undermines some of the original games’ greatest pleasures, but this is still a uniquely enjoyable real-time strategy, with plenty of interesting new ideas.
Pros: Still the best strategy-based space battles in gaming and the new focus on terrain adds an interesting twist, even if it’s a little overused.
Cons: Not enough missions and the storytelling is awful. Weak enemy AI and the control system is still very easy to get in a muddle with. The sudden end of missions causes frustration.
Score: 7/10
Formats: PCPrice: £49.99Publisher: Gearbox PublishingDeveloper: Blackbird InteractiveRelease Date: 13th May 2024Age Rating: 7
Homeworld 3 – they’re headed for the medical frigate (Gearbox Publishing)
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