Game Review

FTL: Faster Than Light

Check out our video review!

FTL is an indie title for the PC/Mac that’s the first to be released through crowd-funding initiative Kickstarter.

This game first appeared on my radar because I love space exploration games and the idea of space exploration in general. The first decent game I played was Elite on the Nintendo Entertainment System, but more recently I’ve been loving the ultra popular Mass Effect trilogy.

In this game, you are in command of a single space ship. You’ve intercepted some crucial data belonging to the Rebel Force and you have to deliver it to a Federation Fleet who are parked millions of light years away, somewhere on the other side of the galaxy. To get there, you'll have use faster than light travel to jump through space. The problem is, you never know what’s going to be on the other side of the jump. All the while the rebels are on your tail, relentlessly hunting you down. The awesome thing is that the events and the encounters that occur after each light speed jump are all completely random, so every time you play, you get a different story.

Most of the time, you are going to be micro managing the energy resources of your spaceship. Each function of your ship, like the oxygen, the automated door control, the cockpit, the shields and the weapons has to be powered up to function. Each of these functions can be upgraded using scrap (the in-game currency) and each function is linked to a room on your ship, which can be damaged. You also control your crew. Manning certain stations will provide performance bonuses, for example the shields will recharge faster if someone is in the shield room. You will also need to direct the crew to repair damage, put outfires, and engage in direct combat with enemies who have boarded your ship.

The graphics are nothing close to mind blowing, but they get the job done just fine. I’ll take engaging gameplay over fancy graphics every time. My only complaint is that the exterior of the ships look a little bit crude. I can’t put my finger on it exactly, but the design and style of the ships just don’t look that good to me.

Most events during your journey will force you to make a decision about which course of action to take, using a text menu. You might be offered a slave as a bribe, decide whether to investigate distress calls in remote space, or evaluate the risk letting a madman join your crew when you really need the extra set of hands. You’ll occasionally get a few repeats of scenarios after you’ve been playing for a while, but there are enough varying outcomes to each scenario that it never becomes too predictable.

The random encounter element reminds me of those old school adventure board games like Talisman or Hero Quest, where you would draw encounter cards.

For each decision you make regarding the story of your journey, you’ll have to make many more about the management of your vessel. Will you open the airlocks to asphyxiate the pirates that just boarded your ship, or will you bunker down in the first aid bay and mob them when they break the door down? Will you cut the power to the oxygen so you can power up the giant death laser?

As you progress and make more and more choices like this, each playthrough gains its own unique narrative. Even though the story provided by the game’s text is a bit thin, your brain will go wild filling in the details.

Along the way you’ll have the ability to upgrade the core functions of your ship as well as customise the weaponry, attack drones and augments that will grant special abilities, like being able to board enemy ships or to cloak your ship.

Hostile encounters will see you dueling against an enemy craft. Succeeding in combat is ultimately a matter of prioritising which of the enemies core functions to destroy while attempting to repair your own and balancing defensive and offensive resources. You can start by destroying their weapons to reduce your incoming damage, or you can target their shield for a quicker kill. Or, if you’re feeling mischevious you can use a heat Ray to burn the enemy crew alive. There’s enough tactical depth and enough weapons to keep combat from becoming repetitive, but many tense moments are derived from dealing with the damage to the ship after you’ve vanquished your enemy. Fires in the cockpit, losing remote control of the doors and fixing a breach before the crew runs out of oxygen are all heart pounding scenarios that can occur out of combat.

Death is permanent for your crew members and your ship being destroyed will earn you an instant game over. This, combined with the frequently brutal random elements mean that reaching the end of the game with your ship and crew intact is not going to be easy, and you won’t even have a chance at beating the final boss until you’ve attempted several playthroughs.

The game is pretty difficult, even on the easy setting. Once you get past the first couple of sectors, combat becomes a big deal and you may need to swallow your pride and flee if the battle swings against you.

Also, with so many random elements, luck is going to play a big part in the success or failure of your mission. It never feels totally unfair, but sometimes you’ll have an amazing run where you get heaps of scrap and a nice arsenal of weapons and you only have luck rather than skill to thank for it. The same goes for those runs where you never have a chance simply because of bad luck.

The soundtrack to all of these space hijinks is also excellent, like a sci fi score through a retro 8-bit filter.

The whole package has a very Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica feel to it, and if you’ve ever wanted to command a spaceship, you won’t find a game better than this.

I would have really liked to have seen some alternate ending scenarios. There’s only one ending for the game and you either defeat the game or you don’t. Given that the journey can vary so much, alternate endings would have been awesome. I’m really hoping for some official DLC to expand this game because it really is close to being the space adventure game I always wanted.

Reviewed by Ray Morgan Presenter of Zed Games, 6-7PM Wednesdays.

Reviews

Quick Listens

Sasha Čuha: about 'Svetozar!' & electric gusle

4ZZZ's interview with Kevin Borich

4ZZZ's radio drama 'Connie' by Joel Quick

4ZZZ's radio drama 'Morph' by Kathryn Rothe

Opera at 4ZZZ with Milijana Nikolic, mezzo-soprano & Rosario La Spina, tenor

LISI + QLD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Join Forces

TWO DIVAS: Eva Kong & Asabi Goodman in Jazz meets the Opera concert

Voice acting by artist Ri McLean: radio drama 'Return' by Stephen Gale

Synthony hitting Riverstage Brisbane

Bardon Community Markets

SuburbiaSuburbia: Rock MUSIC, ART and SATIRE from the AU Suburbs

'My Gypsy Soul' show - Milijana Nikolic & Zokki Bugarski

Crowd Control: Stand up comedy improv competition

Aunty Donna interview: Brisbane show in Oct 2021

Eurovision Song Contest 2021 - review by Blair Martin

Gina Vanderpump - Miss Sportsman Hotel

4ZZZ's 45th Birthday special by Alex Oliver

Nazo Nazarian interview: music, culture & history

Opera Gala Concert in Brisbane: Life, love, passion

Oskar & Andy interview The Immigrants: 4ZZZ subscriber band

El Vito by Marina Poša

4ZZZ Interview: GLOBAL BANDEMIC: Worldwide Free Live Stream event

HOTA Takes Their Rage Online: Interview with Virginia Hyam, HOTA Head of Programming

Interview with Criena Gehrke CEO at HOTA about HOTA Artist Fund – Rage Against The V(irus)

Jack Vidgen - Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020

Jaguar Jonze - Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020

Mitch Tambo - Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020

Didirri - Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020

iOTA - Eurovision: Australia Decides 2020

Boban Markovic Orkestar on Balkan Beats Zed Digital / 4ZZZ

LIVE
100