Elite Online Mag Elite 89 | Page 202

Everspace Space… the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship [INSERT NAME HERE]. It’s continuing mission: to explore new regions and not die horribly by crashing into rocks, getting killed by raiders or blundering into electrical storms. To boldly go into a new randomly generated world where no-one has gone before. Everspace, believe it or not, is a space combat game. Well, a space exploration game. Sort of. It’s also a roguelike, as you’re given a randomly generated world each time you play, and when you die you start back at the beginning. As popularised by the likes of Rogue Legacy, though, all is not lost when your adventure is over - you can spend some of the money you’ve accumulated on your run on upgrades for your ship before venturing into the abyss again. So far, so roguelike. Everspace sets itself apart chiefly by framing the action as a first or third person space combat game, and also by including a strong storyline that progresses as you get further into the game with each successive run. You’re a clone, with no memory of your original life, but you can start to piece together fragments of memories as you encounter old friends (and enemies). The surprisingly engaging storyline - told through hand-drawn cutscenes and solid voice acting - makes for a compelling reason to drive your progress through the game, but even 202 (PC, PS4, Xbox One, Out Now) without that dangling carrot the core gameplay loops of the game prove equally gripping. Everspace definitely leans towards a more arcade model; your ship is simple to control and is bristling with systems that require very little management. As a starting point you get two main weapon slots, missiles, and a couple of support systems and consumable items. The support systems (which operate on a cooldown timer) offer bonuses like boosted damage and shields, whilst consumables range from plasma mines to support drones. The only resource you need to monitor moment-to-moment (apart from your hull integrity and shield strength) is your energy level, which acts a bit like a Dark Souls stamina meter by depleting as you activate weapons and support systems but recharges over time. Combat itself is swift and rewarding. Enemy ships are highlighted and you get a target-leading cursor to aid your aim, and simple, logical movement controls make dogfights fun and easy to engage in, whilst the occasional capital ship prove challenging, but rewarding opponents. www.eliteonlinemag.com