Domination
Perhaps “Abomination” would have been a more appropriate title.
Tags: Domination Categories: PC Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Ludwig on Apr 10th, 2005
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domination (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Strategy | No | ||
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Turn-based strategy has become somewhat of an underexposed and underappreciated genre as of late, with very few new games adopting the tactically elegant possibilities provided by such an awfully polite form of warfare. It would seem appropriate then, for fans of the genre to get excited about Domination, sequel to last year’s generally appreciated Massive Assault, as it arrives with several new combat units and the loud proclamation that it’s “Massive Assault Like Never Before.” Well, if Domination represents what Massive Assault is like now, I’d rather go back to the way things were.
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If you’re in the typically modern position of juggling jobs and relationships with your gaming time and find that you simply can’t spend enough quality hours with your beloved assembly of silicone chips and cathode ray tubes, Domination is the game for you. The game is clearly designed for the gamer on the go, as it allows you to quickly hop in and out of battles, each engagement lasting approximately five minutes. You see, five minutes is generally the amount of time it takes for the game to unceremoniously crash to the desktop. It’s an unusual feature, to be sure, and it often imparts the feeling that your desktop wallpaper is subliminally communicating arcane messages to you as you flash back and forth between the game and the operating system.
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As if such a towering, ferocious insect stomping through Gameplay City wasn’t enough to inspire fear, there are several other bugs to look out for. There’s the sporadic appearance of a giant blue bar that covers up a third of the screen, something which may or may not be an artificial way of raising the game’s difficulty level. Furthermore, the grandiose musical score only ceases to stutter when it makes way for a far more annoying crackling sound. This dire technical situation is totally unacceptable and raises the serious question of how this game made it onto the shelves in such a miserable state. And for reference, this was tested on both a reasonably high-end PC (2.8Ghz P4, 1GB RAM, Geforce FX 5900XT) and a weaker one (1.1Ghz Athlon, 384MB RAM, Geforce 3), both equipped with the latest drivers and both yielding the same issues. It’s frustrating not only because you’re expected to pay for such questionably constructed code, but because you’re being kept from enjoying a very solid piece of strategy gameplay. It’s as if a large and unfriendly bouncer has been placed between you and your computer, and every time you want to play Domination you have to engage in a wrestling match with intimidating, tortoise-crushing arms.
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By putting the massive bugs aside (which requires patience and very thick gloves), it is possible to appreciate what Domination has to offer – well thought out and balanced strategic warfare. The fact that it’s all turn-based makes quite a large impact, since you’ll often be evenly matched with your enemy in terms of firepower; with victory hinging on effective planning that takes the terrain into consideration. Much of the gameplay revolves around the invasion of countries (“Bizzarria” being one of the many ridiculous titles they go by) and forcing them into cooperating with your war machine. Once you march your units across their borders, you’ll have to defeat a local guerilla force before you can expect the country’s cash to go into your pockets.
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One of the more interesting mechanics regarding the invasion of countries is the concept of Secret Allies. When this is in effect, you and your opponent are given control of a set number of countries on a map, with several neutral countries interspersed throughout. At least, they appear to be neutral countries until you attempt to capture them, in which case it may be revealed that they are allied to your enemy. Upon this event, your enemy may take control of that particular country’s guerilla forces and use them to wipe you out. Naturally, this applies in the opposite direction as well. It makes for some intriguing battles, where an unexpected ally may either tilt the odds in your favor or ruin your seemingly flawless scheme.
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In terms of sheer quantity, Domination gives you a lot to do. The main campaign is quite an undertaking on its own, but when adding a Scenario mode filled with interesting and fairly challenging mission objectives, as well as a planet-grabbing World War mode, strategy fans are sure to find a substantial amount of their time quickly evaporating. Well, this is still assuming that they’ve managed to get over the game’s show stopping glitches. The substantial online multiplayer mode is worthy of mention, if only for the fact that it runs through Wargaming.net. The service provides tracking of statistic and play-by-email facilities, but incurs a monthly fee of about $7 after Domination’s free 4-month trial runs out. Needless to say, when games such as Splinter Cell and Unreal Tournament allow free online play, a monthly fee for a turn-based strategy game is a ridiculous concept at best.
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At best, Domination is a decent looking game. The 3D environments are colorful and boast some nice water effects, but textures aren’t quite as sharp and diverse as they should be. The combat units also lack detail, both in terms of polygons and animation, but given the nature of the game, it’s not too big of an issue. The camera controls are awkward, with tilting and turning relegated to remote and unexplored regions of the keyboard, rather than the domain of man’s best friend – the trusty mouse. It’s not as if the mouse is overly taxed here, as the game boasts a very clean and efficient one-click interface that provides ample information on friendly and enemy units alike. The real problems manifest in other areas of the game’s overall presentation.
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As opposed to a gritty future engulfed in technologically empowered warfare, the game’s sound evokes a strange combination of violent nausea and paranoid fear. Admittedly, the voice actors don’t have much to work with here. With a plot, characters and dialogue as worthless as this, it’s akin to putting a deflated balloon in the hands of a construction worker and expecting him to build a double-decker bridge. Only, the people providing the voiceovers are horribly inept as well, so really, it’s more like putting a deflated balloon in a refrigerator and expecting the earth to spin off its axis. With awkward pauses and monotone deliveries, it seems as if the entire cast was heavily tranquilized before reaching the studio. The limp sound effects that accompany the various tanks and hulking robots as they blast each other to smithereens don’t fare much better, as they seem to have been lifted from an ancient Hanna Barbera cartoon. The various zaps and ka-booms are so underwhelming, it may have been more effective to substitute the on-screen words “ZAP!” and “KA-BOOM!”
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And let’s not forget “CRASH!” Given the frequency at which the game comes to a grinding halt, it’s hard to recommend Domination to anybody other than the most patient and obsessive desktop general. With more bugs than a David Attenborough documentary, a bland storyline and terrible sound, it’s hard to enjoy what sits buried deep within Domination, namely balanced and satisfyingly cerebral strategy gameplay. If you’re a hardcore strategy fan that eats and breathes in turns, you might be capable of digging deep enough to find that. If you’re not, don’t even bother getting your hands dirty.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Balanced and challenging strategic gameplay. + Clean and effective interface. + Loads of different modes and missions. |
5.0 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
- Massive, game-crashing bugs. - Awkward camera controls. - Worthless storyline. - Abysmal sound and voice acting. - A monthly fee to play this online? You’re joking. |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| Domination’s core gameplay is strong, but not nearly strong enough to withstand the combined might of vicious bugs and untalented voice actors. | |
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Tags: Domination
Posted by Ludwig on Apr 10th, 2005 and is filed under PC Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
