Laser Squad Nemesis
Sam goes 'old-skool' with this strategy-by-email extravaganza
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Actually playing LSN was like stepping back in time. It harks back to the age where patience was a required element of gaming and where multiplayer games were always accompanied by a degree of hassle. But that's just the matchmaking. The gameplay itself is sublime, simple to get to grips with but layered in complexity and depth. After setting up your force according to your strategy each player takes it in turn to watch the results of their opponent's last move then spend each of their own units' action points to try and gain the upper hand. Each of the three sides; Spawn, Marines and Machina, has a variety of units, with each side being best suited to certain types of combat. The Marines are nimble whereas the Machina are brutish. Each side will require different tactics to win the day, and the number of units when combined with the vast array of order combinations makes for multifaceted tactical combat. Units can be ordered to charge or retreat, hold their ground or engage in opportunity fire. The scenery is mostly destructible, the terrain varied, and the firefights common and intense. Although each of the turns last for only ten seconds a lot can happen in that time. With the intentions of the enemy always obscured it's up to you to anticipate their next move and then to be waiting with the right force to send them packing. It's good fun with the next email being as eagerly awaited as 5 o'clock on a Friday. Well, nearly. If only the game could be played in 2D and in black & white so I could play along at work. There's plenty to learn here, and the forums and website are a great place to go to top-up your knowledge cup. Get frustrated with the maps and you can create your own with the editor, simple enough to use whilst enabling you to create something just like those that form the backbone of the game.
Whether or not this nicely crafted package will entertain you depends on both your patience and your tolerance for the whims of others. If you enjoyed previous squad based, turn-based tactical shooters then you should enjoy LSN. But, and a big but, only if you think that you will not get put off by the somewhat whimsical nature of game match-ups and the lack of any human vs. cpu options. If, like me, you don't have a fatal problem with this method of matchmaking then you, like me, will get lots of enjoyment out of this game. And it's very good value for money. You can download the trial version, a 12MB file which will give you three free games to play against the opponent of your choice. As a non-subscriber you can also respond to and play any challenge from a subscriber. If you decide that you really like the game you can either sign up for a sub, which ranges from $7 for one month to $40 for a whole year, or buy the retail pack, which comes in at £12.99 and includes three free months of subscriber play. Codo have plenty of plans for the future of LSN so your money will not be sunk into a static gaming experience. A fourth race, the Greys, is in beta right now, and the number of tournaments and cups is always increasing. I personally hope that LSN is the precursor to a community driven attempt by the Gollop brothers to create a persistent X-Comm universe. Because, if I am honest, I have to say that my favourite bits of those games was the research and base building. If they can figure out how to tack on those elements to this adaptable and well constructed war engine then we could be in for a real treat in a few years time. Until that hopeful date, Laser Squad Nemesis will fill in a lot of time in a pleasingly entertaining fashion.
81%
Comments
need to find an email address
Wonderful review.
Couple of points for readers
"One thing that is inexcusable is the games insistence on the presence of the CD"
The publisher required Codo to have this on the retail very as anti-piracy. If you do buy the retail version you can use your 3 month, on a downloaded version of the game (without CD problem).
On the next release of an official release, the version on the retail disc will become obsolete and the problem will fade away.
As for the opponents wanted, there is a list on the official site that you can view to see who is waiting for a match.
Hope to see you on the battlefield
LSNer : welshtroll
Yep, played this a lot in beta and it's quality. Go Codo!
After playing for the last 18 months now I can honestly say that the fun and anticipation of recieving turns is still there, how many games hold that kind of attention ?
to get opponents just visit the chat room in the forum or post on opponents wanted, ask for a quick game and someone will reply!
If you post in the opponents wanted section you will get a post within a few hours, no matter what time of day it is. As for people not playing their turns, this rarely happens and most people never actually experience this.
I guess I must have been very unlucky, (or very boring to play against) but I had five matches time out. Annoying, but there's always more fish in the barrel.
Played this for about two months now. I find as long as you have got 6-7 games on the go you will always have a turn to play during those never ending tea breaks. You can send messages with your turns and some of the comments and observations are a peach.