The quintessential alien chatting simulator, overall a beloved space adventure game: Space Control Origins is the reboot of a famous series which went silent for way too long. It’s good to see it back.
First things first: let’s see the PROs and CONs of this game… And then we’ll put the data in the Autism-O-Meter
PROs
🟢 The Plot
Is engaging and generally well thought out.
It goes along these lines: you’re the best the humans have to offer and your mission is to find more resources for the Earth, find the Lexites (AI-augmented humans who escaped your solar system) and find new species to interact with. Although your technology is laughable in comparison of what the other space dudes have, you still manage to lay your hands on a hyperdrive… And from there, it’s history. You’ll find new allies, new enemies, new weapons, new pieces for your spaceship and all that sort of stuff.
🟢 The Gameplay
Is… Well, let’s say it’s subjective.
Do you like grand stategy games with convoluted plot and sub-plots, with plenty of stuff to do and stats to manage? Then stay miles away from this game. If instead you want a bonafide space adventure, alien chatting simulator with a pinch of grinding, look no further. If back in the day you liked games like Star Control and SPORE: Galactic Adventures, this title might scratch that itch.
🟢 The Combat
Is, along with the branching conversations with the aliens, the main strength of this game.
It’s fun as hell: customize your ship, give it the best weapons (even better if you strike a balance between the points said ship will cost and the strength of the armaments) and then move it across the galaxy, shooting your enemies, grabbing power-ups, jumping into wormholes and bouncing into the gravitational fields of planets. A simple but effective formula. A shame that this works only for the Fleet Battles gamemode though, since the ships you have in the Campaign aren’t customizable (aesthetically wise).
🟢 The Editor
Is a welcomed addition.
It’s not as deep as the aforementioned SPORE, but you can still create new buildings, spaceships, etc. and share those in the Steam Workshop.
🟢 The Steam Achievements
Gives a little bit of replay value to this game.
However, if I may be totally sincere, this game has “Start the Campaign” kind of achievements… What were they thinking.
Friendly reminder you are no match for the space nazis
CONs
🔴 The Writing
Is hit-or-miss.
It’s either engaging and funny, or bland and cringeworthy. If you were expecting Star Control II level of writing, you’ll be disappointed. Still, it could be worse.
🔴 The Voice Acting
Again, is hit-or-miss.
Plenty of average, mediocre and just plain bad voice actors in this game, with some rare exceptions.
🔴 The Difficulty Scaling
Is non-existent.
The totality of the game is a cinch and you’ll almost never face an actual challenge. That is if we exclude the now dead multiplayer.
🔴 The Physics
In combat, they’re often too floaty. Like, you’ll lose control of your ship kind of floaty. On planets, where you need to scavenge for resources, it’s… Too realistic. The minimal elevation of the land will make your lander waver, stop, turn over, and it’s just not fun when it happens a hundred times.
🔴 The Scavenging
Speaking of which… If you like the formula of “scavenge planets, sell the resources, buy new stuff and ultimately sit on top of a lot of money which you don’t know how to spend because you already had the best gear a thousand planets ago”, then buy this game blindfolded.
