House of the Dying Sun [official site] isn't just an amazing name, it's also a great looking space combat simulator that harkens back to the days of Freespace and TIE Fighter. Oh, and it's out on Steam Early Access today with a lil' discount to make it extra appealing—just in case the idea of revisiting the glory days of zero G dogfighting weren't enough.
]]>There is a house in New Orleans
THEY CALL THE DYING SUN
Is that the right words? No, hang on, House of the Dying Sun [official site] is the tactical space combat 'em up that's inspired by TIE Fighter and Freespace and was formerly known as Enemy Starfighter. Silly me. It's en route to Steam Early Access next month and has a stonking new trailer that's packed with missiles and explosions and lightning-fast dogfights and... why not just pop below and see for yourself?
]]>Enemy Starfighter is a roguelike Starfox-like: roguelike, in the sense that each galaxy and its enemies are randomly generated and that there is permadeath; Starfox-like, in the sense that it skips some of the fidelity and simulation of Elite: Dangerous and Star Citizen in favour of a game more concerned with pure piloting and combat. As I wrote back in April, it at times feels more like you're flying a gun than a spaceship.
Let the new trailer below explain.
]]>Each game of Enemy Starfighter begins in Overwatch, a region of space from which you can see five or six or seven other possible destinations. Each is represented by a white pip; there's perhaps an asteroid field, a planet, a star, and then one region which has another set of symbols above the white mark. These tell you what ships are inhabiting the space. Corvettes? Frigates? I can never remember what the symbols mean, only that each represents an opportunity for death or derring-do that the dynamic mission generator has created for me.
Pick a destination, engage your gap drive and let's jump into orbit.
]]>It is the year 2014, and somehow on our wobbly stacks of gamerly plates we have more space games than we know what to do with. I refuse to look this (largely crowdfunded) gift horse-shaped starship in the terribly located exhaust port that resembles a mouth. That said, many of said spacefarers - Star Citizen, Elite Dangerous, Limit Theory, etc - are shooting for the stars with massive Do Everything Be Everything universes, and there's something to be said for focus. That's what the brilliant-looking Enemy Starfighter offers in spades. Each level sees you pre-plan your leap into a system from a top-down strategic map and then execute it from the cockpit with squad in tow. It's a magnificently svelte concept, and there's a new trailer of it in action below.
]]>Now that X Rebirthhas been exposed as a massive black hole of fun, and following a state mandated period of mourning, I'm back on the hunt for the next good space game. Let's see... there's Elite: Dangerous: the first closed beta combat tests that should start this month, which is exciting, but it's only available to the people who pledged £200 in the Kickstarter/pre-order push. Star Citizen is looking as pretty as ever, though access to the dog-fighting alpha is now looking unlikely to occur this year. Enemy Starfighter will definitely get a big hug from me when I play it, though that's unlikely to be for months. Ditto for Limit Theory. Rogue System looks like systemic, hardcore space joy, but it also won't be out for months. Ooh, Rodina! A space exploration and combat game influenced by the likes of Star Fox and The Elder Scrolls. That's next. And it's out next week! You've saved Christmas!
]]>A thing that always irked me is the "No love for XXXXXX XXXXX?" comments on articles. I write a thing, look at the comments for people to point out how handsome I am (and my many, many flubs), but what do I see? Someone arrogantly proposing to understand my emotional framework. Ooh, it hurts me feelings it does. So I'm going to propose a new way of doing it. Instead of viciously prodding at a hole in my knowledge and demanding emotional resonance, you should instead write: "That is a game that reminds me of XXXXXXX XXXXXXX, and I'd love you all to know about it." And I will respond with a fist-bump. And, yes, I did discover Enemy Starfighter in such a comment. Oh alright. Do what you want, but take a look at the latest videos of the Mike Tipul's fabulous looking space combat game, because I imagine there's love in your heart for it.
]]>Someday, I would like to meet a friendly starfighter. We'd go on adventures together, support each other through tough times, and buy each other presents occasionally - just because. Without a doubt, he'd be the friendliest starfighter in all the land. But today is not that day. No, right now, we're dealing with Enemy Starfighter, and this one's quite a menacing, conniving fellow indeed. Planning's the name of the game - or it would be, if it wasn't Enemy Starfighter - and a randomized single-player campaign with loot and harsh death conditions adds roguelike flair to the proceedings. See it in action after the break.
]]>![קודי רכבת סטאר של Honkai [דצמבר 2024]](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/honkai-star-rail-bronya-fu-xuan.jpg?width=1200&height=630&fit=crop&enable=upscale&auto=webp "קודי רכבת סטאר של Honkai [דצמבר 2024]")
