The background for this innovative RTS game is rather grim and desolating, an Earth devastated by the Plague brought upon us by a large cosmic object named "Shard Zero". This strange celestial object entered a collision course with our planet in the 21st century but the destructive effects lingered on for thousands of years, twisting and disrupting the very nature of space and life. The effects of this infestation vary from monstrous mutations to benign enhancements, giving remarkable psychic abilities to some of those humans that survived the impact.

Civilization as we know it does no longer exist and humans took a very different path in the thousands of years after "Shard Zero" collided with the Earth, some choosing to retreat in five Megacities scattered around the plagued planet while other deciding to embrace their new nature as mutants. These city-states are ruled by a dictatorial elite represented by the Senate, whereas the Tribes lack a central leadership and rely heavily on their High Priests to channel and improve the paranormal abilities. After centuries of conflict these two sides are far from reaching an agreement and peace is nothing more than a myth, but the fragile balance is in danger of collapsing as a new alien force enters the combat field with martial intentions.

The campaign consists of 18 missions that are desperately trying to get a cohesive look and create the impression of a breathtaking story as well as introducing the player into the post apocalyptic atmosphere. While it is still the best way to get acquainted with the game and learn the basic commands the way this story starts and unfolds is rather coarse and lacks polish to become addictive. I got the awkward feeling that the intro movie may be the highlight of this plot after the abrupt commencement of the campaign, but I'm happy to admit that the story is definitely on the mend and once you reach the second half of the campaign the interest of discovering the end is overwhelming.

Building bases and assembling an army is generally accepted to be an essential component of any good real-time strategy game, but WorldShift takes the radical decision of abandoning this popular concept and instead introduces some RPG elements. This is a risky decision and I personally believe that the game is stripped down by most of the complexity, but it's only fair to say that WorldShift achieved the most out of the tactical content that remains available once this element is removed. The co-op mode is brilliant and without the grinding part of collecting resources to build a base and an army, the game is fast flowing and more attractive for those willing to skip the prelude and engage in battle.

{pagebreak}

While the multiplayer mode benefits from this drastic change, it is a huge blow for the campaign especially in the initial stage when you have just a couple of units, or even a single character to solve the highly scripted missions. It might be a useful tool to master every ability the new unit owns, still it surely is boring as hell and even the so called boss fights are tedious because it's obvious when you'll win but the damage inflicted by each side is simply too low. Just when you start thinking the story is slowly sinking like an old man in a hot tub, the addition of new units and the inspired mix of human and tribal forces add some flavor and rescue the campaign.

The transition is smooth but it won't take long until you'll have a large regiment to command, and the notion of micromanagement is taken to a whole new level, preparing the gamer for the thrills of the multiplayer mode. You don't really have a lot of freedom while completing a mission and I can't help to notice the linear structure of this title, with certain obstacles to be passed and challenges that can't be tackled in more ways. What better proof for this statement should we hope for but the fact that you'll occasionally reach checkpoints before the more difficult bosses, which are a welcomed addition to be honest, as it saves us from repeating a long scenario.

Perhaps the closest mission to a RPG and at the same time the least attractive in the entire campaign set is the one where you need to use camouflage to distract the guards and annihilate patrols before they can raise the alarms. Patience is crucial but unfortunately it's the only thing you need to complete an otherwise excruciatingly long scenario, and a perfect example to prove that the roads less traveled are less traveled for a reason and departing too much from the original concepts is downright stupid. Luckily this is an exception and the following missions are focusing more on the tactics needed to deploy in order to overpower the enemy troops rather than clawing your way in disguise through an intricate map.

The innovation that WorldShift brings to the RTS genre resides almost exclusively in the gameplay, where the three different races are constantly changing and improving throughout your gaming career, to better serve their purpose. Essentially each side has a main character, named "Lord Commander", "High Priest" or "Master" who operates above the four Officers, each with distinct abilities that can boost the offensive effort of the troops or cripple the enemy forces. They play an important role and the death of any of them is a huge blow, because unlike a traditional real-time strategy game they are virtually irreplaceable.

Another original addition that this title brings is the ability grid which allows the gamer to customize a faction by choosing the appropriate specializations and equipping items. First you have to unlock these specializations and in order to do that, xenoshards are required, a special resource gained when collecting or recycling artifacts. These items can also be used to increase the stats of your faction as a whole, not just an individual hero so it's always tough to decide for recycling them instead of equipping. While these items lie all over the map waiting to be picked up, the best are dropped by bosses and most of them are more than a match for a single player and that's where the co-op comes in handy.

{pagebreak}

Conclusion:

With all the cross-genre innovations WorldShift is like a breath of fresh air in the RTS industry and although it won't become the next big thing in strategy games is a welcomed distraction from the daily routine. Some people might consider it a giant leap forward while the critics will surely dismiss it as a small step backwards, but as far as I'm concerned, WorldShift is a bold alternative for the strategy games fans willing to try something different.

Gameplay: 78

As you no longer have to worry about the time consuming grinding and with building being completely removed there is plenty of time to focus on the combat system alone and this makes WorldShift a fast paced strategy game. With all the RPG elements included in this original concept and the addition of the ability grid, this is game that should have a long-lasting appeal, enhanced by the brilliant co-op mode.

Graphics: 74

Some people may argue that the environment is too colorful and that units look a bit cartoonish but the truth is that most of the missions take place in lush jungles and the colors are appropriate; as for the way troops were designed, it's obvious that a lot of effort was invested in details and the result is not too bad although there is plenty of room for improvements. The weather effects are really attractive and watching a full scale army charging an enraged boss is even better than actually killing the enemy.

Sounds: 72

Music creates the desired atmosphere although it lacks the epic proportion of most RTS games available but overall succeeds in creating just the right mood to start another scenario. Unfortunately each unit has a very limited vocabulary and some cheesy comment might have a deterring effect, but luckily you are constantly shifting between your troops so this issue doesn't really grow into a reason of discontent.

Multiplayer: 83

Co-op mode is the part where WorldShift truly shines, because the most exciting content and the more challenging boss fights are only revealed here and perfect coordination between players is crucial. It's difficult enough to manage your own unit and take full advantage of the offensive spells and abilities in single player but in the co-op every decision can determine the outcome of a battle. This experience if similar to that of a boss fight in a MMORPG, with a player in charge of tanking the enemy or his pet, another being the damage dealer and somebody else in charge of healing and dispelling harmful buffs.

Hardware: 80

This is not a game that will test your system and should run smoothly even on the less powerful machines, without any negative effect even when a combined army is charging the enemy. There is just one loading time before each mission and it usually takes less that reading the preview of the mission.