Universe at War: Earth Assault

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Universe at War: Earth Assault
North American Windows version box art
Developer(s)	Petroglyph Games
Publisher(s)	Sega
Engine	Alamo
Version	1.00.90977 (March 5, 2008)
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360
Release date	Windows NA December 10, 2007 EU January 25, 2008 Xbox 360 NA March 25, 2008 EU March 28, 2008
Genre(s)	Real-time strategy
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer
Media	DVD, download
System requirements	Windows XP SP2, Pentium 4 2.0 GHz, 512 MB RAM, 6 GB free hard drive space, 128 MB VRAM DX9 compliant video card (ATI 9500 or NVIDIA 6200). Pentium 4 2.8 GHz, 1 GB RAM, 256 MB VRAM for online multiplayer
Input methods	Keyboard, mouse, Xbox 360 controller

Universe at War: Earth Assault is a real-time strategy game originally to be named Invasion: Earth, developed by Petroglyph and published by Sega.^[1] Universe at War: Earth Assault, is intended to be the first game in a planned series of games to be called the Universe at War series.^[2]

On May 10, 2007, Sega announced that the title was also in development for the Xbox 360, which is set to be released in 2008.^[3] Further, on June 27, 2007, Sega announced that the title would allow cross platform multiplayer through Xbox Live and Games for Windows - LIVE services.^[4] The cross platform play was finally implemented in the June 7th, 2008 patch for the Xbox 360 and PC versions. However it is limited to 1vs1, and both players need an Xbox live gold account to play each other. Administrators and members of the Universe at war development team have stated on the official Petroglyph forums that there will not be any patches to implement more than 1vs1 for cross platform play.

The game is something of a celebration of the history of science fiction, using a number of plot elements that were the bread and butter of pulp scifi but are recognizably archaic today. It also features a number of in-jokes and references to other works: for instance, the Novus Mirabel hero unit uses a mecha of distinctly eastern design and attacks using anime tropes; their jet fighter's ability Death Bloom is the superweapon from The Last Starfighter; their hackers announce themselves to be "the ghost in their machine" and ask "Would you like to play a game?" There are also more recent sci-fi references and inspirations in the game. For example, the walkers used by the Hierarchy, especially the Defiler, seem to be inspired by the fighting machines of Steven Spielberg's 2005 adaptation of War of the Worlds and their saucer units use foo fighters to attack and repair. The aliens' weapons turn their victims into skeletons, just like the Martians' weapons in Mars Attacks!. Additionally, the human heroes carry subtle references to Vietnam War films.

Contents 1 Gameplay 2 Story 3 Game factions 3.1 Hierarchy 3.2 Novus 3.3 Masari 3.4 Humans 4 Soundtrack 5 Demo 6 Reception 6.1 Awards 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Gameplay

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

[edit] Story

Universe at War: Earth Assault, begins in the year 2012 when an alien race known as the Hierarchy lands on Earth to strip-mine the planet. Before their landing, observatories and scientists on Earth gave warning of aliens but the human race as a whole is not able to organize a unified military front against the alien forces. Because the Hierarchy has vast military experience from invading and destroying other planets in the universe, the human race is not able to withstand their forces.^[2]

When the Novus arrive on Earth, they expect humanity to be extinct and earth's surface strip-mined, in accordance with Hierarchy standard operating procedure. However, the Novus find Earth mostly intact and the human military not yet entirely wiped out. Humanity owes its continued survival to the fact that Kamal Re'x the Abductor, the overseer in charge of the Hierarchy's Earth invasion, has held back the bulk of his forces to lure the Novus into a trap. Kamal Re'x hopes to earn a promotion by wiping out the Novus expeditionary force. When the Novus arrive, Hierarchy forces are still fighting, and the Novus hope to achieve victory by engaging the vastly superior numbers of the Hierarchy in small groups.

Meanwhile, the Hierarchy has unwittingly tripped an ancient alarm in the Egyptian pyramids, and the Masari, asleep beneath the Earth's oceans, are beginning to waken. The Masari, once a galactic superpower, saved the race that were to become the Hierarchy from extinction by giving them advanced technology. The Hierarchy responded by using this technology to wipe out the Masari and usurp their position in the galaxy. The remnant of the Masari empire fled to Earth, where they contributed to the construction of the Egyptian and Mayan pyramids, the myth of Atlantis (the Masari's mother ship doubled as their capital city which sank beneath the waves when the Masari entered their long slumber), and the Biblical stories of angels and demons (probably based on the light/dark modes of the winged Masari Inquisitors and Skylords). The Masari are furious when they finally awaken not only to find their enemy the Hierarchy present on Earth, but the once beautiful planet polluted by the humans and 'infested' with sentient machines. As such, the Masari have no allegiance and are prepared to destroy any and all of the other factions to reap revenge on those who destroyed their civilization and their adopted home.

[edit] Game factions

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[edit] Hierarchy

The Hierarchy is an alien faction^[2] with a history of invading other planets in the universe, and has landed on Earth with the intent to strip-mine the entire planet of valuable resources. The Hierarchy does not consider resources to be only minerals but also organic life, including human life. By employing highly customizable walkers which are dropped onto any location of the planet's surface from space, the Hierarchy has a huge technological advantage over the human race.

Tactical advantages: The Hierarchy are slow but powerful with many units being effective against everything, despite the game's description. The Hierarchy fight head-on and strike hard. Shunning the ideas of stealth, they use big strong units. They collect any matter as a resource. Production walkers can create up to three units at once. Can create "slave" mutant units from human civilians or enemy units.^[5]

Tactical disadvantages: Slow and cumbersome, production walkers are slow and cannot traverse many terrains and are basically their best weapon, though these walkers can be easily taken down. Long construction times.

Tactical dynamics: customizable hardpoints on giant walkers. Hardpoints can be upgraded to increase unit production speed, reduce unit cost, unlock new construction options, increase attack power, increase weapons range, automatic self-repair, extremely powerful anti aircraft energy weapon, increase armor. The race's main color is crimson.

Kamal Re'x the Abductor— Under-seer of Hierarchy remote mining operations and leader of the invasion on Earth, he is ruthless in his pursuit of personal advancement. Kamal Re'x is a powerful psychic, capable of blasting ground units and sending infantry flying, shoving aerial attackers out of combat range, and projecting psychic walls that block movement and attacks. He is the Hierarchy Quantum hero.

Orlok the Eternal—A veteran Hierarchy commander. After being mortally wounded in a particularly tough Hierarchy conquest, Hierarchy Overseers burned Orlok's consciousness into an armored attack platform that can call down extra armor or weaponry at will. Orlok can also gather resources on the fly, using them as ammunition for long-range siege guns. Orlok is the Hierarchy Assault hero.

Nufai the Skinwalker—Faced with Hierarchy conquest, Nufai betrayed his race to save his own skin. Nufai possesses disruptive combat abilities: he is able to cut through almost anything with his phase claws, sow paranoia among enemy troops (causing them to fight one another), and force enemy air units out of the sky for a short period of time. Nufai is the Hierarchy Mutagen hero.

[edit] Novus

Novus are a race of sentient machines existing only to destroy the Hierarchy. Their creators were wiped out by the mighty machines of war that their nemesis possessed and the only thing left of them were a few machines scattered across the galaxy.

"Novus" in Novus' native language translates to “the children of” and “those that follow.” The Founder, an original Novus, upon his return from a deep space scouting mission, found his home destroyed and the species that once inhabited the place wiped out. His rage and agony produced what is now known as Novus, a race bent on revenge.

Tactical advantages: this race focuses on micro-management, they have the 'flow' ability to travel quickly around a map via energy networks. Novus relies on small and nimble units, and specialize in hit-and-run attacks. Their units are very different one from the other and work extremely well in tandem, for example - Novus' field inverter unit can create a shield in a medium radius behind which amplifier units can hide and wreak destruction while being safe..^[6]

Tactical disadvantages: they have a very similar economy to the Hierarchy, but Novus collect inorganic materials, while Hierarchy collect organic & inorganic. Their buildings can be built only in a small radius around flow conduits or other buildings, similarly to C&C games, and will lose all power when their connection with their flow generator building is lost. Most weapons do damage only after a prolonged fire or few seconds later.

Tactical dynamics: "Patching" system up to 12 patches (you get 2 when you start the game and the other 10 can be researched through tech trees), 2 used at a time to improve units' performances. For example, Overclocking patch allows greater firepower but weaker defense. The race's main color is aqua.

The Founder—Leader of Novus, his mission is to avenge the deaths of his creators and other races the Hierarchy destroyed. In battle, the Founder can enter either Performance or Prowess mode. Performance mode allows him to move and attack quickly; while stationary, he can become a node for the Flow Network. In Prowess mode, he is slower, but he takes less damage and hits harder. Furthermore, at some cost to his own health, he can animate any Novus remains around him. The Founder is the Novus Flow hero.

Mirabel and Viktor—Mirabel is a clone of the last surviving member of the race that created the Novus. In order to permit Mirabel to assist the Founder in his crusade against the Hierarchy, the Novus constructed Viktor, a powerful semi-sentient suit of powered armor, to aid Mirabel in battle. In battle, Mirabel and Viktor wield a pulse rifle and shoulder-mounted missile pods. Though relatively weak in its standard mode, the pulse rifle fires very quickly and can be charged up to engage heavily armored targets at long range. Mirabel/Viktor can also launch a missile barrage at ground targets in "animesque" fashion. She is adept at taking down Hierarchy walkers. When assigned a move order over long distances, Viktor's jetpack activates, allowing the unit to hover. Mirabel/Viktor is the Novus' Nanotech hero.

Vertigo—Originally designed for scouting and communication, Vertigo is installed in the chassis of a high-performance aircraft with twin railguns and a cloaking device. He can convert multiple Novus units to data and store them for transport, and he has the ability to take complete control of any enemy units infected by the Novus computer virus. Despite being a stealth aircraft, Vertigo can deal massive amount of damage to enemy units and walkers. Vertigo is the Novus Computing hero.

[edit] Masari

An ancient and advanced race that millennia ago became saviors of the Hierarchy, the Masari were betrayed by their charges and forced to flee to Earth. They began instructing mankind for their own inscrutable purposes, in the process inspiring many ancient cultures and mythologies until they went into stasis and their city-ship Atlatea sank under the waves.

The Masari resemble humans of a higher or nobler breed; the character Prince Zessus has a slight white hue and literal golden blond hair. Their building and units show Aztec, Egyptian, and Sumerian influence among others and are lavishly decorated.

Tactical advantages: the Masari are based on "drawing energy from the Ether." They generate resources with dedicated buildings that gather power from the surrounding land, have a resource cap that the same buildings raise, and do not harvest the environment, therefore having virtually unlimited funds. When most of their vehicles are destroyed, pilots survive and attack on their own with limited success..^[7]

Tactical disadvantages: Light/Dark gameplay system takes time getting used to and will confuse novice players. Masari units are quite weak in terms of power and not as fast as many of their adversairies. Most buildings require multiple upgrades before they can work properly. Masari are a slow building faction that heavily relies on player's prowess using Light/Dark system.

Tactical dynamics: they can switch between "Light" (offensive) and "Dark" (defensive) modes at will, affecting movement speeds, weapon effects and special abilities. All air units need Light mode to fly, while in Dark mode units and buildings gain a "Dark matter" energy shield. The race's main colors vary between light hues and a dark purple.

Lord Charos—Lord Charos lives to serve Queen Altea and the Masari race as commander of the Masari ground forces. When in Light Mode he can use Blaze of Glory to damage surrounding enemies; in Dark Mode he can use Dark Vortex to damage all nearby air and ground units. He can use Frenzy in both modes, which temporarily increases his damage, attack speed, and defense. Lord Charos is the Masari Light hero.

Queen Altea—Though she has no standard attack, Queen Altea is incredibly powerful: her magic, powered by the Masari ship Atlatea, can bend reality, reverse time to unmake surrounding units (incidentally refunding the enemy for their cost), disable enemy weapons systems, heal allied troops, protect them from status effects, and her most powerful ability is to stop enemy super weapons (e.g. Novus Black Hole, Hierarchy Mass Drop). She is the Masari Dark hero.

Prince Zessus—Due to his affinity for both Light and Dark, Prince Zessus is a versatile hero: he can blind enemy units, increase Masari regeneration rates, cause explosive effects that damage all surrounding units, and create map-wide darkness. Zessus can also tap into the matter engines of the Atlatea to teleport himself, friendly troops, and any superweapons at will. Zessus is the Masari Balance hero.

[edit] Humans

Humans are not a proper faction unto themselves, but they are still the side used in the tutorial and prologue portions of the game. While humans have a number of different units and are not helpless, they are hopelessly outmatched in firepower and technology, taking disproportionate casualties against even the weakest of enemies. Outside of the campaign, their role is similar to civilians in Star Wars: Empire At War (another game by Petroglyph).

Humans have two heroes, the minigun-wielding Colonel Moore, and a tank commander named Willard. Both heroes' names come from Vietnam War films.

General Randal Moore—A frontline United States Marine Corps colonel at the game's beginning, Moore is tasked with rescuing the President from the Capitol Building during the Hierarchy's initial assault. He accomplishes this (though the President is wounded) and is promoted to the rank of General. He then escorts the President's ambulance to Fort Lesley J. McNair, which is soon overwhelmed by the Hierarchy. The Novus arrive and Moore, thinking they are more enemies, orders a retreat into the hills. Moore then begins a guerrilla war on the Hierarchy, and allies himself with the Novus and Masari. Moore uses a minigun which does more damage to enemies per each attack. He has two abilities: One is to throw a devastating grenade and the other is to heal himself with a medkit. Posts by the developers on their forums indicate that Moore is named after Colonel Hal Moore, who commanded the 7th Cavalry during the Battle of Ia Drang and was played by Mel Gibson in the film We Were Soldiers.

Sergeant Willard—A retired tank commander, Willard volunteers to come back to the service when the Hierarchy attack. He commands an experimental triple-barreled tank, which is named Thumper (after a Bambi character). He helps Moore when he saves the President and later keeps an enemy walker away from them when they evacuate the President to Fort McNair, although this forces Willard into retreat. His retreat is covered by forces from McNair and he helps them in the battle at their fort. After the Novus arrive, Moore orders a retreat into the hills and Willard is among those troops who are able to escape. Posts by the developers indicate that Willard was named after the Apocalypse Now character, Captain Benjamin L. Willard, who was played by Martin Sheen.

[edit] Soundtrack

Main article: Universe at War: Earth Assault Original Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Universe at War: Earth Assault is composed by Frank Klepacki. Frank Klepacki is a long-time collaborator with former Westwood Studios who is best known for his music in the Command & Conquer games, and more recently Star Wars: Empire at War.

As an early Christmas Present, Frank Klepacki released the official soundtrack available for download on the Petroglyph Forums.^[8]

[edit] Demo

A demo was released for the game on November 15th, 2007. It can be downloaded from select websites, like Gamespot or FileFront. It features a tutorial and the first two Hierarchy missions.

An Xbox 360 demo became available on the Xbox marketplace on April 17th 2008.

[edit] Reception

Reviews
Publication	Score
ActionTrip	8.7/10[9]
Game Informer	8.3/10[10]
IGN	8/10[11]
Play Magazine	7.5[12]
Compilations of multiple reviews
Compiler	Score
Metacritic	77%[13]
Game Rankings	76%[14]

Gamepro described Universe At War "like a breath of fresh air that carries with it the vague stench of something foul. It offers three interesting and diverse sides, great graphics, and some tantalizing strategic elements but it's afflicted by some unfortunate quirks that hold the game back."^[15]

IGN remarked "What Petroglyph has done is to take the basic framework and use it to create a game with three wildly unique but finely balanced factions that each offer a level of real-time customization that gives players a chance to really adapt to the changing circumstances on the battlefield. Unfortunately, the game's campaign doesn't do justice to the overall design while a number of sticky interface and performance problems add to the frustrations." [1]

The Xbox 360 version of the game received a slightly lower score than the PC version for "bad frame rates" and "technical problems".

[edit] Awards

• ActionTrip: Best strategy game of E3 2007.
• Kotaku: Best strategy game of E3 2007.
• CHUD: Sixth of Best of E3 2007, also the number one strategy game on the top ten list.
• Game Critics nominee.
• Number 9 on IGN PC Editor's most anticipated games.

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Universe at War: Earth Assault official site
• Universe at War: Earth Assault wiki at Wikia