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Savage Moon Review for PlayStation 3 (PS3)

Savage Moon Review for PlayStation 3 (PS3)

Starship Strategy

If there has been one genre that has been making an aggressive comeback in recent memory, it is the tower defense genre. For those that need a refresher, this genre is a subset of Real-Time Strategy that involves a central landmark or item that must be protected from injury. Recent games like Ninjatown and PixelJunk Monsters have established this genre very nicely on both handheld and home consoles, and Savage Moon is yet another entertaining, if less cute, take on this increasingly popular genre.

Savage Moon screenshot

The game’s plot is very simple. You play as a member of Earth’s armed forces, and you are called to various Imoons, which are lunar-like planets that are infested with bug-like aliens referred to as “Insectocytes.” You will have to command a team of builders and drop ship operators and make various battle-ready structures in order to prevent these insect-like aliens from penetrating the each Imoon’s base of operations. Although there is really not much here in terms of storyline, the game’s premise reminded me a lot of cult-favorite Starship Troopers, which gave it a few bonus points.

The tactics in this title work in largely the same way as other tower defense titles. You will have a bird’s eye view of the Imoon terrain, and you will be able to build various battle structures using a combination of cash you earned and a fixed number of structure drops. You begin with only a simple machine gun, but as you earn more money, you can research different structures, including specialized air cannons and block walls, which prevent the enemy from passing a certain area…for awhile. All of the different structures you can unlock are able to be upgraded several times throughout the game, although, as you might expect, your upgrades and unlocked structures reset once you finish a level.

One of the most interesting facets of Savage Moon is that your foes are not just mindless drones. The Insectocytes are very smart and are not afraid to fight back against you by destroying the towers and blockades you spent so much time building. Luckily, you will be able to research a repair facility, but that still doesn’t help the inner turmoil you feel when one of your towers (that you paid good money for!) comes crashing down.

Savage Moon screenshot

Another cool facet that allows for a little bit more strategy is the presence of command bonuses, which allow you to beef up either your cashflow, structure defense, or firepower effectiveness. However, when you use one of these bonuses, the other command features will decrease. For instance, if you decide to temporarily increase the amount of money you get when you take down enemies, your weapons will be a little less effective and vulnerable to damage. This facet adds yet another level of tactics to an already-saturated game, and it gives enthusiastic players yet another element to play around with, which is definitely welcome in a genre burgeoning with new ideas.

One unique aspect of Savage Moon that sets it apart from other tower defense titles is it’s layered playing field. Enemies can come from below the ground or up in the air, and you will have to actively look above and below to find out where the enemy is coming from. However, to make this process a little bit easier, you will have the ability to look “through” your different structures. By default, you have a pretty comprehensive top-down view of each area you are required to protect, but there are some things you just can’t see from above, especially when you have enemies that come from underground! Luckily, Savage moon combats this by allowing you to select one of your own structures and pressing a button to see the landscape from that perspective.

Savage Moon screenshot

Control in Savage Moon is very straightforward and features a simple point-and-click system that allows you to use the directional button (or left thumbstick) to scroll around the map and highlight menu options. The X and O buttons are used to confirm and cancel, and that is about it. If there was one thing I would complain about, it would be the lack of shortcut buttons to help speed up going through the game’s menus. But aside from that, the control works well.

Savage Moon screenshot

Even though the gameplay in Savage Moon is very good, there are a few areas where there could have been some improvement. One such area is the graphics. The entire game has a very rustic color palette, and the reds and grays that dominate each level can definitely wear on the eyes. Another problem with the graphics is that they are far too simple. While I realize that Savage Moon is a downloadable title, only having a few recurring sand and cave structures in each level makes this game a very boring one to look at. Even though the little insect aliens do make things a little more interesting, these insects are all very small from the standard birds-eye perspective, and they don’t do much to enhance the visuals.

Another area where this title comes up a little short is in the audio department. The background music is okay if you are only playing a few rounds, but it is very repetitive and can wear on you after awhile. The same is also true of the different alien bug sound effects, which are inoffensive at first, but lose their charm after a few rounds.

Of all the new tower defense games that have come out out recently, I have to say that I was very impressed with Savage Moon. Sure, it may not be a beauty in the graphics or audio department, but the layered combat and multitude of tactical options make Savage Moon a must for fans of the ever-evolving tower defense genre, and it isn’t a bad choice for those who are interested in RTS-style games in general. As long as you can overlook its aesthetic shortcomings, you’ll find a lot to love, and blow up, in Savage Moon!

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 3.4 Graphics
Level design is very basic and bland, but the game still looks relatively good for a downloadable title. 3.9 Control
Levels are nice and small, so scrolling action is minimal, and the single-button commands make for nice quick action. However, shortcut settings would have been nice. 3.0 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
Music and sound effects are bland but fine in small doses. 4.2 Play Value
Even though there are only 12 levels, the learning curve is steep enough to keep you engaged, and the layered 3-D maps are a nice contrast to other 2-D tactics-based games. 4.0 Overall Rating – Great
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • Upgrade your weapons to increase their size and firepower, and research even more devastating technologies to aid your mission.
  • Devise your defense from a massive array of strategies – choose power over speed, or block routes to put the space bugs in the line of fire.
  • Compete for the highest scores against the best planet Earth has to offer in global online ranking boards.

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