UFO: Aftershock
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UFO: Aftershock | |
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Developer(s) | ALTAR Interactive |
Publisher(s) | Cenega |
Release date(s) | 2005 |
Genre(s) | Strategy, real-time tactics (RTT) |
Mode(s) | Single player |
Rating(s) | OFLC: M |
Platform(s) | Windows |
Media | DVD |
Input | Keyboard, mouse |
UFO: Aftershock is a computer real-time tactical strategy game created by Altar and released in 2005. It's a squad combat game at its core with overlying strategic elements and a clear debt to the lauded classic X-COM: UFO Defense (1994), though a smaller one than that of its predecessor, UFO: Aftermath.
It's set in a post-apocalyptic 2050 and comes after the events of UFO: Aftermath. The game assumes that you took up the Reticulans offer of resettling the most able of humanity in a space station, while allowing the rest to die, consumed by the Biomass that the Reticulans could not control (However, if you were a particularly skilled player, you could reject their offer, and save the Earth while defending against both the Reticulans and the Biomass. Then this game can be seen as taking place in a parallel universe). Having lost contact with the Earth, you must find out what happened. The combat section is a real-time system with adjustable and pausable speed, and it has been improved to feature such things as multi-level battlefields and enterable buildings. The strategic section holds resource and squad management, research, development, some limited diplomacy and planning of attacks. As a departure from the X-COMs and the prequel, there is no air-to-air interception.
Aftershock is unfortunately notoriously buggy, even after several released patches, and has received mixed reviews. The developers have already announced plans for a third game, UFO: Afterlight, to execute the same concept on Mars. Note that UFO: Aftershock is protected by the controversial StarForce copy protection software on all store sold copies of the game. A version of UFO: Aftershock can be purchased and downloaded from Gamersgate that does not contain StarForce. GamersGate is currently the only place that sells UFO: Aftershock without StarForce copy protection, and it is unknown if there are plans to allow other shops to sell the game without StarForce.
UFO: Aftershock also has a mobile version. The license was given to Redboss Games, a subsidiary of Redboss.