Do you enjoy leveling and building and expanding your characters in RPG style but hate the grind of constant monster hunts and running across endless 3D plains? Battlestations may be for you, then, as it offers all of the things you love about RPGs but removes much of what you hate.
Add to that the fact that it runs on the F2P (free to play) game model that has become so popular lately and you’ve got a winner on your hands.
Battlestations is an RPG style game that is played entirely in your browser. The F2P gaming model means that you are never forced to buy anything to play but you can make micro purchases for in game bonuses and such. Many games that use this model can be frustrating to play if you don’t make those purchases, forcing you to advance slowly and in the most painful manner possible.
Battlestations is an exception, allowing you to make progress in your levels, abilities, and plot lines without being pushed into a micro purchase corner and to my way of thinking that alone makes it worth checking out.
The graphics in the game are quite well rendered and very pretty as far as they go. You won’t find endless vistas of 3D polygons here, however, as everything is rendered in a 2D flat style that brings to mind Saturday morning cartoons like Robotech and Space Train. The artwork is superb, and the fact that you don’t have to hold down the ‘run’ key for three hours to get from one place to another in the game world is a major bonus/step up from other RPG games that are currently popular. If pointing and clicking with instant gratification of destination is more your thing, you’ll love this mode of travel.
The sound is also quite well done, professionally with no artifact or pops and clicks that you hear in the lower-grade productions out there now. The music is catchy, and changes according to your current situation. Exploration has slow tempo serene music and battle has up beat military march style songs, all completely original and made just for the game by some very talented composers. This may not seem like a huge aspect but it’s one of those ‘little things’ that can make or break a great experience in any game.
The game play itself is quite well balanced, with so many things to do you’re liable to be twenty years older before you have done them all and start getting bored. Between quests, base building, character development and constantly intertwined plot lines, Battlestations brings the best of the RPG gaming world to you in a snazzy package that has plenty to do. This one is worth more than just a look, and the tutorial will give you a decent idea of what to expect, while not ruining the multiple surprises that will pop up along the way of your adventures.
The only real cons or downsides I found here are the slightly limited multiplayer aspects and the lack of a connected mobile app, but these are things the developers have said they are very interested in producing for the future, so it may be worth holding on to find out but personally I found the experience to be more than satisfactory just the way it is. Battlestations gets full marks in my book, and that is a rare bird indeed. Until next time, my friends!
