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Everyday life of a manager at a space entertainment station is not sugar: either galactic pirates storm the disco, or eggs of dubious origin appear on the biodeck, or the “colleagues” are trying to survive from the business, seizing our compartments with huge mechanoids. And this is not to mention the primary functions – ensuring the operation of entertainment establishments, providing amenities for visitors and employees, as well as monitoring the station’s reputation. And then there is an overly malicious artificial intelligence regularly strives to release a stinging remark about the organizational and strategic abilities of the manager. In a word, the work is nervous, but we knew what we were doing …

And we will place this image on the advertising booklet of our station … I mean, printing has not existed for two thousand years?

⇡ #Station steward

The station that we got in our hands bears little resemblance to an entertainment center of a cosmic scale – at first it is deserted and littered warehouse with a garden in addition. So, first, it is worth establishing the infrastructure on the lower deck – to put up a communications center to attract personnel to our still provincial and not a single bit of an entertainment center. Build a hostel so that new arrivals have a place to cry in a pillow. Then it will not be superfluous to put up a processing point, warehouses, a factory and, of course, a medical center – we lacked a pandemic at the station! And for the harmonious existence of an entertainment facility on an orbital scale, robots-scavengers and atmospheric filters will not interfere – so as not to drown in sewage and fetid fumes.

Having dealt with basic needs, we move to the deck above – the center of cultural and entertainment life «Startopia»… Here is the place for the disco and cafe “Starkots” – fun for the most unassuming taste. After all, the needs of our current guests – space truckers, all sorts of vagabonds and buyers of a package tour – are not at all universal in scale and do not differ in sophistication. But the more impressive our entertainment empire becomes, the more sophisticated the audience arriving here in an effort to quench their thirst for impressions, and the higher the requirements for the provided leisure!

Skill slots are acquired for prestige – a “pseudo-currency” earned by positive feedback on «Startopia»

Ordinary tourists already want something more than a cup of coffee with a space premium and simple dances under a disco ball – they are more drawn to visit the game room, ride the Fall into the Black Hole attraction. And their safety requirements are higher than those of our former regulars. What can we say about the “privileged”, “rich” and “chic” subspecies of tourists, for whose joy it will not hurt to build molecular restaurants, fashionable hotels, casinos, whale therapy and ATMs so that visitors have the opportunity to drain all their wealth at our station … to get the approval of the snobs – the most demanding audience, we have to spend a lot of money, erecting an expensive battle arena or extreme fun “race by dimensions”.

Naturally, to spend energy (the local equivalent of rustling paperwork), you need someone to earn it. Employees at the station can be found in the tourist stream – guests are surprisingly willing to accept a job offer. True, it makes no sense to hire everyone indiscriminately, because each type of alien has its own professional area. Telgori like anteaters have garbage recycling; eternally dancing dryads prefer to work on the biodeck, extracting useful resources; overweight leviathans are suitable for guarding our enterprise; and entertainments, a race of intelligent bats, like no other, are controlled with an audio console at a disco. And also “Startopia” is visited by galactic intellectuals eu’riker, who are best assigned to work in a laboratory, where they will not be able to meet with obvious ideological opponents – hem’neters, specialists in religious propaganda …

By the way, according to the reviews, you can find out what aspect of the station to improve, what to build urgently and how the employees relate to our company

In a word, there is so much work that the head is spinning (or is it because of the centrifugal force of the station?). And you don’t always understand what to grab onto in the first place. Fortunately, the basic concepts and organizational foundations of Spacebase Startopia are thoroughly taught to the player in the story campaign.

⇡ #Startopic wars

The initial conditions in Spacebase Startopia are not the most original: the R-team (aka the player) is being certified, systematically comprehending the basics of managing an intergalactic space entertainment base, overcoming, as they arise, various difficulties. True, in this simple plot there was also a place for a “sudden” plot twist, which is necessary here, as a populated planet – an ozone hole.

The proposed circumstances are quite enough to pass mission after mission with interest. Yes, and amusing collisions are enough: then religious fundamentalists seek to undermine our God-pleasing “brothel”; then creepy space parasites storm the biodeck; then it becomes necessary to defeat another commander in the field of commercial viability; or to defeat three opponents at once – with extremely brute mechanized force …

An interesting detail: each building has its own specific sound. Just listen to these melodious murmurs of energy waves

Indeed, in addition to the economic and organizational component, there was also a place for tactical and military elements in Startopia. Alas, they do not possess much depth – the success of maneuvers is determined by a banal numerical superiority. Because of this, the impression of the two final tasks turned out to be somewhat blurred: they do not offer unusual or exciting victory conditions – rivals need to be destroyed simply and without fuss. Moreover, the process of expansion itself is immensely protracted and tedious. There is no need to shine with either strategic skills or tactical tricks: all you need to do is set up security posts for yourself and systematically capture sectors / destroy key enemy buildings. The “army” itself is also not very remarkable – it consists exclusively of security drones and gigantic mechanoids of three types, as if copied from the “rangers” from the movie “Pacific Rim”. By the way, the references do not end there …

The loot box lottery was installed next to the garbage bin for a reason – the principle of using money is roughly equivalent to them …

⇡ #No face

The source of negative motivation and the whole narrative is the caustic artificial intelligence of VEL (yes, another reference), the construction of phrases of which, as well as the general attitude towards organic life forms, is more reminiscent of GLaDOS from the Portal series. A recognizable voice, by the way, can be chosen to taste from three options, indicated in the options as “robot”, GLaWIN or “VEL-9000”. I want to listen to derogatory comments like “I don’t doubt you – if there is even the most miserable way to fail, then you will definitely find it” in the key that is closest to your heart.

And although such witticisms are most often funny and appropriate, there is a strong impression that they are not from here. As if it is not the character of the work that is joking and telling, but an invited guest from another fairly well-known universe. The same applies to the external component – here and there are painfully familiar images and situations from Borderlands, StarCraft, Command & Conquer, real life. And the main trouble is that the local references are not just woven into the canvas of the narrative and visual solutions – the game itself mainly consists of homages, allusions and parodies and is devoid, in a certain sense, of its own face.

From time to time VEL offers us a choice from the category “to sit in a black hole or to choke on a hot plasma” …

***

Still, Spacebase Startopia is a pleasant piece with a good economic component, curious game nuances and a relaxed atmosphere. She will definitely not become a cult hit, but a few tens of hours in her company will definitely be fun and with a twinkle.  

Advantages:

• good situational humor;
• a successful economic component with many remarkable features;
• most of the campaign is seriously engaging.

Disadvantages:

• the overwhelming number of all kinds of references somewhat deprives the game of artistic isolation;
• “Military” missions look alien, protracted and simply unsuccessful.

Rating: 7,0/10

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