As title. The drawbacks to this gem of a title are really the enemies. They all look the same. Rather difficult to get spooked by clones. But apart from that. Play the game anyway. Why? Because it really does do a good job for a small team on a budget. Not as in depth as, say, Fallout 3. But it does a decent job.
From the moment you start the game, the computer is going to try and take you out. While this may seem obvious to some, this is poor game design. It means you have to rush like hell to beat the computer instead of randomly defending yourself AND possibly sitting back to watch the skirmishes between other opponents. No matter how many times I played this game, I found the PC was on me in short time. I played for hours and hours and each time was the same exact game. You race to find power ups and hope the damn machine doesn't find you...and yet does, WAM yer done! While I didn't pay a ton of money for this game. It isn't the point, it is just a review with my opinion and you can disagree if you like. But if you are hoping for a good design to programming, this is NOT it.
While the game is not bad as other state, it IS very linear. How so? Simple, you enter the game world and you cannot do anything, other than talk to the characters in the size of a handkerchief allotted area. You go where they bring you and then the game ends. ...no...really...it can play by itself it is THAT much on rails. Unlike most people I was hoping for a Sega Genesis style game of it. But for some odd reason people seem to think the SNES game was some how better. In any event, if you want a garbage SNES style game, this is it with better graphics.
Ever get tired of playing games without enough realism in them? Ever Play the original UFO/X-com? Well if you find those points interesting, then look no further and buy this game! The long and short of it is this: Wildfire has the player engrossed in a very difficult game to master. But not because it goes out of its way to pummel the player. No, it is because "What goes up, must come down." realism! "Games aren't real..." and for those lacking sufficient brain activity that argue in this manner, this game IS NOT FOR YOU! But for those who know what video game realism is and want A LOT of it, try this out. The only thing lacking is this realism realm will be something a little annoying to some. But this is just in case you want to know the games drawbacks- All flat terrain and floating indestructible roof tops. I know...sadly for whatever reason, rooftops cannot be destroyed and the game terrain is flat like a chess board. Apart from those details. I can say the game is 95% perfect!
I say the game is good. But I also say the game is not that great. I didn't buy it with high expectations. It was a solid game to be fair. I enjoyed it. But the problem I have with the entire game. Is that it feels like you play the entire way through feeling as though the main story/goal is coming next. Well, it never does. It is the entire game. I like being free to go where ever I feel like doing what I like. That is not a problem. What IS the problem is when you get all the very best you can and have all the money you could want. You feel let down by the fact that you didn't do anything in the entire game. By the time you get everything. I felt as though the main story was going to open up. New ships, new equipment. New plot lines and missions. Free gear and the whole gamut of things from joining different factions and controlling sectors of space etc etc. Sadly you don't get any of this at all and on top of that disappointing moment of realization. It is not even a feeling of wanting more. You beat the game and feel like like...wtf...was that the whole game?? It didn't even start =( Try it, play it. But be aware the scope is VERY tiny. Solid game though despite being tiny. So expect that. Just enjoy it casually. =D
The other reviews sound nice. Giving the game a fair amount of praise. But sometimes a negative review can give some counter balance that is best in making an accurate decision with a purchase you are unsure of. I must say the game was not all that bad as the game itself and how it feels. But This is a negative review because I truly did not like either this first game nor its sequel. The physics of the game are completely wrong. The game is trumped as a accurate physics game. Which is fine...if you are under water. Yes, alas the game physics are not in fact of a space environment, but of being under water. Which is very different. The other thing that bothers me about both games. Happens to be the most crucial element of any game ever created. The control system. This folks, is the worst control system EVER!! I do not even mean this lightly. You will think...well how bad can they be? Well give it a few minutes of trying to get anything to work. You are very likely to want to throw your machine through a wall from the sheer frustration of not being able to even play the game from this horrible setup. Somethings to think about before you purchase them.
