It’s no secret that new indie and AA releases like Godsworn and Stormgate are currently keeping the RTS genre moving. More specifically, upcoming titles such as Tempest Rising aim to restore the tried-and-tested Command & Conquer formula to glory in the absence of new installments developed by EA. This is where Global Conflagration comes in.
Co-developed and co-published by CTLN7 and Neok, the early access game (release date TBD) promises a fully-featured RTS experience that modernizes the classics we love while streamlining the mechanics to (hopefully) recruit newcomers. The selection of customisable units, includes tanks, infantry squads, helicopters, and aircraft. You know, the usual in this sort of military RTS.
Alongside the Steam Next Fest demo that was released earlier this year, an explosive trailer gave us a good look at the work that’s been done so far. It’s impressive stuff which you can check out for yourself below:
The official synopsis for the game teases a Europe that’s “thrown into chaos once again by the actions of an elusive private military company.” As a direct result, three factions rise: Carpathia, a nationalistic movement with an iron fist, the EDU, which is facing bureaucratic barriers that prevent it from defending itself from the threat, and the mysterious Vanguard, a military company with Russian backing. Each has its own roster of units despite the grounded setting, so we’ll have three distinct play styles to master.
It also appears that special attention has been paid to systems and mechanics that try to circumvent some persistent “problems” of the RTS genre that prevent casual players from fully enjoying all it has to offer. For example, checkpoints reward an aggressive playstyle while keeping things simple and allowing the creation of more units, and the Refund and Scrap systems are said to counter “early game snowball” and allow all players to bounce back. Likewise, while ‘directional armor’ and ‘reverse movement’ also increase the tactical possibilities, there are “various modern RTS Quality of Life mechanics to help ease the stress and fatigue of army management.”
As it stands, the plan is to launch Global Conflagration on early access after five years of development. The developers are stating the “core experience is pretty much nailed down,” yet the fully voiced campaign, all three factions, more maps, and offline options will be added over time (they’re expecting two years at least). The game aims to include symmetrical online multiplayer (up to 8 players), classical skirmishes vs. AI and a story-based campaign.
Global Conflagration is currently listed on Steam as “coming soon” before the end of 2024, as teased by the trailer uploaded to the game’s page.
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