If you miss vintage space shooters like Wing Commander or X-Wing, turn around and walk away swiftly. Strike Suit Zero’s inventors boasted that it would bring interplanetary war simulations back to life. It varies so significantly from them that old fans will be disappointed.
However, there are certain players who are willing to try new approaches. Those who will be ecstatic at the prospect of flying through space atop a war robot right out of a Japanese animation. So, to be clear, this title will not appeal to everyone. The developers’ pompous assertions are unfounded. Orthodox genre enthusiasts will scoff and continue to wait for a proper successor to Freelancer. Those enticed to play the game will spend many hours starring at stunning, cosmic sights, listening to fantastic music, following the evocative but unoriginal storyline, and sweating profusely as they fend off wave after wave of attackers.
Despite being an arcade game rather than a simulation game, Strike Suit Zero is not a simple or enjoyable game. The developers make no accommodations for less proficient players and do not even suggest changing the difficulty level. At a time when many games nearly replace themselves, this is an audacious and much-appreciated move. I’m curious if the creators would take a similarly daring step if they were forced to reach the “statistical player.” The one whose preferences and expectations, despite the fact that no one knows what they are, now dictate the creation process of most commercial games. Because to Kickstarter, the British studio Born Ready Games was able to break this tendency. Long before the game’s release, there were over 4.5 thousand fans willing to pay for a promotion for the game in development – after just hearing about the developers’ concept. The intended budget of PLN 100,000. dollars was eventually reduced to approximately 175,000. Nobody worried about whether the initiative would pay off. Let us return to the complexity problem. Its unusually high level is not due to the pilots’ computer expertise. It is more a question of the authors’ solutions and judgments. Yes, adversaries are flung at us in swarms, but navigating our way through the pandemonium and learning specific controls is frequently more difficult than the combat itself. From the initial missions, you’ll be upset by the enemy’s numbers, our machine’s limits, and the absence of a clear radar. It’s also odd that vehicle improvements can only be acquired after finishing an additional obstacle, adding to our difficulties. So, if we’re not performing well, the game doesn’t make things any easier.
The titular Strike Suit is one of numerous forces under our command. It is separated from the others by a feature that was intended to be one of the game’s key draws. Because of its unequaled mobility and massive firepower, this spacecraft can convert into a combat mech that should dominate the battlefield. However, in actuality, it is this aspect of the gameplay that may annoy and disappoint. The mecha is extremely maneuverable, albeit at the sacrifice of speed. We may turn towards the opponent, making aiming simpler, but we are a very immobile and insignificant target. Unfortunately, we also pay a high price for firepower. We use up the whole stock of costly rockets designated for a certain mission in a few seconds by shooting them like a machine gun. If only it were able to swap between ship and mech modes at will! But whatever – transformations necessitate charging an additional power bar, which swiftly depletes. The strategy of swiftly switching between targets in one mode and crushing attacks in the other works only to a certain extent. However, it is possible to lose direction and get disoriented after a quick transition. All of this implies that, rather than being the game’s main draw, Strike Suit will be the most difficult part for many players to accept. Of course, the term vehicle does not exist for no purpose. On the contrary, after we get acclimated to its benefits and restrictions, adjust our way of thinking, and find the power buried inside the machine, we will realize that the game is rather pleasant, and following tasks will merely appear to be hard to accomplish. However, you must realize that it is an arcade game starring a mech rather than the great-grandson of Wing Commander. However, it is difficult to justify such a drastic change in gameplay concept for a game that openly claims to belong to the old space simulation genre and even promises to be its savior. This does not affect the fact that Strike Suit Zero is currently the best-implemented and most effective game featuring a space combat robot as the primary character.
If we appreciate this poetics, or if we are so eager for space fights that we don’t care, then the title will deliver many excellent aesthetic impressions in addition to a strong challenge. The visuals allow you to gaze at the splendor of space and magnificently crafted spacecraft. The entrance, which was constructed using an intriguing creative style, creates a tone in which one would cheerfully set out to conquer the cosmos. The interface is extremely pleasing to the eye due to its attention to detail. Anime aficionados will undoubtedly appreciate the fact that the look of our mech was designed by Junji Okubo, well known for his work on Steel Battalion and the anime Appleseed: Ex Machina. This isn’t the only star whose name appears in the credits. The majority of the lovely music was composed by Paul Ruskay, who rose to prominence as the composer of Homeworld. Born Ready Games failed to produce a game that every enthusiast of space simulations should purchase. There are much too few old components and missions in which we fly conventional troops to meet the expectations of gamers who remember great past conflicts. Strike Suit Zero will most likely be a delectable treat for Gundam or Macross enthusiasts.
Despite its great craftsmanship and gorgeous location, it let me down in a big manner. I wasn’t expecting a frenzied carnival of cosmic devastation in which a big robot thrashes around like a maniac. Whether it’s beautiful or not, the game fails to deliver on its key promise to fans. Only distant echoes of old Wing Commanders and Freelancers may be heard.