Although he has the support of Bohemia Interactive, silica is the work of only one person. Martin” drams Melicharek commands respect. But while he’s deserving, we feel he’s also overtaken by the sprawling beast that his game is becoming. A title that happily reminds us of a certain Natural Selection 2 in its concept, but which also wants to be much more ambitious in its form than its spiritual father. Perhaps even too ambitious moreover, because for the moment Silica has shown itself to be rough from the formwork with above all promises to become the attractive game that there is on paper.
Its hybrid genus is a real goose that lays the golden egg.
silica has no problem being attractive in presentation. His still under-exploited hybrid style has something to do with it. shooter and real-time strategy make for a very happy marriage. We said above, Natural Selection 2 set the example a long time ago. In both cases, we are dropped with other players for a fight where the extermination of the opposing base is the only outcome. And while almost everyone prepares to take up arms as in a FPS classic, a member of the group occupies the difficult position of commander. The responsibilities of this player are high, as the latter is in charge of developing the infrastructure and the army of his faction to help his lesser comrades. Barracks to create more troops, buildings to improve the arsenal of other players, as well as harvesters to amass resources and run this war machine.
The strategic aspect is therefore centralized in this role which takes up the basics of any strategy game, vision of the battlefield included. Although each genre is carefully compartmentalized, it is only by working hand in hand that silica makes sense. Besides the primary pleasures that shooting games awaken in us, there is a certain satisfaction in seeing the battlefield evolve as a simple soldier. The arrival of ever more powerful troops to embody gives rise to an escalation of the conflict which we generally only witness in the STR. Without ever feeling like a pawn, Silica gives us the feeling of being part of something bigger. A thought that only very rarely reaches us on FPS simpler, especially solo.
Added to this are the overflowing ambitions of drams. His game could have shown a little modesty, but the creator obviously sees things big with no less than three playable races. On one side there are the humans of the planet Centaurithose from Floor as well as an insect-like alien race. We only got to try the last two in a summit duel, but silica does not forbid any confrontation between the factions. If it is therefore possible to envisage a civil war between humans, one of the modes also offers matches where the three antagonists come to blows. And since we’re talking about this, know that in addition to the main attraction which is the mode StrategySilica offers two other experiences for those who long for a good old FPS old. In fashion Prospectora group is sent to secure a field of balterium, the local resource. You basically have to survive those who also covet it.
I’Arena is even simpler: nothing less than a general melee where each player has taken the time to choose the unit he prefers to fight. Not really balanced I’Arena and fashion Prospector are only of limited interest, however, because Silica does not shine as a FPSnor as STRbut by combining the two. What surprised us most about the project dramshowever, it is the gargantuan size of the battlefields. There is a small side Battlefield in the magnitude of the conflicts that are expected. And while we’re sure it can make for some very exhilarating large-scale games, it’s a double-edged sword, as a proportion problem quickly arose. In this case, the beginnings of the game are quite long to set up. Players in first-person view must cover very long distances on foot before the first vehicles and technology come to make their lives easier. Add to that the fact that our first tests were 16v16, far too low a number for there to be action and a sense of life on the map. Luckily for us, it looks like that number isn’t set in stone.
And that, this is one of the countless promises that drams made us and which for the moment make us doubt the viability of the project more than its potential. The title is for the moment extremely brief. It’s hard to ask for more from a game developed by one person and which is just entering its development phase.early access. Nevertheless, Silica needs to be reviewed at all levels. The interface is very limited, the gunfights still lack punch and overall clarity… And if visually the game is not ugly, the animations, in particular the destruction of buildings, are simplistic. We give the impression of shooting at the ambulance, but we simply wish to underline the work of Romain in which embarked drams and the huge amount of work he still has ahead of him. At this rate, complete the phase ofearly access in a year as announced could be very complicated. And that’s not counting the additions that the creator has promised us by the dozens. In bulk, we can expect new units for each faction, air troops as well as transport vehicles, dedicated servers, boosting AI, adapting controls to gamepads, new weapons as well as cosmetic elements for players FPS… In short, the content overflows everywhere. That’s fine, but you’ll have to check that silica does not get bogged down between two updates.
Our first impressions: Good.
Let us leave encouraging impressions, because silica could be a good surprise if he succeeds in what he undertakes. This is what we wish for him, because his hybrid kind is a real goose that lays golden eggs and the projects he nurtures would make him a very complete game. Is it really reasonable to believe it? This is the real question. The title is for the moment quite far from what its creator makes us dangle. This is completely understandable for a title that is starting its early access phase. But we’re going to have to hold on to all the promises we’ve heard to project ourselves into silica and wish good luck to drams for the year of work ahead.
