Review: Angels Fall First: Planetstorm (UT3)

Your assault craft screams toward the enemy battleship that, moments earlier, turned your comrades into space dust. You hear two vulcan-cannon gunners open fire, and you gaze out the view ports to observe the carnage that ensues. Fighters, and they’re everywhere. You offer up a silent prayer that you’ll make it to the enemy in one piece. You do. Your captain hovers above the enemy vessel and commences magnetic hull docking procedures, then gives the command to ready yourself. You check your weapon, check your ammunition, and enter the airlock. In seconds your strike team will be face to face with your mortal enemy, fighting to the last man. Space is cold, but Angels Fall First: Planetstorm makes you believe it’s all in flames. Read why after the break!

If you’re looking for a small scale, brainless shooter with no depth, look elsewhere. Angels Fall First: Planetstorm (from here on out, just Planetstorm) is far from shallow and traditional. In fact, Planetstorm is so deep and refined you may very well find yourself lost within its carefully and excellently crafted sci-fi universe.

Planetstorm’s aesthetic is both tremendously beautiful and undoubtedly dangerous, particularly in space. If you pause for just a second too long to admire the attention to detail, the fast paced, gritty action will make you pay for it. From the stars, planets, and stations to the outstanding battleship models and textures, it really is an awe-inspiring experience that is only rivaled by a handful of retail space simulation games. It is absolutely the most expansive, visually pleasing experience to be had on the Unreal 3 engine.

The combat is multi-objective based, with emphasis on team based operations. Space maps usually require the destruction of a battleship or small station and land based maps usually require the capture of a few strategic locations. There are, usually, a number of options available when it comes to method and goal of attack or defense. These options set it apart from other, more traditional, objective based games in which, say, team ‘A’ just attacks the base of team ‘B’.

Space based operations are where Planetstorm really shines. The foundation of these fights resides with the large ships deployed by each side. Battleships, frigates, and corvettes are the workhorses and front-lines of space, each boasting many different weapons platforms and hangar bays. From rail gun emplacements and plasma turrets to vulcan cannon pods and torpedo firing stations, these main ships of battle deploy everything available to decimate the enemy. The many different stations are all player controlled and, because of such, the interiors of these ships are fully mapped out and gorgeously designed and textured. The giant battleships really are a labyrinth of rooms, hallways, control panels, lights, switches, and most importantly: Action.

Planetstorm would be a ‘good’ game if it consisted of manning all the mentioned battle stations and fighting other capitol ships in space. What makes Planetstorm a great game is the ability to board an assault craft (or spawn on one, since they operate as a mobile spawn point) and charge the enemy battleships. Once you approach a specific, outlined location on the outside of the enemy hull you can ‘breach’ it. This, of course, allows your team to pour out into the interior of the enemy vessel and get right in the face of the unsuspecting enemy crewmen aboard.

The space combat in Planetstorm takes yet another step forward by allowing you to destroy targets and equipment from inside an enemy battleship. Once inside, there are nodes for ship propulsion, target acquisition, shields, and crewed weapons that can all be easily destroyed. The biggest, most useful target on board an enemy vessel is its core, located inside the engine room. Destroying the core gives you 45 seconds to evacuate before the ship explodes. While destroying the bigger ships from the outside (via another, larger ship) is possible, the fastest and most efficient way to get the job done is most definitely from the inside out.

Ground combat is fully inclusive and no shortcuts have been taken. There are many vehicles available, including armored personal carriers, aircraft, and tanks. Maps are large enough to make your strategic efforts worthwhile, but small enough to allow for constant action. The capture of points on a ground based map is accomplished by standing inside a capture area for a certain amount of time.

Gameplay style and objectives mean nothing unless the actual gameplay itself lives up to expectation, and Planetstorm’s fights deliver. Space combat is solid, and absolutely requires team cooperation and coordination to achieve any sort of definite goal. Ground combat retains the solidity of space combat, with the obvious addition of man against machine combat. The weapons you yourself wield have a nice weight to them, and, usually, the affect on target feels strong and appropriate. From pistols to rail guns, the available weapons (chosen for your character at the weapons and armor load-out screen) and the ability to revive fallen allies keeps infantry combat fresh.

A great game keeps you intrigued, interested, and hungry for more. If you do somehow find yourself in a quiet spot in Planetstorm, you always know chaos is around the corner. This feeling of immersion combined with a potential for grand strategic operations makes a mod worth having for any gamer.

I only have two real disappointments with the game. My first lies with difficulty of remapping controls. This is more of a problem with Unreal Tournament 3 than the mod, though, and is easily overcome. The other disappointment involves the lack of online players. This, again, is most definitely because of the general lack of UT3 players, and will hopefully change once the Planetstorm team makes a release for the UDK (Unreal Development Kit).

All in all, if you own Unreal Tournament 3 and you haven’t installed this mod: Do it now. You are only hurting yourself by not enjoying one of the finest, most high quality non-retail releases of the year. If you don’t own UT3 and don’t plan on buying it, make sure you keep an eye on it for when it releases for the UDK.

Installing Planetstorm is extremely straightforward. If you own UT3 and have it installed, simply download the installer (links below) and run it. The latest, final release (RC8, 12/13/09) weighs in at 1.6gb.

Fileplanet Link: Download Now!
Strategy Informer Link: Download Now!
ModDB Link: Download Now!

The video below contains some excellent, in game combat footage.

AFF Planetstorm RC5 video – Mod DB