Dark Reign
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| Dark Reign | |
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| Developer(s) | Auran |
| Publisher(s) | Activision |
| Engine | Tactics Engine |
| Release date(s) | August 31, 1997 |
| Genre(s) | Real-time strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single player, Multiplayer |
| Platform(s) | Windows |
| Media | CD |
| Input | Keyboard and Mouse |
Dark Reign: The Future of War is a real-time strategy computer game for Microsoft Windows, developed by Auran and published by Activision in 1997. The game consists of a large single-player campaign but also supports multiplayer online games. A fully functional mission construction kit was included with the game, that allowed players to create new maps for multiplayer game and even create entire new missions and campaigns.
An expansion pack, Rise of the Shadowhand, was released on March 31, 1998, which added new missions and new units to the game.
A sequel, Dark Reign 2 was released on June 30, 2000. The sequel itself depicts events before those of the original game, hence should be treated as a prequel.
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[edit] Story
The game takes place in the distant future, where a crippled scout ship encounters a probe launched by Togra, the now deceased leader of the Togran civilization just before his death. As one of the last remaining Tograns, the player is presented with an opportunity to go back through time and prevent the death of the beloved Togran leader. However, the player must first demonstrate their worth by playing out the battles between the Imperium and Freedom Guard forces that ultimately led to the decimation of the Tograns' home planet.
The twelve missions play out the events from the first skirmish between the Imperium and Freedom Guard up to their final showdown and the destruction of the Tograns' home planet. The missions may freely be played from the perspective of the Imperium or the Freedom Guard. In the thirteenth and final mission, the player is sent back in time to Togra's world, and must use the weapons and technology of both the Imperium and the Freedom Guard to defeat both sides and prevent the destruction of the planet.
[edit] Gameplay
The gameplay is that of a futuristic real-time strategy, similar to that of Command and Conquer. In any given scenario, the player first constructs buildings such as a headquarters and training facilities. Those are then used to produces offensive units such as infantry or tanks and the player uses those to attack enemy units. The production of Units and buildings represent an opportunity cost as they all have an associated cost in terms of credits (the currency used by the game). Additional credits are earned by collecting shipments of water from fresh springs.
In the single-player missions a number of objectives are given to the player to complete before the mission is successfully completed. Those range from escorting a special unit or protecting a specific building. In multiplayer games, the only objective is to destroy all the enemies units and buildings.
[edit] Online Community
Dark Reign supported a thriving online community of several hundred regular gamers for approximately three years. Competitive play was largely based around Case's Ladder, but the Australian Dark Reign League also attracted a significant number of players. Significant clans included DI, KoA, MR, SyN, VuP, PK, DSM, FOE, WBS, DT. The prominent multi-game clan InsomniaX was founded on the Dark Reign servers.
While official servers have been discounted, a Dark Reign server and patch has been set up by the community which has resolved the Windows XP and Windows 2000 connectivity issues concerning the original servers allowing gamers to play others over the Internet.
[edit] Maps
One of the attractive points of Dark Reign was the ability to create customized maps that could then be uploaded to other players.
[edit] Background
Dark Reign began life as a game called 'Corporation'. Developed by Auran's co founder Greg Lane, 'Corporation' and its sister game entitled 'Wild West' were demonstrated to Activision in June 1996 and a deal signed shortly thereafter. Auran continued developmement of the Tactics Engine whilst Activision layered a new story on top of 'Corporation' and Dark Reign was born. Many of the units, unit AI, map systems, production systems and real time line of sight were already present in 'Corporation' when it was first demonstrated to Activision in 1996.
