Darkwind: War on Wheels

Last updated
Darkwind: War on Wheels
Developer(s) Sam Redfern
Publisher(s) Psychic Software
Designer(s) Sam Redfern
Engine Torque Game Engine
Platform(s) Mac OS X, Windows
ReleaseMay 4, 2007
Genre(s) Turn-based tactics racing MMO
Mode(s) Multiplayer

Darkwind: War on Wheels is a turn-based racing and vehicle combat massively multiplayer online game for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X by Irish developer Sam Redfern. It is inspired by the tabletop game Car Wars and the Mad Max movies, but set in an original universe. Darkwind was opened to the public on May 4, 2007, after two years of development and been continually updated. It was re-released for Steam in 2014 as free-to-play.

Contents

Plot

A disastrous solar event in 2019 and 2020 leaves the world devastated, with only small pockets of human survivors scratching out a living in a bleak, irradiated world. Largely fuelled by the stockpiles of hardware left behind by a dead civilization combined with the desperation of a new world order, the gladiatorial deathsports begin, around 2035. The vast expanses of wilderness between the towns are menaced by gangs of road pirates armed with heavily armed cars and trucks, and travelled by equally well armed trade groups, making a living by carrying food, fuel, and other specialist equipment between the towns.

Gameplay

The focus of the game is on vehicular combat - cars with guns - both in the wilderness and in manmade arenas and racing circuits. Gameplay is split between a web interface (for strategic management) and a 3D interface that supports Windows, Mac OS X and Linux (for control of your characters and vehicles during a combat or race).

There are all sorts of activities to do within the game. Players can gain fame and accumulate looted hardware from their defeated adversaries (who may be either computer-controlled or player-controlled), but risk suffering defeat and the lives of their gang members. Wilderness actions are frequently performed by multi-player squads: by joining, players can greatly increase their chance of survival. Alternatively, players can also join town events, such as races and death races, to gain fame and earn prizes. These can be joined as standard events, competitive leagues or ladders.

Eight towns are currently open to players, each offering distinct death race tracks and wilderness combat maps around it. Darkwind currently has more than 20 racetracks with more under development. Camps were also introduced in 2008, allowing players to establish communities in addition to the towns on the game map. Camps can grow food, harvest water, build weapons, repair vehicles, etc.

Web interface

Through the web-interface the players can manage the recruiting, finances and the gang's vehicle garage.

Characters can be trained in combat and non-combat skills such as driving, gunnery, mechanic, scouting, first aid, handguns, etc. which adds role-playing video game elements to the game.

The character's death in Darkwind is permanent. In addition to perma-death Darkwind has a complex injury system with long-term (broken bones) and permanent (limb-loss). Amusingly characters can lose more limbs than they physically have, such as losing a leg 5 times, but this severely limits their lifespan. Replacing dead gang members is easy, however, making it usually just a minor setback.

Many of the aspects of Darkwind run to a realworld timescale. It takes days or weeks for the players' characters to heal from their injuries; it takes hours or days to repair/upgrade vehicles, and it takes hours to travel between towns. This makes strategic decisions carry real importance, and gameplay aspects such as trading take real time and effort, which allows them to work properly as part of the dynamic economy.

The availability of hardware in the markets is directly related to what scrap loot players sell off. If wilderness pirates are not kept beaten down on a regular basis, for example, then rare chassis types and weapons will not be easy to find except through combat.

The players' characters can die of old age. Sometimes they will die as early as 30 years old (game age). Injuries and other factors can affect their lifespan and is noticeable by a degradation of physical statistics (Strength, Dexterity, Speed) as well as a "General Health" tagline such as "Weakening" or "Deteriorating Fast" to help the player know which of his characters are suffering from early-onset death. In-game years pass every 12 real life weeks.

Plans included the implementation of a carefully developed economic model based on systems dynamic simulations. It was planned that the control and distribution of key resources would underpin a realistic, dynamic economy, providing real opportunities for trade to be used as a gameplay strategy, and control of key resources to be used as part of long term feuds and warfare. However, the lack of a playerbase large enough to support this model led to a simplified version remaining in place. The actions of the player gangs and the victories and defeats of the computer-controlled pirate and trader gangs directly impacts the quality of Loot recovered after battles but has little effect on the gameworld itself, or economy.

Game client

The main turn based tactical gameplay which is the core of the game is done through a freely downloadable game client.

In Darkwind, turn-based gameplay racing becomes purely about the tactics of entering and exiting corners, passing opponents, and generally breaking down the nuances of driving that normally become automated in a traditional driving game. As real-world professional racing has much more to do with tactics than reactions (for example F1 or NASCAR races), the turn-based nature of Darkwind allows players to race more professionally by letting them battle it out tactically rather just waiting to see who is first to make a mistake. Darkwind's turn-based system also allows for highly detailed rules and strategy, as players have more time to assign orders to characters and vehicles.

There are two phases when the turn ends. One is the Orders phase, in which players will see their vehicles move accordingly. This is affected by many factors, including the vehicle's position, damage to tires, previous velocity, whether it is under fire etc. The second is the firing phase, whereby vehicles open fire on their targets, depending on the orders given. The extent of damage is revealed through text messages, similar to old-school RPGs such as Fallout .

Vehicular customization

As of October 2007, Darkwind had 50+ unique vehicle chassis including subcompacts, sedans, muscle cars, SUVs and larger vans and trucks. There are 14 different engines and 50+ weapons ranging from rams and flamethrowers for close combat to rocket launchers and mortars for long-range mayhem. Each of the chassis and weapons offers different advantages which allows players to create a range of unique and interesting vehicle designs. The weapons have detailed statistics underlying them: recoil, close range and ranged accuracy, damage factors, psychological 'fear factors', ammunition, and so on.

Future updates

Between 2015 and 2019, no additional content was added, but in 2020, the game received several significant updates (including UI changes). [1] Feedback was also requested by Psychic Studios to make the game more newbie-friendly. [2]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack to Darkwind: War on Wheels uses tracks written by Dean Garcia of the band Curve .

Reception

Reviews have been consistently favourable. Andrew Williams from Bytten remarks that Darkwind "...is a seriously addictive game". [3] PC Gamer UK calls Darkwind "...the best quasi-real-time, partially browser-based, online, post-apocalyptic turn-based vehicular fighting game we’ve played". [7]

One of the game's key selling features is the wide variety of activities to participate in. Inside Mac Games, in its review, said: "This is a breath of fresh air in what I consider a very stale and one-sided genre of gameplay, where even the behemoth in the market seems destined for repetition". [4] Gametunnel reviewer Joseph Lieberman also praises Darkwind for its harsh, unforgiving setting, saying "...it is refreshing to see an online game that doesn't let you off the hook when things go south". [8]

Darkwind was chosen by Gametunnel for Game of the Month in May 2009, receiving its Gold Award. [5] Bytten has also awarded Darkwind with the "Most Addictive of 2009" Bytten Ernie Award. [6]

Related Research Articles

RuneScape is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Jagex, released in January 2001. RuneScape was originally a browser game built with the Java programming language; it was largely replaced by a standalone C++ client in 2016. The game has had over 300 million accounts created and was recognised by the Guinness World Records as the largest and most-updated free MMORPG.

Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic racing simulations and more fantastical arcade-style racing games. Kart racing games emerged in the 1990s as a popular sub-genre of the latter. Racing games may also fall under the category of sports video games.

Micromanagement in gaming is the handling of detailed gameplay elements by the player. It appears in a wide range of games and genres, including strategy video games, construction and management simulations, and pet-raising simulations. Micromanagement has been perceived in different ways by game designers and players for many years: some perceive it as a useful addition to games that adds options and technique to the gameplay, something that is necessary if the game is to support top-level competitions; some enjoy opportunities to use tactical skill in strategic games; others regard it as an unwelcome distraction from higher levels of strategic thinking and dislike having to do a lot of detailed work. Some developers attempt to minimize micromanagement in a game's interface for this reason.

Tactical role-playing games, also known as strategy role-playing games and in Japan as simulation RPGs, are a video game genre that combines core elements of role-playing video games with those of tactical strategy video games. The formats of tactical RPGs are much like traditional tabletop role-playing games and strategy games in appearance, pacing, and rule structure. Likewise, early tabletop role-playing games are descended from skirmish wargames such as Chainmail, which were primarily concerned with combat.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to video games:

<i>Autoduel</i> 1985 video game

Autoduel is a role-playing video game published by Origin Systems for the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64, Apple II, and IBM PC compatibles in 1985. It was released in 1987 for the Atari ST and in 1988 for the Amiga and Macintosh. The game is based on the Steve Jackson Games series Car Wars.

<i>rFactor</i> 2005 video game

rFactor is a computer racing simulator designed with the ability to run any type of four-wheeled vehicle from street cars to open wheel cars of any era. rFactor aimed to be the most accurate race simulator of its time. Released in November 2005, rFactor did not have much competition in this market, but it featured many technical advances in tire modeling, complex aerodynamics and a 15 degrees of freedom physics engine.

Turn-based tactics (TBT) is a video game genre of strategy video games. They are turn-based simulations of operational warfare and military tactics in generally small-scale confrontations as opposed to more strategic considerations of turn-based strategy (TBS) games. Turn-based tactical gameplay is characterized by the expectation of players to complete their tasks using only the combat forces provided to them in a generally realistic manner.

Real-time tactics (RTT) is a subgenre of tactical wargames played in real-time, simulating the considerations and circumstances of operational warfare and military tactics. It is differentiated from real-time strategy gameplay by the lack of classic resource micromanagement and base or unit building, as well as the greater importance of individual units and a focus on complex battlefield tactics.

<i>Metal Saga</i> 2005 video game

Metal Saga, known in Japan as Metal Saga: Sajin no Kusari, is a post-apocalyptic role-playing video game developed by Success and published by Atlus and Success.

<i>G-Police</i> 1997 video game

G-Police is a 1997 combat flight simulation video game developed and published by Psygnosis for PlayStation and Microsoft Windows.

<i>Hot Wheels Stunt Track Driver</i> 1998 video game

Hot Wheels Stunt Track Driver is a racing video game developed by Semi Logic Entertainments and published by Mattel Media for Microsoft Windows. It is based on the Hot Wheels toy franchise, and was released on October 15, 1998. A Game Boy Color version, developed by Lucky Chicken Games, was released in 2000.

<i>Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice</i> 2007 video game

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice is a vehicular combat/shooter video game developed by Bigbig Studios for the PlayStation Portable, released in 2007. It is the sequel to Pursuit Force. A PlayStation 2 version was announced, but never released.

Vehicle simulation games are a genre of video games which attempt to provide the player with a realistic interpretation of operating various kinds of vehicles. This includes automobiles, aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft, military vehicles, and a variety of other vehicles. The main challenge is to master driving and steering the vehicle from the perspective of the pilot or driver, with most games adding another challenge such as racing or fighting rival vehicles. Games are often divided based on realism, with some games including more realistic physics and challenges such as fuel management.

<i>Darkfall</i> 2009 video game

Darkfall was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Aventurine SA that combined real-time action and strategy in a fantasy setting. The game featured unrestricted PvP, full looting, a large, dynamic game world, and a player-skill dependent combat system free of the class and level systems that typify most MMORPGs. Darkfall had a 3D world environment and contained mild violence. The official Darkfall servers were closed on 15 November 2012.

<i>Dead State</i> 2014 video game

Dead State is a turn-based survival horror role-playing video game developed by DoubleBear Productions and Iron Tower Studio set in a zombie apocalypse scenario. Players are tasked with leading a group of survivors living in a shelter in the fictional town of Splendid, Texas. Dead State was released in December 2014 after having been in Early Access since spring of that year. DoubleBear Productions continued to work on the title and in May 2015 released an "enhanced edition" which changed the name to Dead State: Reanimated.

This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players.

<i>Crossout</i> 2017 vehicular combat Video Game

Crossout is a free-to-play pay-to-win vehicular combat video game focused on building and driving custom vehicles in PvP and PvE scenarios. It is developed by Targem Games and published by Gaijin Entertainment for Android, IOS, Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. As of 2021, PlayPark, a part of AsiaSoft acquired the game's server of Asian territories.

References

  1. ↑ "Darkwind: War on Wheels - Patch Notes". Archived from the original on 2007-10-18.
  2. ↑ Redfern, Sam. "New Tutorials - seeking ideas/help". Darkwind: War on Wheels.
  3. 1 2 Williams, Andrew (2008-11-07). "Darkwind: War on Wheels review". Bytten.
  4. 1 2 Wuerthele, Michael (2008-07-19). "Darkwind: War on Wheels". Inside Mac Games.
  5. 1 2 3 Skaar, Andrew (2008-05-31). "Indie Game Round-Up [May 2009 edition]". Gametunnel. Archived from the original on 2009-06-21. Retrieved 2009-12-27.
  6. 1 2 "Bytten Ernie Awards 2009". Bytten.
  7. ↑ PC Gamer UK, January 2010 edition. Future Publishing. December 2009.
  8. ↑ Lieberman, Joseph (May 7, 2009). "Dark Wind review by Gametunnel". Gametunnel. Archived from the original on July 16, 2009. Retrieved December 27, 2009.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.