Westwood is back -- Grey Goo

[Fencers]

Yet the name perfectly sums up what the game is about.

If you know what it is about.

To market? As a marketer? I have to convince people to buy a game that is an RTS with a name that does not indicate any gameplay or theme. Command & Conquer, Total War, World at War, Company of Heroes, Dawn of War, Starcraft, Empire Earth, Age of War, Empire at War, Supreme Commander, Total Annihilation, Warcraft... Grey Goo?

From a marketing standpoint this is another Homeworld.

[bison91]

omg easy level computer killed me in third mission :O

[Holtzmann]

If you know what it is about.

To market? As a marketer? I have to convince people to buy a game that is an RTS with a name that does not indicate any gameplay or theme. Command & Conquer, Total War, World at War, Company of Heroes, Dawn of War, Starcraft, Empire Earth, Age of War, Empire at War, Supreme Commander, Total Annihilation, Warcraft... Grey Goo?

From a marketing standpoint this is another Homeworld.

Shall we start a petition to have the game renamed to WarGoo or Empire at Goo? I'm afraid the World of Goo guys would want to have a word with them if that happened. :P

Homeworld at least is kind of evocative.

[Yunru]

Shall we start a petition to have the game renamed to WarGoo or Empire at Goo? I'm afraid the World of Goo guys would want to have a word with them if that happened. :P

Homeworld at least is kind of evocative.

Goo and Gounker?

[General Vezax]

Its fun, but the three faction's units are nearly identical.

Theres the first cheap unit
Then the slighty stronger unit
Stealth detector/scout
Anti air
Primary basic unit
Siege
Artillery
Air scout
Air fighter
Air bomber
Epic
And one totally unique unit

The Goo doesn't even have the Siege or air units. It just has less.

It's the same problem that PA has, but not quite so bad.

[McNeil]

I'm really enjoying this game. Its not as great as the classic C&C games but its the closest thing we're getting these days. And I've always loved Frank Keplacki's music, the original Hell March from Red Alert 1 is still one of my favorites. A solid new game in a dying franchise, that has potential to expand with more sequels.

Its a pity the latest Command & Conquer game got cancelled, I've never liked their decision to go F2P as I've always loved their singleplayer. Hopefully we might see another C&C game but I doubt it.

[Ratboy]

Shall we start a petition to have the game renamed to WarGoo or Empire at Goo? I'm afraid the World of Goo guys would want to have a word with them if that happened. :P

Homeworld at least is kind of evocative.

I was going to suggest Command & Goo but that sounds more like a porno.

I did play the first campaign mission and a skirmish, it's pretty good but I'm going to wait until it drops closer to $20 before buying it as I don't care for multiplayer.

[breadisfunny]

I thought that video useless, does not even show the goo faction which is the most unique bit of the game and what its named after.

TB used to put out decent vids, lately he puts out very few and they are not of the quality I'd expect, they seam rushed, probably taking too much time from him being a keyboard warrior and stoking up drama on twitter and youtube. The man's ego has blown up to massive proportions and he has started to believe his own PR, never a good sign. Have you see the loltastic figurines he is having made, you can get for a monthly sub.....and the bloke likes to pretend he is the saviour of the consumer.....

Anyway, wish he'd get back to doing what he used to do well.


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Game looks good, a more traditional strategy game with not so much requirement to micro (which is what is putting me of SC legacy fo the void, from what they have released about it), and the factions seam quite distinct and interesting. Setting looks nice, and controls look polished. I think I'll grab a copy and give it a go.

that might be because he's being treated for cancer. you try going through chemo therapy and still have to put out weekly videos.
it's good to know command and conquer is getting a sequel....sort of. tired of ea killing off developer studios.

[Arrashi]

Westwood?! Please make Nox 2!

By god yes. Nox is one of my favourite childhood games. Its simply magical, even after all those years.

[Deleted]

This looks interesting, I'll have to check it a bit though, just because they re-surfaced does not mean that their new game is amazing, but from the previews it looks interesting.

[Simulacrum]

Game is meh.

Very slow combat, with most of the units having huge footprints and being extremely fragile and slow-moving, on top of refusign to path around each other, all of which compounds into micro being difficult at best - and impossible at worst - resulting in most of the combat being just attack-moving your blob into the enemy blob and having more units than they have to win.

Base building is annoying. The Betas have the least annoying base-building, but even they are limited by how you can't even queue buildings where you don't have vision, and your buildings provide almost no vision, so you end up having to scout your own base with combat units just to be able to construct buildings there. Extremely annoying with the humans and their very awkward conduits.

Campaign is pretty meh, too. Nearly every mission is just a normal build base, destroy enemy.

The story has an interesting premise, but it's told so awkwardly (even if the videos and CGI is very well made). It was extremely simple, yet I still barely understood why anyone were doing the things they were doing. Betas open the portal, which somehow summons the humans. How is not explained. The humans then blow the fuck out of the beta research station and start attacking them, for no apparent reason, causing the betas to blow the place up and start fighting back.

Eventually, we swap to the humans, and realize that the "human" faction is just 2 people, who appear to just be explorers... or something... what are they doing there? How did they get there? Why are they attacking the beta? Nobody knows. Then the human mothership blows up. Oops, the goo - which apparently they brought to their ship from the planet, for no apparent reason - destroyed it. Why did it wait for possibly thousands of years, only to suddenly activate right that instant, then immediately blow up the ship that would suit as a perfect base of operations for it? Who knows. Then the perpetually sad-looking human commander decides that she needs to free her fellow human from the betas, and immediately dismisses diplomacy as an option... for no reason. If you're a bunch of pacifictic explorers, why the fuck is your first inclination constantly to kill everyone you come across?

But np, she frees her buddy, then inexplicably decides that, actually, even though they've done nothing but constantly attack the betas throughout the entire game so far, NOW they're all about not harming any innocents. Even though the first thing they did when they arrived was to start killing people indiscriminately (which - how they arrived - still hasn't been explained btw; sure, they came through the portal, but how did opening the portal summon them? how did they know it would open? why did they - instantly - come through? how are they so nonchalant about having suddenly achieved interstellar travel that, according to another video, was beyond human means? who knows I guess).

Then they ally against the goo, and after a while we start playing the goo, and then we discover that the goo faction are (also... sigh) the good guys, and then it ends on a cliffhanger... without having answered any of these pretty important questions at all, and leaving you with the strong impression that the entire conflict would've been completely avoided if fucking any of the idiots in the story had bothered to talk to each other at all, or fucking behaved as would be consistent with their characters.

I miss Kane.

[Deleted]

You're right, he might not want me to. But he might not have lost his father to cancer and almost lost his mother to cancer like I did. And see the poor quality of their lives during that period.

Your arrogance is appalling.

More on-topic; SteamDL as we speak, so I'll have more of an informed opinion soon

Mate you have no idea what my life is like, I could have anything and you could just have mortally offended me......or not. You dont know.

Thing is, i dont whiteknight. I objectively judge things on their own merit. no free passed, because I dont expect any myself.

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Bought game. Its pretty good. Some annoyances, UI could be more pollished and smooth, hotkeys are nice, but you spend an awful lot of time microing production.

Factions are pretty different, even beta and humans, but goo is great fun.
Campaign is nice, decent cutscenes, very high quality. Missed that in recent RTS.

Overall, very happy.

Though if you are expecting a modern RTS with lots of micro and fast action, this is not the game for you. Its a much older style RTS, a cross between TA and older C&C games really.

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That stupid Twat called TB should keep producing the quality I demand and even if he says he has no time, then he should just work late, because I demand better quality and far more content and if he doesn't he's a DICK, A DICK I TELL YOU.

That's what Houyi said, freely translated. If that's not arrogance, what is?

Well, I did not call him a stupid twat, so I guess that puts me a fair way above you mate.

Secondly, no thats not what I said at all.

Someone posted a vid, which puports to inform on the game, i posted an opinion on that vid. And a more general on on the producer of that vid lately.
I am entitled to that opinion, you are entitled to yours, though you do seam to have problems expressing it with civility.

I think his quality has dropped off, and no i dont think its because he has cancer, and has been in treatment. I think he spends less time on his you tube, and more time on twitch as thats cheaper and easier to produce. I think he spends mroe time making stupid soundclouds and baiting people on twitter, and I think he has lately moved away from his critical content which is what made him popular.

You can disagree, please do. But try to be a bit more civil and try not to put words into my mouth that only occur in your head, you are ranting and raving and comming off as quite unhinged.

I dont think TB is a dick. I quite like him to be honest and I like his critical content. I think teh quality has dropped off, I think he has started to move into other areas and is losing his value as a critic. I think he is becomming a little obnoxious with his holier than thou attitide even though he clearly bases his decision on commerical as opposed to ethical stances.
Not that I have a problem with that, I just recognise it as PR branding because it is.

But whatever you seam to have a desire to whiteknight and attack any criticism of some bloke you never met.....odd really.

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that might be because he's being treated for cancer. you try going through chemo therapy and still have to put out weekly videos.
it's good to know command and conquer is getting a sequel....sort of. tired of ea killing off developer studios.

Do you know i have not?
You dont. As I never disclose such things as they are in no way relevant and I expect my work to be judged on its merits and not be given breaks and free rides because of irrelevant factors.

I did not comment on frequency btw. I commented on quality. Although he has time to do other stuff apparantly.

[Darksoldierr]

The game looks and feels extremely slow and other than the Goo both Humans and Betas are way too generic. Meh, overall

[Vespian]

The game looks and feels extremely slow and other than the Goo both Humans and Betas are way too generic. Meh, overall

To me, currently, the Goo are the most boring. Less units, no infra, more micro. I like the , forgot the name, super unit, although esthetically I think they could've done a better job. All in all I like the game, but it's not worth €45. I got suckered again :P

[Deleted]

Started playing, got bored very fast.
VERY slow gameplay, not cool units, bad sounds.
Not even close to classic C&C. I think generals was the last good C&C, and grey goo is not a "westwood is back" unfortunately.

[Simulacrum]

Though if you are expecting a modern RTS with lots of micro and fast action, this is not the game for you. Its a much older style RTS, a cross between TA and older C&C games really.

A flawed cross. It takes the micro-level of TA's sequel supreme commander and combines it with the scale of C&C.

That low level of micro was acceptable because the appeal was in the scale; it was basically impossible to micro hundreds of units at the same time anyway. But Grey Goo doesn't have hundreds of units... it has dozens, and micro isn't difficult - bordering impossible - because of the scale, but because they've deliberately designed it to be that way.

It is a modern RTS that tries to emulate the older RTSes without understanding what made them appealing in the first place.

If this has been released at the same time as C&C was in its peak, its score would've been much lower. I'd give it a ~6/10 at best, with only its cutscenes remotely above-average (though the campaign itself being quite shit). Anyone who thinks that this game can even begin to compare to the older games either forgot how those games were, or never played them. Now I actually feel like playing some Emperor: Battle for Dune (which had a really great campaign, and was still a gerat game though it may not be on the same level as say Generals) just to remember how cool the old (still slow-pased, low-micro) RTS games were when they were done well.

[Yunru]

Just because the game doesnt look totaly perfect, it doesnt mean it will get better.

I am 100% sure people are already making mods for this game. For start the most simple one...changing unit voices.

However..the game is less broken that strategys that came out not so long ago. One thing however i miss are construction units and buildings on the right side of the screen. (much better than clicking on a building or use keybinds)

[Deleted]

A flawed cross. It takes the micro-level of TA's sequel supreme commander and combines it with the scale of C&C.

That low level of micro was acceptable because the appeal was in the scale; it was basically impossible to micro hundreds of units at the same time anyway. But Grey Goo doesn't have hundreds of units... it has dozens, and micro isn't difficult - bordering impossible - because of the scale, but because they've deliberately designed it to be that way.

It is a modern RTS that tries to emulate the older RTSes without understanding what made them appealing in the first place.

If this has been released at the same time as C&C was in its peak, its score would've been much lower. I'd give it a ~6/10 at best, with only its cutscenes remotely above-average (though the campaign itself being quite shit). Anyone who thinks that this game can even begin to compare to the older games either forgot how those games were, or never played them. Now I actually feel like playing some Emperor: Battle for Dune (which had a really great campaign, and was still a gerat game though it may not be on the same level as say Generals) just to remember how cool the old (still slow-pased, low-micro) RTS games were when they were done well.

By TA I was refering to the economic system, though thinking about it, the building placement system does hark toward SC's mechanics. I do think the production systems are a bit clunky, hotkey system helps there, but still, its needlessly finicky imo, probably the biggest flaw in the game.

I like the game.

I dont think I'll be playing it extensively for long, and I dont think its going to take off multiplayerwise, but as a decent RTS campaign, I think its worth the money. Not everything has to be the next big thing. Its a solid game, and I'm happy with it for the money.

Is it going to be a classic of teh genre? probably not. But its a decent RTS where we have been lacking anything of the sort recently IMO.


I personally did not like emperor battle for dune that much. Not a bad game, decidedly average, which is to say, I enjoyed playing it for a while then moved on.

[noidentity]

I looks like a fun game but I don't think I would play it. This game seems more like a multiplayer-centric game which from what little I have seen seems a little too slow paced for me.

The human faction seems to be at a disadvantage with those conduits.

I'll definitely keep an eye on this game in the future through.

[Nihilan]

Westwood Studios... Im sure Grey Goo is a great game and whatever, but lets talk about what is important here. Earth and Beyond 2.

Do it now fuckers.

Dont make me come over there and wreck up the place.