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Light of Altair

EMAIL PRINT pc

8.4 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 5 critic reviews
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Based on 23 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: SaintXi

Developer: SaintXi

Genre(s): Simulation

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: RP (Rating Pending)

Release Date: June 4, 2009

Summary

Light of Altair is a colonization game set in our own solar system and beyond. You must set up a strong economy to survive in the hostile void of space as you compete with other factions, the deadly environment and internal conflicts of interest. But most of all it is a strongly story driven game that will pull people in to this vision of the future. [SaintXi]

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

IGN

A decent distraction for strategy fans to indulge in as well as a good entry into the realm of economic strategy titles. There are definitely better ones out on the market, but this one is cheap and will surely run well on nearly any computer from the last few years.

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PC Gamer UK

A good-looking, expansive and bold sim of space-management, almost undone by a horror-interface. [Sept 2009, p.84]

Absolute Games

Despite its shortcomings, the game is enthralling. The excitement of progress – you want to be faster and more powerful than the rest. Colony expansion brings money, new expenses and a truckload of problems. The interface is not easy to get used to, but still, all information is neatly organized, and key tools are always at hand. Light of Altair is a spiritual younger sister of more popular 4X strategy games, it just has less “X”s.

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PC Zone UK

Everything is big and clunky. [Sept 2009, p.74]

LEVEL (Czech Republic)

Expect no revolution to the genre but a catchy space strategy. Fast paced scenarios and a user friendly interface on the one side, automatic battles and flat music on the other - in a surprisingly entertaining game. [Aug 2009]

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 23 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

John J gave it a10:
Fun, engaging game. Easy to learn, hard to master and I love how the campaign is set up so that you can go back and get higher scores if you wish.

Pat Unimportant gave it a4:
Aside from the very efficient and pleasing graphics, I found the game to be a big disappointment. The scenarios are very linear. "Do this one thing now. Don't do anything else. Don't research anything else." It's like playing a game with blinders on. You're given no choice which path to take. Everything is repetitious. Plant a colony. Build a power station. Build 'x' hydroponics. Build mines. Lather, rinse, repeat. Wait for further instructions. It's a very pretty interface. I'd love to see these guys advance the idea some. Get rid of the combat - it adds nothing. Make it a more complex economic colonization simulation.

Ari V gave it a9:
Unlike many modern releases which leave me dissapointedly wanting more due to lackluster gameplay, Light of Altair leaves me wanting more because the core gameplay is just that enjoyable. Many of the boring chore-like tasks of this type of strategy game are removed, which is a pleasant change. Hopefully SaintXi will continue the good work, and add some more complexity to the gameplay without adding those unecessary tasks.

Leo F gave it a9:
I feel this is one of the best games ever made. Its challenging with out being frustrating, simple to understand. A few things really push it over the top for me though. With Research, when you are able to produce something new in the way of buildings or weapons, it vastly changes how you play the game for that mission, and every mission after. The music feels great, and combat is complex, but with out direct control when the fighting starts. At first it doesn't feel right, but as you get better spacecraft and new weapons, it starts to feel better just to watch how your fleet does in combat with how you set up your ships. Many people are going to say multiplayer is missing from the game, but after one full play through, I hope they change their mind. It really doesn't need it. The single player missions that are given, give you a story that you don't quite expect. It doesn't weigh the game play down, but certainly gives you a feeling of your direction in the game. If you enjoy any type of Civ building, and resource management, with a dash of combat, give this a try. You might be shocked from what you get from this game.

Marc M gave it a5:
This game has a promising design, but lacks adequate documentation. The in game 'Help" menu leaves much about how to win in the hands of the gamer to discover through frustrating trail and error. Combat is resolved automatically, though you can see the your attack strength vs defenders before committing to battle. However, you may lose even if your strength is greater.

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Light of Altair

Game Info

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What The Critics Said

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