Ships / Units
New game units (3D Models) have been added, along with their own characteristics, weapons and
specific gameplay role.
Below is the complete list based on race and class.
Hiigaran race
Fighter class: XBomber, Spy, Intruder, Shiry, Heavy Bomber
Corvette class: MineGun Corvette, Khopesh Corvette
Frigate class: Sniper Frigate, Tulwar Frigate
Platform class: Ion Cannon Platform, Massive Turret, Viper Missile, Tango Mine
Capital class: Research Station, Crew Station, Ion Destroyer, Juggernaut, Shuttle, Chimera Station, Command Fortress, Vortex
Utility class: Scavenger, Mine Container, Trade Container, Core (evacuation cell), Patcher, Drone
Vaygr race
Fighter class: Defender
Corvette class: Multilance Corvette, Storm Corvette
Frigate class: Artillery Frigate, Warfare Frigate
Platform class: Cruise Missile
Capital class: Battleship, Dreadnaught
Utility class: Mine Container, Trade Container
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Subsystems / Modules
New game modules have been added, along with their own characteristics, weapons and specific gameplay role.
Below is the complete list.
Harvest Control Module, improves harvesting operations within a limited radius around the carrier ship.
Drive System, improves speed and acceleration of carrier ship and friendly units within a limited radius around the carrier ship.
Defense Control Tower, improves armour of carrier ship and friendly units within a limited radius around the carrier ship.
Repair System, improves auto repair rate of carrier ship and friendly units within a limited radius around the carrier ship.
Manufacturing Controller, improves carrier ship build speed.
Anti-Radiation Field, protects carrier ship from hull eating nebulae.
Defence Field (Hiigaran), enables Mothership defense field.
Power Disruptor, disrupts enemy abilities within a limited radius around the carrier ship.
Heavy Ion Cannon (Hiigaran), anti-Capital ship heavy ion cannon.
Rapid Sweeper (Hiigaran), anti-Fighter/Corvette system.
Research, Science, Engineering Division, research is based on three levels (divisions/modules) for the Hiigaran race, there still is only one level for the Vaygr race.
RU Supply (Hiigaran), increase the RUs max capacity.
Fusion Control Module (Hiigaran), enables the RU Fusion.
Weapon modules, a lot of weapon modules have been added to the single ships.
Communication Facility Command Fortresses can improve their communication and navigation systems by this module.
Defence Facility, Command Fortresses can improve their defense systems by this module.
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Gameplay
New game parameters, like Military rank, Crew, Honour, Game year, Research score, Maintenance cost, RU max capacity, Unit experience and efficency have been added, see the box below.
Research trees have been improved up to the limit of the game engine, a lot of new technologies, abilities and upgrades have been added.
The player can research upgrades to improve his units characteristics such as "drive", "weapon damage, accuracy", "RU rate, load, drop-off", "repair speed", "shield power, time, regeneration", "hyperspace cost, time, damage, regeneration", "capture strenght", "cloak power, time, regeneration", "sensor range, distortion", and much more, it's not possible in the original game design.
Many tachtical formations and behaviour have been added:
Formations: wall, tortoise, claw, arrow;
Keep position on passive, ships now in passive tactic can attack keeping their original position.
Primary and secondary objectives, like RU race, Domination and Rank race, have been added to the skirmish game modality.
A lot of game features (abilities and technologies) have been implemented:
RU Fusion, allows each Scavenger and Mobile Refinery to generate RUs standalonely;
RU Trade Network, allows Production Capital ships to optimize RUs management, Trade Containers transfer RUs automatically trading between production Capital ships, generating extra RUs;
RU Megalith, allows the player to capture the Megalith (Mining Base) and generate RUs for each Resource Collector docked.
RU Debris, the player can capture big debrises, detonate them, and salvage RUs.
Remote Monitor, Allows the player to monitor unprotected enemies' data (parameters).
A lot of game weapons have been implemented too:
Callisto missile (Shiry, Missile Frigate);
Torpedo missile (Destroyer, Ion Destroyer, Missile Frigate, Sniper Frigate, Warfare Frigate, Mothership, Flagship, Command Fortress);
Anti-missile system (Gun Turret);
Shield penetration ion (Ion Cannon Frigate);
Mine automatic deploying system (Minegun Corvette);
Coordinated weapons (Khopesh Corvette, Artillery Frigate);
Heavy Mine (Destroyer, Battleship);
Fusion Missile (Destroyer, Battleship);
Perforate Ability (Infiltrator Frigate).
A lot of fixes concerning the physics/fly model, AI, unit balancing, construction/research time and cost have been implemented and thoroughly tested.
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Game Graphic / Engine
The graphics have been overhauled, for example:
units keep their full graphic detail at a greater visual range;
FX keep their full graphic detail at a greater visual range;
the player has an improved view so he can have full control of the fleet.
Shadows, textures and special effects (explosions, smoke, engine trails) have been improved too.
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Game Parameters
Complex introduce new game parameters to the Homeworld series; here is a list concerning the gameplay structure:
Military rank, represents the player's military career. The higher a player's Military Rank, the more Officers and Crew are available to pilot units, to recruits crew and officers player need Honour points (see below).
Honour, represents how well the player is doing. To increase honour, the player must build units and subsystems, research technologies and harvest RUs but the most important thing is to fight and kill enemy units. Higher Honour leads to a higher Military Rank.
Crew/Officers recruitments, player has a limited number of crew and officers, each ship needs a certain amount of crew and each Capital ship needs a certain amount of officers too, to increase crew and officers player must advance in the military career.
Game year, represents the game time; at the end of every year the game events are processed (RU fusion, RU trade network, RU megalith, Maintenance cost).
Research score, represents the technology status of the player; the player need a certain amount of Research score to unlock the various level/division of the research tree; to increase this parameter the player must research abilities, technologies and upgrades.
Maintenance cost (unit efficency), every ship requires a certain amount of RUs each year to be maintained, every subsystem too, the total maintenance cost is paid at the end of each game year. If the player doesn't have the required RUs available, units efficency and honour will be lost. On the contrary, if the player satisfies the RUs required his units efficency will increase and he will gain Honour points.
RU max capacity, the Player can increase his RU max capacity by building RU Supply (Hiigaran) or by research (Vaygr).
Unit Experience, ships accumulate experience in battle improving their armour and fire power.
Unit Efficency, ships lose and acquire efficency based on damage and maintenance cost parameter.
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Maps / Levels
Many game maps have been added, below the complete list:
Duel (2Players)
Epopea (2 Players), Epopea 2 (4 Players)
Foundry (2 Players), Foundry 2 (4 Players)
Lonely Islands (2 Players), Lonely Islands 2 (4 Players)
Fast War (3 Players)
Resource Mania (3 Players)
Tanis Wasteland War (3 Players)
Elliptical Assault (4 Players)
Boundless Galaxy (4 Players)
Resource Crisis (4 Player)
Total War (4 Players), Total War 2 (4 Players)
Silent Orchestra (4 Players)
Punk Gehenna (4 Players)
Debris Syncrony (4 Players)
Chriptical Sphere (4 Players)
Open Cosmo (6 Players), Open Cosmo 2 (6 Players), Open Cosmo 3 (6 Players)
Bentus Flat Nebula (6 Players)
Balcora Gate (6 Players)
Bentus Three Rings (6 Players)
Deep Impact (6 Players)
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Game Interface
The game interface has been improved with added tactic buttons ("game pause", "cycle overlays", "disable interface", "enable cinematic", "cycle idle Resource Collectors", "cycle Capital ships", "select visible", "select armed unit", "next/prev focus").
An useful fleet selector menu has been added too, by this the player can select at any moment, from any part of the map any single ship of his fleet; he can also enable an automatic unit selection.
Game content and detail has been improved with all added features.
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Other Improvements / Fixes
A real time cinematic engine has been added, allowing the player to admire the fleet from different viewpoints.
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Audio
Sound FX keep their full audio quality detail at a greater range.
Music has been added to the skirmish match.
Many fixes to speech and explosion volume levels.
02/18/2008
Complex 6.5.1 available
http://www.homeworld2complex.com/index.htm
