Tactera is A Real-Time Strategy game which takes place on top of a holographic table battlefield.

Tacteras developer E McNeill was the winner of the VR Jam back in 2013 with one of my all-time favourite DK1 games Ciess so when he releases new content I always sit up and take notice.

The best way to describe Tacteras gameplay is to imagine if the Command & Conquer franchise got married to Ciess. Before you begin a battle simulation you need to select your load out. You have a variety of weapon options to choose from which range from fast moving buggy’s and fighters to slow moving Zeppelins and Heavy tanks. The rule of thumb here is the more devastating the weapon the longer it takes to build and is generally slower moving on the map.

The game is controlled entirely through the player’s gaze and the Gear VR touchpad. The basic interaction is to select a base (by looking at it and tapping) and then selecting a destination to deploy troops. The player can also customize the composition of their army through a simple floating UI. This works great and is very institutive however for longer more intense battles it would be better to use a game pad for the trigger instead of the touch pad as your arm can start to feel a bit heavy after a while constantly tapping the side pad.

The objective of the game is to take control of the waypoints on the map by attacking them. The more way points you have the more troops you can generate in any given time and as with most wars it’s a game of numbers which will usually decide the outcome. Once units are built, the player must continually choose when and where to deploy them. Units can be sent anywhere on the battlefield, but the player has to outmanoeuvre the enemy by choosing whether to cluster forces or spread them out, whether to attack or defend, and where to direct artillery and bomber strikes.

Graphically Tactera makes great use of the available horse power in the Note 4 using simple yet beautiful vector like graphics for the main playing area while wrapping it all inside a believable control room. This is very similar in style to Ciess but it’s refreshing to see this being used in an RTS game.

One element we did enjoy greatly is the rocking background music which is a mix of heavy rock tracks which perfectly suit the on screen action. Also as you order troops around the map they will give you a confirmative response and the sound of bombs and heavy artillery hitting their targets is suitably deep and penetrating.

Overall Tactera is very addictive and fun to play and I can’t wait to see this get a full release as I can see myself spending many hours ordering troops all over the map just as I did as a teenager in great games such as Age of Empires and Command & Conquer. E McNeill continues to impress us with his games and confound us with his pronunciation of the titles.

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