From the moment I launched the Tempest Rising demo, I was filled with a sense of nostalgia. The opening cinematic, complete with its cheesy dialogue from bulky armored soldiers and a reedy scientist, brought a smile to my face. The game's music, UI design, and units transported me back to my high school days, staying up late playing Command & Conquer, fueled by Mountain Dew, taco-flavored Pringles, and sheer excitement. Experiencing that feeling again through a modern game is exhilarating, and I'm eager to discover what else Slipgate Ironworks has planned for the full release and beyond. Whether engaging in Skirmish mode against bots with clever AI or diving into Ranked Multiplayer, playing Tempest Rising feels as comforting as slipping on a well-worn baseball glove.
This nostalgic experience is no coincidence. The developers at Slipgate Ironworks deliberately set out to create a real-time strategy (RTS) game that evokes the classics of the 90s and 2000s, while incorporating modern quality-of-life improvements. Set in an alternate 1997, Tempest Rising unfolds in a world where the Cuban Missile Crisis escalated into World War 3. In the aftermath of nuclear devastation, mysterious flowering vines emerged, brimming with electrical energy. These plants heralded a new era of power for those brave enough to harvest them amidst the fallout.
Tempest Rising Screenshots
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Since the build I played focused exclusively on multiplayer, I'll have to wait to experience the story mode, which promises two replayable 11-mission campaigns for each of the main factions featured in the preview. The Tempest Dynasty (TD), an alliance of Eastern European and Asian countries devastated by WW3, and the Global Defense Forces (GDF), comprised of the United States, Canada, and Western Europe, are the factions available in the preview. A third faction exists, but details will only be revealed when the campaign is released, as it isn't playable in the preview build, the Steam RTS Fest demo, or at launch.
The Tempest Dynasty particularly captured my interest, not only because of their amusing 'death ball' vehicle called the Tempest Sphere, which crushes enemy infantry into oblivion, but also because of their unique 'plans' system. These plans activate faction-wide bonuses in three specific categories. From the Construction Yard, the starting building for all players, you can activate one plan at a time, provided you have sufficient power generation and are mindful of the 30-second cooldown when switching between plans.
The Logistics Plan speeds up structure construction and resource harvesting, including the movement of mobile resource harvesters. The Martial Plan enhances unit attack speed, grants resistance to rockets and explosives, and allows Machinist units to sacrifice their health for a 50% attack speed boost. Lastly, the Security Plan reduces the cost of units and buildings, improves the Repair function of certain units, and extends Radar vision. I found myself enjoying the strategic rhythm of alternating between resource-gathering with the Logistics Plan, rapid building under the Security Plan, and aggressive assaults empowered by the Martial Plan.
The flexibility of the Tempest Dynasty extends beyond their plans. Instead of building a Refinery to harvest nearby tempest fields as the GDF does, the Dynasty uses Tempest Rigs. These vehicles can drive to resource-rich areas, harvest until depleted, and then relocate. This mobility makes the 'fast expand' strategy more accessible than ever, enabling me to send rigs to distant locations for undisturbed resource collection, out of my opponents' reach.
Another fascinating unit in the Dynasty's arsenal is the Salvage Van, which can repair nearby vehicles or switch to Salvage Mode to destroy any nearby vehicle, returning resources to the salvaging player. Sneaking up on unsuspecting opponents and using the Salvage Van to both dismantle their forces and claim their resources is a thrilling tactic.
The Dynasty's power plants can also switch from power generation to 'Distribution Mode,' boosting the construction and attack speed of nearby buildings (some of which are equipped with cannons), at the cost of taking damage. This mode safely deactivates at critical health levels, preventing self-inflicted destruction for the speed boost.
While I favor the Tempest Dynasty, the GDF has its own appeal, focusing on enhancing allies, weakening enemies, and controlling the battlefield. My favorite GDF strategy involves the Marking mechanic, where certain units can mark enemy targets. Marked enemies drop Intel upon defeat, which is used to create advanced units and structures. With the right Doctrine upgrades (Tempest Rising's version of 'tech trees'), marked enemies suffer various debuffs, including reduced damage output, increased damage taken, and extended attack range for certain units.
Tempest Rising3D Realms Wishlist
Each faction offers three tech trees to explore, allowing players to tailor their strategy. The GDF's 'Marking & Intel' tree and the Dynasty's 'Plans' enhancement tree are just the beginning. In addition to these tech trees, advanced buildings enable cooldown abilities that can significantly influence the battle's outcome. These abilities, which vary from area damage to spawning extra troops, add strategic depth. The GDF's unique abilities include deploying spy drones, creating remote building beacons, and temporarily disabling enemy vehicles.
Given the Dynasty's fewer buildings, each upgradable from basic to advanced, losing one to an enemy Engineer can be devastating. However, the Dynasty's Lockdown ability prevents enemy takeovers, albeit at the cost of temporarily halting the building's functions. The Field Infirmary ability proved invaluable, allowing me to establish a stationary troop-healing zone anywhere on the map, complementing the Dynasty's existing repair capabilities for both infantry and mechanized units.
There's much more to explore in Tempest Rising, and I'm eagerly anticipating the full release, which will allow me to join Custom Lobbies with friends and team up against the game's intelligent AI bots. Until then, I'll continue to enjoy solo battles, crushing my bot adversaries with swarms of death balls.
