Planetary Annihilation one of the most successful games to hit it on Kickstarter has within the last week pushed out their Linux version!
Planetary Annihilation is a Real Time Strategy game from Uber Entertainment which includes some of the staff that made Total Annihilation and Supreme Commander two games that have a big place in my heart! I do love RTS games so this is a big, big win for me!
They have also pushed the game out to Steam's Early Access area but beware if you want to get into the Alpha or Beta you will actually have to pay more than you would for the retail release.
It is currently (depending on if you buy from the Uber Store or Steam):
~$90 for Alpha+
~$60 for Beta+
~$40 for Retail only
So the price will come down!
This has actually sparked mass complaints against Uber Entertainment sadly as a lot of people feel they should either get the Alpha/Beta for free or be paid to test it for them.
The main reason behind the prices are that the Alpha/Beta access where used as perks during their Kickstarter so they can't change that for others now or have their already paying customers massively ticked off, so my hats off to them for keeping existing customers happy!
I do agree though that if there was no other reason, charging more for the Alpha/Beta would be silly, pretty much everyone else offers it for free (so it was an odd decision on their Kickstarter to begin with). That said...I love the game already!
Currently it only features one planet that can have three different biome types, eventually it will include multiple planets, moons, asteroids etc in the same game where you will be able to smash an asteroid into an opponents planet!
It's taken me until now to get some shots going as there have been many, many bugs of course being in Alpha and the Linux version was up until the last patch a bit broken with the mouse with issuing orders. I am pleased to report it's no longer much of an issue!
So here is a small timeline for you in pictures (Let's face it, Linux sucks for video+audio recording that syncs properly unless you want to spend A LOT of time or a bit of extra money on a setup that works).
So without further chit-chat, pictures!
Start screen after you login.
The game room when creating a game lobby.
Just before the battle begins you must select where to spawn!
My commander taking a stroll through the woods...
When you zoom out you get strategic icons, much like Supreme Commander.
Zoom out further and you get the full solar system view, of course in later versions there will be more planets!
Oh just building a few "bots" to ready my attack!
I sent my commander in for an attack!
He was no match for their defences :(, boom, bye bye commander!
Hope you liked my first look at Planetary Annihilation Linux! More will come as the game matures, currently it is of course rather raw but the potential is there, it certainly feels epic when you walk an army around a planet!
I've said it before and will say it again, I think this will be the single best RTS game Linux will have and I doubt that will change for a long time!
Also thank you to the kind reader who donated the final $30 to bump me up the Alpha! Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Planetary Annihilation is a Real Time Strategy game from Uber Entertainment which includes some of the staff that made Total Annihilation and Supreme Commander two games that have a big place in my heart! I do love RTS games so this is a big, big win for me!
They have also pushed the game out to Steam's Early Access area but beware if you want to get into the Alpha or Beta you will actually have to pay more than you would for the retail release.
It is currently (depending on if you buy from the Uber Store or Steam):
~$90 for Alpha+
~$60 for Beta+
~$40 for Retail only
So the price will come down!
This has actually sparked mass complaints against Uber Entertainment sadly as a lot of people feel they should either get the Alpha/Beta for free or be paid to test it for them.
The main reason behind the prices are that the Alpha/Beta access where used as perks during their Kickstarter so they can't change that for others now or have their already paying customers massively ticked off, so my hats off to them for keeping existing customers happy!
I do agree though that if there was no other reason, charging more for the Alpha/Beta would be silly, pretty much everyone else offers it for free (so it was an odd decision on their Kickstarter to begin with). That said...I love the game already!
Currently it only features one planet that can have three different biome types, eventually it will include multiple planets, moons, asteroids etc in the same game where you will be able to smash an asteroid into an opponents planet!
It's taken me until now to get some shots going as there have been many, many bugs of course being in Alpha and the Linux version was up until the last patch a bit broken with the mouse with issuing orders. I am pleased to report it's no longer much of an issue!
So here is a small timeline for you in pictures (Let's face it, Linux sucks for video+audio recording that syncs properly unless you want to spend A LOT of time or a bit of extra money on a setup that works).
So without further chit-chat, pictures!
Start screen after you login.The game room when creating a game lobby.
Just before the battle begins you must select where to spawn!
My commander taking a stroll through the woods...
When you zoom out you get strategic icons, much like Supreme Commander.
Zoom out further and you get the full solar system view, of course in later versions there will be more planets!
Oh just building a few "bots" to ready my attack!
I sent my commander in for an attack!
He was no match for their defences :(, boom, bye bye commander!
Hope you liked my first look at Planetary Annihilation Linux! More will come as the game matures, currently it is of course rather raw but the potential is there, it certainly feels epic when you walk an army around a planet!
I've said it before and will say it again, I think this will be the single best RTS game Linux will have and I doubt that will change for a long time!
Also thank you to the kind reader who donated the final $30 to bump me up the Alpha! Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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12 comments
If this is like Supreme Command (the first one), then I can't wait for it's final release! Can't afford it at it's current price in Steam though, hope it goes down little by little.
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It will come down to around $40 at release, see my chart in the article (you can buy from their own store now, any purchases from their store can be turned into Steam keys).
It plays rather a lot like the original Supreme Commander on the scale of it but the mechanics are slightly more like Total Annihilation (so taking the best from both and expanding on it).
It plays rather a lot like the original Supreme Commander on the scale of it but the mechanics are slightly more like Total Annihilation (so taking the best from both and expanding on it).
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Yes, I will definitely buy it, but not at that price. I can see that people are annoyed by the price but then again, if you want to buy it for that price, buy it at that price, if you are not interested, wait until the price comes down. I don't see what all the fuss is about. Some people are happy to pay that amount to play early.
The game itself does not break any grounds when you look at the "planet" view, but truly becomes innovative when you see the space/universe view. Bombarding someone from a moon, great idea!
Edited For typo
Edited again: I think the game may be trading for $20 dollars by 2014.
The game itself does not break any grounds when you look at the "planet" view, but truly becomes innovative when you see the space/universe view. Bombarding someone from a moon, great idea!
Edited For typo
Edited again: I think the game may be trading for $20 dollars by 2014.
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I have no doubt the game will come down in price from it's retail release at $40 but I doubt it will happen for a while after release. It seems so far even at it's expensive Alpha price it's selling rather well, considering it's been in Steam's top selling since it's Early Access release!
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I actually bought Supreme Commander because of all the positive reviews when it was on Steam sale the other day. Unfortunately I found it extremely frustrating to play in terms of its User Interface and unit visibility. Hopefully these guys don't make the same bad design decisions.
Regarding Planetary Annihilation, for anyone looking for a good large-scale strategy title until this game is down in price, take a look at Wargame: European Escalation (or it's Windows only successor Airland Battle).
Regarding Planetary Annihilation, for anyone looking for a good large-scale strategy title until this game is down in price, take a look at Wargame: European Escalation (or it's Windows only successor Airland Battle).
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Supreme Commander i loved because of the scale of it, but yes it was quite tricky, you had a lot to learn especially with the upgrade system as well, thankfully PA is a bit simpler!
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Hey if you've got the cash, go for it! :P. Had my eye on it for awhile, but I'll hang around until it's on sale for $19.95 
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Good to know it's going to be cheaper in the future, I just hope that future is sooner rather than later :P. Just constantly spamming units and having a real all-out war is crazy fun. Thanks for the article Liam.
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Well the just pushed out a new patch enabling building on the moon :D, it also has a new version of the UI code in which for me grabs the mouse properly but it's not working for everyone yet but it's progress, the Linux version is really shaping up :D.
It won't get cheaper than $40 before next year since the retail release isn't until December so keep that in mind guys.
It won't get cheaper than $40 before next year since the retail release isn't until December so keep that in mind guys.
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It won't get cheaper than $40 before next year since the retail release isn't until December so keep that in mind guys.
I can wait. I waited 10 years for Fallout 3, I have been waiting for 14 years for the next Planescape (pledged), 25 years of waiting for Wasteland 2...I could go on! :D
I could also add that I waited for years for Linux to become a ghaming platform, and this is happening right now.
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What in the world are you thinking? $90 for access to an unfinished game. I don't care how good you think it is, people won't pay for that on a mass scale.
You've made a huge mistake by setting early access at $90 on your Kickstarter; every media site that buys this game early to talk about it will inform their userbase of the price, and if they don't, users that get redirected wanting to buy your game will be met by a ninety dollar paywall! Imagine the fallout this would cause. Hell, that it already caused. 3.5k comments on your Steam-blog post of almost pure vitriolic hate.
Can't believe I was looking forward to this dreck, but I saw the problem early on with the $90 access when this was first Kickstart'd. You've lost respect from your community, and earned untold amounts of enmity from your potential customers in the tradeoff for increased backing. You've blown your one and only chance at the media-exposure boom.
It'd be best if you just stalled new purchases until release, or lower the price regardless of the feelings of your backers. Hell, all a backer wants is a good game and for the company to be successful.
You've made a huge mistake by setting early access at $90 on your Kickstarter; every media site that buys this game early to talk about it will inform their userbase of the price, and if they don't, users that get redirected wanting to buy your game will be met by a ninety dollar paywall! Imagine the fallout this would cause. Hell, that it already caused. 3.5k comments on your Steam-blog post of almost pure vitriolic hate.
Can't believe I was looking forward to this dreck, but I saw the problem early on with the $90 access when this was first Kickstart'd. You've lost respect from your community, and earned untold amounts of enmity from your potential customers in the tradeoff for increased backing. You've blown your one and only chance at the media-exposure boom.
It'd be best if you just stalled new purchases until release, or lower the price regardless of the feelings of your backers. Hell, all a backer wants is a good game and for the company to be successful.
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@Vandell like I outlined in my article the only reason it's at $90 is because of the Kickstarter where they chose to set Alpha/Beta as rewards.
They aren't bothered about people paying the $90 for Alpha right now, like I also outlined it will be $40 on release, which you can buy now from their store but, you could also buy nothing at all asnothing is forcing anyone to pay it.
If you keep thinking like you are you will just be missing out on a great game and that's a shame.
They aren't bothered about people paying the $90 for Alpha right now, like I also outlined it will be $40 on release, which you can buy now from their store but, you could also buy nothing at all asnothing is forcing anyone to pay it.
If you keep thinking like you are you will just be missing out on a great game and that's a shame.
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