Long did I have to wait for a new real time strategy titel, as I am a huge ‚Command & Conquer‚ fan. The surprise was big when ‚Petroglyph‘ anounced their newest masterpiece ‚8-Bit Armies‚. Of course, my curiosity was piqued and so I took a closer look at the game.

Needless to say, ‚8-Bit Armies‚ is not ‚Command & Conquer‘, but it is really similar to that franchise and might espacially appeal ‚Command & Conquer‘ fans who were abandoned by ‚Electronic Arts‘.

Due to the rather manageable variety of units and structures the player can produce, ‚8-Bit Armies‚ is particularly suited for beginners. Though new factions will be added, the game is going to remain manageable.

‚Petroglyph‘ offers ‚8-Bit Armies‚, which comes with about 25 single player and 19 coop missions as well as a multi player mode and a neat toy blocks look, for only around 15€ on ‚STEAM‚.

In multi player and skirmish modes, there are approximately ten maps availeable where up to eight human or AI players can partake.

Like in ‚Command & Conquer‚, you can build your base from an HQ, where structures as barracks, war factories, and more are availeable. To defend the base there are two kinds of turrets at your disposal that shoot at air or ground units.

Should your HQ get destroyed in multi player, you can build a new one at any time with the necessary resources. This is one of the biggest differences to ‚Command & Conquer‘ and enables players to rebuild a new base and – with a little luck – to recover completely.

Unfortunately the only availeable language in ‚8-Bit Armies‘ is English, there is no German version. You can cope with that though, as the mission briefings are understandable and clearly structured. The voice output that can be heard during the game is also English, e.g. when your base is under attack.

As in ‚Command & Conquer‚, the number of facilities of one kind that you have raises your production. I.e. the more war factories you have, the faster a tank can be produced. From about six to eight factories things get really quick and your factories spill out one vehicle a second – if you have the money.

There are not only tanks, infantry, and helicopters in ‚8-Bit Armies‚ to crush your enemies but of course also super weapons. Namely the nuclear bomb as well as the ion cannon.

In ‚8-Bit Armies‘ almost all objects are destroyable. Not just trees can be mowed down but also can buildings be flattened to the ground.

The Gameplay

Who knows ‚Command & Conquer‘ will easily find his way around in ‚8-Bit Armies. There are some little differences to ‚Command & Conquer‘ though, as the amount of super weapons for example. The more super weapons you build, the quicker their timer counts down until you can launch one.

Of course,there are also engineers in ‚8-Bit Armies‚. Although they do not repair buildings but vehicles and infantry and even aerial units. Engineers are also lightly armed. Nothing to exciting, but at least they can defend themselves and are not just fair game. Unfortunately the cannot capture buildings.

On the other hand buildings can be repaired just as in ‚Command & Conquer‘ by clicking on a tool icon.


In contrast to ‚Command & Conquer‚, in ‚8-Bit Armies‚ you have to rely more on quantity, i.e. as many units as possible, preferably mixed well. An exception from that are guerilla attacks. E.g. with a hand full of helicopters you can easily throw your enemy a curve.

There are many more appealing tactics though. You might want to load a task force of tanks into transport helicopters and to attack the back of your enemy’s base where his blind side is.

By the way, there are also crates in ‚8-Bit Armies‚ as you know them from ‚Command & Conquer‚. There are no unit promotions or upgrades inside of them but rather new units themselves. Everything goes here, from harvester to heavy tanks. So picking up those crates usually pays out.

However, in this game only infantry units can open crates. I think this is very good, as you have to move some infantry to the crates first. So, who mixes his units well gains an advantage.

In ‚8-Bit Armies‚ ressources are gathered with a harvester as in ‚Command & Conquer‚:

If the resources on the map are depleted there are no more supplies. That means you have to economize with your resources and use them strategically.

Who is afraid of a unit cap does not need to worry about ‚8-Bit Armies‚, because there is none. Disadvantages of this can only show in multi player mode where little lags may occur when huge amounts of units are on their way.

Die Grafics

The cool retro graphics of ‚8-Bit Armies‚ most remind me of ‚MineCraft‚, although the perspective is of course different. The toy-blocks-look sure is appealing, the explosions are well done, too and the maps appear neatly.

There are not only the standard maps but also winter maps, desert maps, and even a volcano map that turned out really hot. (Sorry, I just couldn’t resist…)

Sound and Music

The sound is absolutely retro-like and really fine. The music is top notch as you are used to from Frank Klepacki and also resembles ‚Command & Conquer‚. The flair fits…

However, the choice of music is not particularly big, but sufficient. From time to time I found myself humming Frank’s music… some real earworms!

The Single Player Mode

The single player mode of ‚8-Bit Armies‚ is quite good. There is indeed no great introduction as you are used to from ‚Command & Conquer‚, but the missions are interesting. The targets are not too various, though. Usually you have to destroy the enemy’s HQ and who wants the bonus points has to deal with it within a certain amount of time.

DLCs for additional campaigns are scheduled, so we can be very excited about what ‚Petroglyph‘ is going to come up with.

The difficulty level raises with each mission. Those who could use some help with one mission can also face it in coop mode. This option is not availeable for all missions, though.

The Multi Player Mode

The multi player mode of ‚8-Bit Armies‚ turned out beautifull and runs stable. Sometimes the game lagged for a few moments. But this can be ascribed to the masses of units that are moved during an 8-player-match.

We experienced no connection time outs during our test and especially the new ‚Guardians‘ faction lately allows for more diversity in ‚8-Bit Armies’s multi player mode.

The amount of multi player maps to choose from could be bigger, as it is quite limited.

The multi player gameplay is a lot of fun. I really like the possibility to support a partner with resources.

The Skirmish Mode

Of course there is a skirmish mode in ‚8-Bit Armies‚ in which you can battle the AI. Here as well, you can choose the new ‚Guardians‘ faction.

Tips & Tricks

There are lots of tricks for newbies on how to play ‚8-Bit Armies‚ and there is also a short tutorial to play.

Let’s Play Videos:

Here you can find all videos from the let’s play of ‚8-Bit Armies beta‘ for PC from operation 1 to 25, as well as some multi player matches. You cannot see the new faction here, as it released after the videos were made.

• Operation 1. GREEN MAN
  
• Operation 2. SKY THUNDER
• Operation 3. STEEL CRUSH
• Operation 4. FLAT TIRE
• Operation 5. RUST BUCKET
• Operation 6. SAM I AM
• Operation 7. BRICK WALL
• Operation 8. MOSQUITO
• Operation 9. PENNY PINCHER
• Operation 10. ROTOR HEAD
• Operation 11. BIRDS OF PREY
  
• Operation 12. MAD ATTACK
• Operation 13. PIGGYBACK
• Operation 14. GROUDED
• Operation 15. OIL CAN
• Operation 16. FLY SWATTER
• Operation 17. DETENTE
• Operation 18. CLEANSING FIRE
• Operation 19. LEAPFROG
• Operation 20. STAR CRUSHER
• Operation 21. CASHING WAVES
• Operation 22. HELPING HAND
• Operation 23. GUIDING LIGHT
• Operation 24. ACID RAIN
• Operation 25. EARTHQUAKE
• Multiplayer 4vs4 Match
• Multiplayer 2vs2 Match
• Multiplayer 4vs4 Match Nr. 2
• Multiplayer 4vs4 Match Nr. 3

Fazit:

With ‚8-Bit Armies‚ ‚Petroglyph‚ released a really beautyful RTS game. The price of 15€ is more than fair and you get a lot for your money.

To me ‚8-Bit Armies‚ was a lot of fun and I liked to play the missions. It espacially made me happy that ‚Petroglyph‚ further enhanced the game, what – thanks to the new faction – makes the multi player mode more versatile and in the future there sure is more to come.

Meanwhile ‚Petroglyph‚ has upgraded the game with many updates. There is the new faction ‚Guardians‘ now, which is only availeable in multi player and skirmish modes, though. But it is totally badass and somehow reminds me of the ‚GDI‚. 😉

Furthermore, a map editor for ‚8-Bit Armies‘ was released as well as a charged DLC with a seperate campaign. Just great, how ‚Petroglyph‘ cares for the gamers.

While playing, I sometimes forgot that I was not playing a ‚Command & Conquer‚ but ‚8-Bit Armies‚. The flair is so similar to the original ‚Command & Conquer Tibarian Dawn‚. And while the game is so similar, it is still different and absolutely brilliant.

The game is top notch, I have to recommend it. Who likes RTS will surely like ‚8-Bit Armies‚ and who is missing ‚Command & Conquer‚ will fall in love with it.

The ex-‚Westwood‘-guys did an awsome job here! Clearly recommended for purchase. 🙂

Translation by: HQ|Doskilos