If demo-equipped Void War doesn’t actually cross the line between ‘affectionate homage’ and ‘cynical ripoff’, it gets awfully close to it at times.
By replicating FTL’s GUI and aesthetic so slavishly, Tundra lay themselves wide open to accusations of plagiarism. The shared look and screen layout leaves Void War feeling a lot like a mod of Subset’s strangely sequel-less 2012 classic. Fortunately, a dark Warhammer 40k-style setting, and a clutch of novel mechanical idiosyncrasies, give trial runs a character all of their own.
Fuel has been excised and sickbays sidelined. The rebels aren’t nipping at your heels. Crew cast spells and wield weapons, making boarding more interesting and tempting. Assuming your vessel is equipped with a ‘husk rack’, you can pump out ephemeral personnel mid-crisis. Yes, Void War isn’t so timid – so indebted – it ends-up feeling pointless.
My first demo voyage lasted around sixty minutes and thirty turns/nodes. Warping away from one unwinnable fight, I blundered straight into another. Overrun by a party of space skeletons, my reduced crew and ravaged ship fought bravely until raging infernos and incoming fire unstitched Tally-Ho at the seams and cast Captain Kyma into the wild back yonder.
For voyage #2, I’m going to see how I get on with a witch skipper.
Steam Next Fest again and, like a third channel talent show, is mostly deluded no-hopers and minimal-wit convergance on the same idea (seriously! Three different gunshop simulators).
Perhaps slightly different:
sort-of-ETS-like Military Logistics Simulator
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2947540/Military_Logistics_Simulator