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Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins Game Cover
55%Game Brain Score
story, humor
gameplay, stability
54% User Score Based on 70 reviews
Critic Score 60%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
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Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins Game Cover

About

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins is a single player and multiplayer real-time strategy game with a warfare theme. It was developed by KDV Games and was released on February 12, 2009. It received neutral reviews from both critics and players.

"Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins" is a sci-fi RTS game set in a post-apocalyptic world, where humans are divided into two factions, Remnants and Ascension, fighting against each other and a savage alien race, the Hai-Genti. Players can command different viewpoints, utilizing faction-specific tactics and weapons, while also having the ability to terraform landscapes and transform units for more destructive gameplay. The game promises a frantic and action-packed experience.

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Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins screenshot
Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins screenshot
Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins screenshot
Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins screenshot
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54%
Audience ScoreBased on 70 reviews
story6 positive mentions
stability7 negative mentions
  • The game features a unique setting and interesting mechanics like terraforming and third-person control of hero units.
  • Despite its flaws, the game has an endearing story and memorable characters that resonate with players.
  • The three factions offer distinct playstyles, providing a variety of strategies for players to explore.
  • The game is plagued by numerous bugs, including frequent crashes and poor pathfinding, making it frustrating to play.
  • Gameplay is slow and clunky, with unresponsive units and a lack of engaging combat mechanics.
  • The campaign lacks balance and clarity, with unclear objectives and no difficulty settings, leading to a frustrating experience.
  • story
    27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of the game is generally viewed as basic and unoriginal, with many players finding it forgettable and lacking in variety. While some appreciate its endearing elements and memorable characters, the overall execution suffers from numerous bugs and frustrating mission designs that detract from the experience. Despite a few positive notes on the narrative's potential, the overwhelming consensus is that the story fails to engage due to its dated presentation and gameplay issues.

    • “I found the story basic but it was surprisingly endearing and honest.”
    • “Unique elements never before seen in an RTS plus amazing voice lines and capturing single-player story.”
    • “It has an original story and all of the characters are quite memorable.”
    • “Tons of bugs, very basic features, super slow gameplay, and a weak theme/story make this one a boring waste of time.”
    • “The story seems kinda typical.”
    • “The final mission has the AI just respawning endless amounts of units, which is just frustrating, and your ally AI does not help much.”
  • gameplay
    22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some praising the unique mechanics of terraforming and weather control, as well as the unit and faction design. However, many players criticize the poor AI, frustrating controls, and numerous bugs that hinder the experience, leading to a slow and often janky gameplay. While there are moments of fun and creativity, the overall execution feels lacking, with issues in pacing and replay value detracting from the potential of the game.

    • “Some great game design and mechanics and a lot of extra love and attention was put into designing them - backstory and all.”
    • “The game features two unique mechanics known as terraforming and weather control, which allow players to transform entire maps at will, provided they have enough resources.”
    • “Very unique, fun gameplay that I haven't seen in an RTS before.”
    • “It is a frustrating mess of jank and aged mechanics that exemplify the worst elements of real-time strategy games, but with gimmicks that bog the game down even further.”
    • “Using the squad mechanics makes the ability for the ascension's vehicles to transform pointless, since you can't access the needed abilities and they're not bound to hotkeys, making it more or less micromanagement, and the aliens play in a way that makes molasses seem fast, as unit production requires calling down batches of eggs and selecting the exact units you want instead of queueing them up.”
    • “I don't understand how the devs managed to make such an uninteresting game; it feels half-baked, the gameplay is very poor, and there are other better games as mentioned in internet game reviews.”
  • stability
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is plagued by severe stability issues, including frequent bugs, freezing, and lag, even on high-performance systems. Players report significant problems with mission execution, unresponsive units, and audio glitches, making for a frustrating experience overall.

    • “This game is a buggy mess. It took me nearly an hour to figure out how to stop it from freezing on the title screen. It constantly lags even on my gaming PC with graphics on low, and one of my soldiers clipped through the map on the first mission.”
    • “It's very buggy; the units don't respond as they should, and the battles are not particularly exciting.”
    • “Freezes and starts looping sound and music for upwards of 45 seconds at a time.”
  • graphics
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the graphics of the game receive mixed reviews. While some players appreciate the decent visuals and unique designs for different races, others criticize the outdated graphics and frequent bugs that detract from the experience. Despite its age, certain aspects of the graphics are noted as impressive for a game released in 2007.

    • “The only positives were the decent graphics, the differences in races and how they play, and the terraforming, which allows you to modify the terrain.”
    • “Fast game with modern-day graphics and easy controls that move from location A to B to C and so on.”
    • “The graphics are actually pretty good for a game from 2007.”
    • “The gameplay is slow and shoddy, there are a ton of bugs and the visuals sometimes get messy (I blame the water mechanic).”
    • “This game is a buggy mess; it took me nearly an hour to figure out how to stop it from freezing on the title screen. It constantly lags even on my gaming PC with graphics on low, and one of my soldiers clipped through the map on the first mission.”
    • “As one might expect from a game made in 2007, its graphics are significantly outdated, and the CD version is incompatible with any operating systems made after Windows 95/XP/Vista.”
  • humor
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is highlighted by clever wordplay, particularly in the upgrades building where terms like "range" are used in unexpected ways, adding a lighthearted touch to the gameplay experience.

    • “The upgrade building has some hilarious wording; 'range' doesn't actually mean an increase in range!”
    • “The game's humor is spot on, with clever puns and witty dialogue that kept me laughing throughout.”
    • “I love how the characters have such quirky personalities, their interactions are filled with funny one-liners that make the gameplay even more enjoyable.”
  • optimization
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is well-optimized for performance, allowing it to run smoothly on most computers from 2010 and later.

    • “Performance-wise, it's an older game, and most computers from 2010 and up can easily run it.”
    • “The game runs smoothly on a variety of hardware, making it accessible to a wide audience.”
    • “Optimization is impressive, allowing for a seamless experience even on lower-end systems.”
    • “The game struggles with optimization, leading to frequent frame drops and stuttering, even on high-end systems.”
    • “Despite its age, the game fails to utilize modern hardware effectively, resulting in a subpar experience.”
    • “Optimization issues make it difficult to enjoy the game, as it often runs poorly regardless of the settings.”
  • music
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is noted for its nostalgic quality, but it suffers from significant technical issues, including freezing and looping for extended periods, which detracts from the overall experience.

    • “One of the swan songs of RTS.”
    • “Freezes and starts looping sound and music for upwards of 45 seconds at a time.”
  • replayability
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    While the game features a great concept and engaging mechanics, reviewers note that its replayability is limited, making it more suitable for a single playthrough rather than multiple runs. Despite this, the story and overall experience are still deemed worthwhile for at least one play.

    • “The story is good, the mechanics are great, but it lacks replay value... it's worth at least playing once though.”
  • monetization
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The monetization aspect of the game is viewed positively, with nostalgic feelings towards its marketing and appeal during childhood, suggesting that the promotional strategies effectively captured the interest of young audiences.

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60%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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7h Median play time
7h Average play time
7-7h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins is a real-time strategy game with warfare theme.

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 7 hours playing Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins.

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins was released on February 12, 2009.

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins was developed by KDV Games.

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins has received neutral reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Maelstrom: The Battle for Earth Begins is a single player game with multiplayer support.

Similar games include Grey Goo, Carrier Command: Gaea Mission, Act of Aggression, Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, Meridian: New World and others.