Nightside
- April 2, 2015
- OMNIDREAM CREATIONS
Get on Steam"Nightside is a 2-player Sci-Fi Real-Time Strategy game with single-player, co-op, and multi-player options. The story-driven campaign follows a human explorer on a dark planet with four distinct alien races and mobile bases. With no fog of war, fast-paced combat, and an intuitive interface, Nightside offers a balance of micro and macro management on 18 maps."
PC
Windows
Linux
Reviews
- The game features clever lighting effects and a unique dark atmosphere that enhances the gameplay experience.
- Each of the four factions has distinct mechanics and playstyles, providing a fresh take on traditional RTS gameplay.
- For its price, the game offers a solid campaign with interesting visuals and a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic RTS games.
- The game lacks content and feels unfinished, with many players noting that it could benefit from more polish and features.
- Gameplay is often described as slow and tedious, making it less engaging for those accustomed to faster-paced RTS games.
- The user interface and mechanics are not well explained, leading to confusion and frustration during gameplay.
- story84 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 79 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The game's story features a unique organic-alien vibe and revolves around a character's crash on a planet, leading to encounters with aliens and their conflicts, presented through cutscenes and text logs. However, many players find the narrative shallow, lacking depth and engaging mission design, with some missions described as repetitive or poorly executed. Overall, while the campaign consists of fourteen missions across four races, the storytelling and dialogue are criticized for being basic and unengaging, leaving players wanting more.
“The story revolves around you crashing on this planet, getting in contact with aliens and stumbling upon their age-old conflict.”
“The story is told through small in-game cutscenes and text logs of the central character before each mission.”
“The game also features a very in-depth storyline that makes extraordinary use of camera angles to provide a low-budget, cinematic experience.”
“The 'story' mode is a mixture of extremely ugly 90s era render videos and tells you literally nothing.”
“The story/dialogue between missions is very basic.”
“Campaign story had potential, but the lack of any sort of depth in Adam's monologues made it shallow.”
- gameplay50 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 78 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Nightside is characterized by classical RTS mechanics that are both intuitive and distinct across its four factions, offering a nostalgic feel reminiscent of titles like Command and Conquer and Starcraft. However, players have noted a lack of comprehensive explanations for the game's systems, slow-paced mechanics, and frustrating controls that hinder the overall experience. While some appreciate the solid mechanics and unique takes on traditional elements like fog of war, others criticize the game for its simplicity and lack of depth, leading to mixed feelings about its replayability and engagement.
“Happy because the four factions are visually and mechanically distinct, but are all very intuitive to use!”
“Mechanically, the game is very solid and the four playable races are varied and interesting.”
“This game clearly pays homage to Command and Conquer and Starcraft with its faster-paced gameplay and overall RTS mechanics, and that faithfulness to RTSs of yore pays off with a fun and addicting strategy game.”
“The moving buildings are quite slow and add little to the gameplay, because it's often needed to turtle up and build up.”
“Really slow gameplay.”
“Not about the gameplay, but the controls make the game unplayable: you can't do queued actions, you can't select multiple buildings, and the campaign assumes you already know the game's mechanics.”
- graphics38 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the unique art style, atmospheric lighting, and overall visual charm, particularly in creating a sci-fi vibe. However, others criticize the graphical quality, finding it lacking depth and clarity, especially in distinguishing between units. Overall, while some appreciate the aesthetic and design, others feel it detracts from the gameplay experience.
“They did such a great job on creating a sci-fi atmosphere, full of sound effects, incredible graphics (the lighting in this game is amazing), animations, and such a cool art style.”
“I love the art style and theme of this game.”
“Nightside has a lot of charm underneath its dark aesthetic, the units and buildings themselves brighten up the areas around them, an interesting way of creating 'fog of war'.”
“I hate the graphical style and the game is just completely devoid of depth.”
“It's just not appealing, in my opinion, neither in the sound department nor in the graphics department.”
“I gave up entirely when I noticed how horrible the graphics were at the beginning. I regretted this game so much; good graphics and gameplay make for a highly successful game, but this had none of those two aspects.”
- music22 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising it as the standout feature, describing it as catchy, atmospheric, and beautifully composed, while others find it distracting and poorly executed. Notably, the contributions from renowned composers like Kirill Pokrovsky are acknowledged, yet opinions vary on how well the music enhances the overall experience. Overall, while some players appreciate the immersive quality of the soundtrack, others feel it detracts from the gameplay.
“The music is great and also quite relaxing.”
“Music: this is actually the best part.”
“The music and sounds for the game help immerse you into its theme.”
“Thought it looked good at first, but after a while it got boring and the music is almost all I hear.”
“This game is seriously not worth £10, more like £2. It's copied Starcraft and failed; the music is horrible and distracting, and the game just looks bad in general.”
“Even though Larian's legendary composer, Kirill Pokrovsky, made an appearance, it was a very poor C&C clone.”
- atmosphere16 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its foreboding and immersive qualities, enhanced by stunning visuals, effective sound design, and a captivating soundtrack. Players appreciate the dark, isolated setting that creates a sense of tension and intrigue, making it a relaxing yet engaging experience. Overall, the combination of graphics, sound effects, and art style contributes to a compelling sci-fi atmosphere that resonates well with players.
“The game is completely dark outside of units' lights, which gives a huge sense of outlandish isolation.”
“They did such a great job on creating a sci-fi atmosphere, full of sound effects, incredible graphics (the lighting in this game is amazing), animations, and such a cool art style.”
“A solid RTS game that has a challenging campaign, very fun units, and diverse factions, all with a dark atmosphere, great soundtrack, and an intimidating shroud of darkness.”
“Atmosphere: actually decent.”
“Happy because the foreboding atmosphere from the visuals, sound, and UI is perfect!”
“I really like the soundtrack for the Nova's levels; they fit well and add to the game's overall atmosphere.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is lacking, leading to frequent framerate drops during large battles, particularly on lower-end PCs. While the gameplay is enjoyable and features unique unit mechanics, players are advised to consider more polished RTS options if performance is a priority.
“Optimization isn't really there: when huge armies fight, framerate drops constantly, however my PC is rather crappy.”
“Coding is not optimized, so there are slow gameplay issues.”
“Overall, it is a fun game and has some interesting twists for units, but unless you really need a new RTS, stick to something tested and optimized.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game fails to evoke emotional engagement, leading to a lack of enjoyment for players despite their active involvement in gameplay.
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is criticized for its lack of stability, with multiple users reporting significant bugs and poor overall quality. Additionally, it offers limited options for units and technology, further detracting from the experience.
“This game is buggy, poorly made, and has few expansive options for units and tech.”
