Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri

About

Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri is a combat-focused game that puts you in command of an elite fighting team. Equip your Powered Battle Armor and fight against the Earth Hegemony and a new, powerful breed of pirates on four unique worlds. Lead your team in over 30 missions, including recon, rescue, and night raids, while uncovering the dark secret behind the pirates' growing military might. Bonus content includes music from Tribe, manuals, desktop themes, and more.

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Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri screenshot

96%

Audience ScoreBased on 69 reviews

story21 positive mentions

optimization2 negative mentions

Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri is a revolutionary game that combines tactical squad-based gameplay with immersive power armor simulation, offering a variety of mission types and strategic options.
The game features impressive graphics and sound for its time, with detailed environments, destructible objects, and engaging full-motion video cutscenes that enhance the storytelling experience.
Despite its age, the game remains accessible and fun to play, with a solid control scheme and a variety of weapons and tactics that allow for replayability and experimentation.

The controls are considered outdated and clunky, lacking modern features like mouse look, which can hinder the gameplay experience for new players.
Some players noted balance issues with certain weapons being less effective than others, leading to a reliance on a few overpowered options throughout the game.
The missions can feel short and sometimes lack depth, with players wishing for more thorough exploration and longer objectives to fully utilize the expansive environments.

story
83 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
71%
4%
The game's story is a mix of engaging sci-fi elements and cheesy, operatic themes, providing a narrative backdrop that enhances the gameplay experience. While the missions are relatively short and the overall plot may feel cliché, the inclusion of detailed mission briefings and a wealth of lore adds depth and replayability. Players appreciate the freedom to approach missions strategically, although some wish for a more fleshed-out world and longer missions to fully explore the potential of the game's environments.
- “The story is cool, and there's plenty of lore in the library section talking about politics and whatnot if you like to read.”
- “One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard, a story that starts very cheesy but then keeps punching you in the face with plot twists, and the gameplay is nothing short of excellent either.”
- “The amount of lore put into the story - even if you have to look for it for a bit - puts this game on the list of many games that were far ahead of its time.”
- “The progression is not very engaging; the story just does not really translate well with the pixelated briefing windows and the bad cutscenes.”
- “The story is kind of silly and generic, but very fun and tongue-in-cheek.”
- “Had they spent more time fleshing out the game world, the story and setting might actually have been something memorable.”
graphics
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
56%
19%
The graphics of the game are generally viewed as dated and pixelated, reflecting its age as a DOS title, yet many players appreciate their retro charm and clarity. While some criticize the visuals as poor and compressed, others acknowledge that they were impressive for their time and still hold up reasonably well today. Overall, the graphics may not meet modern standards, but they do not detract from the enjoyable gameplay experience.
- “Don't be fooled by the pixel graphics... this was a big-budget AAA-grade game at its time.”
- “The graphics, while obviously old, still work and are not ugly or distracting.”
- “Memorable characters, devastating weapons, amazing story, and very cutting-edge graphics for the time are but a portion of why I love this game.”
- “The graphics look pixelated, the FMVs look poorly compressed and are in many cases shown in a smaller window.”
- “This is a DOS game: very old, very pixelish graphics.”
- “Sure, the graphics are crusty as a crab but the gameplay... oh it's just so amazing.”
gameplay
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
The gameplay of this sci-fi action game is characterized by a blend of tactical and first-person shooter elements, enhanced by the use of jump jets for dynamic movement and exploration. While the graphics may feel outdated, the gameplay is praised for its depth and excitement, drawing comparisons to titles like Rainbow Six and Battlefield, and leaving players wishing for a modern reboot that could refine its mechanics and visuals. The integration of full-motion video cutscenes adds a nostalgic charm, despite their dated quality.
- “One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard (albeit pretty biased), a story that starts very cheesy but then keeps punching you in the face with plot twists, and the gameplay is nothing short of excellent either.”
- “Jump jets were integral to gameplay, allowing for mountains to be scaled with ease and impossible maneuvers to be performed.”
- “...gameplay-wise, this game is like Rainbow Six and Battlefield mixed with jump jets, or something.”
- “This is a sci-fi action game with tactical and FPS gameplay, and full-motion video cutscenes that have aged gloriously bad.”
- “Games like the Tribes series took this concept and implemented it in a mainly multiplayer and shooter-oriented way. Playing Terra Nova makes you think how cool it would have been to have this game succeed and perfect the single-player (maybe even co-op) experience, finding a better balance with the sim elements of the gameplay and fighting in much different environments (like space, cities, etc).”
- “Gameplay-wise, this game is like Rainbow Six and Battlefield mixed with jump jets, or something.”
music
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
29%
29%
The music in the game is highly praised, with many users highlighting the exceptional soundtrack composed by Eric and Terri Brosius, which remains innovative and engaging. The dynamic nature of the music, reacting to the player's status, adds depth to the gameplay experience, making it one of the standout features of the title. Overall, the sound design, including voice acting and sound effects, contributes significantly to the game's immersive atmosphere.
- “One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard (albeit pretty biased), a story that starts very cheesy but then keeps punching you in the face with plot twists and the gameplay is nothing short of excellent either.”
- “The music is by Eric and Terri Brosius, the sound effects by Eric Brosius, and the voice acting by Terri Brosius are still great!”
- “Similarly to System Shock, Greg Lopiccolo composed and programmed the soundtrack to dynamically react to the player’s status.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
50%
The game offers significant replayability with 37 missions that can be approached in various ways, complemented by a random mission generator that allows players to customize game modes, enemy toughness, and ally numbers. The variety in mission design and the ability to choose different loadouts enhance the experience, making strategic decision-making a key element that encourages players to revisit the game.
- “Despite this, there are 37 missions in total, and because the game lets you tackle most of them in various different ways, there is certainly replayability in Terra Nova. Besides the main campaign, there is also a random mission generator that allows the player to set a game mode (head-on attack, finding a target, or defending a target), the number and toughness of the enemies, and the number of allies, across a variety of different maps, which offers even more playtime and room for experimentation.”
- “There's a good amount of variety between the missions, and the fact that you can bring your own loadout for most missions also makes for some great replay value.”
- “This important decision-making at all times and getting your carefully planned strategy to work is, in my opinion, the biggest charm of the game and one of the key factors contributing to its high replay value.”
- “Despite this, there are 37 missions in total, and because the game lets you tackle most of them in various different ways, there is certainly replayability in Terra Nova. Besides the main campaign, there is also a random mission generator that allows the player to set a game mode (head-on attack, finding a target, or defending a target), the number and toughness of the enemies, and the number of allies, on a number of different maps, which offer even more playtime and room for experimentation.”
- “There are also plenty of other equipment that you get to use throughout the game, providing both replay value and variety between the missions.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
100%
The game's optimization is criticized for significant audio stuttering and the use of dos4gw instead of dos32a, which restricts its maximum performance and speed.
- “The use of dos4gw instead of dos32a in the disk operating system emulator is notable, as it limits the maximum performance and speed of Terra Nova.”
- “This game has a lot of audio stuttering.”
- “Also notable is the use of dos4gw instead of dos32a in the disk operating system emulator, limiting the maximum performance and speed of Terra Nova.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a unique blend of polygonal designs and sprite elements, enhanced by dynamic weather and texturing that adds distinctive character to the environments.
- “The design blends polygons with sprites for an interesting atmosphere, and the weather and texturing give the grounds you'll be stomping some distinctive character.”
- “The immersive sound design and haunting music create an atmosphere that pulls you into the game world.”
- “The lighting effects and environmental details contribute to a rich atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users report that the game transitions smoothly between windowed and full screen modes using Cmd+f, even in instances where the game experiences freezing.
- “The game frequently crashes, making it nearly unplayable.”
- “I experience constant lag and stuttering, which ruins the overall experience.”
- “The stability issues are so severe that I often lose progress due to unexpected shutdowns.”