Developer: Iteration 11
Publisher: Iteration 11
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Void Destroyer 2 – Preview
You awake in deep space with no memory or obligations, and nothing but a tiny fighter to call your own. What now? There are plenty of jobs out there for someone like you, not all of them legal. Will you benefit from the loss and suffering of others by becoming a pirate, or will you exterminate those who do by becoming a bounty hunter? Will you build a fleet of mining vessels and find your fortune, or an armada of fighters and find glory? The next part is all up to you.
A main storyline and side quests are planned to be released sometime in the future, but for now you are free to make your own story in typical sandbox fashion. Missions provide you with an introduction into various different avenues of making money, and there are several factions for you to interact with, anger or befriend, but ultimately it is down to you to choose your own path and alignment. Will you be a murderous pirate king, who values blood and plunder above all else? Or will you become a trade magnate who’s huge fleet of transport vessels haul goods across the galaxy, making you millions of credits in the process?
Graphically Void Destroyer 2 isn’t as breathtaking as some other similar space exploration titles, but don’t get the wrong idea, the playful, cartoonish, comic-book style really suits the title and there is still plenty for you to get excited over visually. For an early access title there is actually quite a lot to rave about, and the world that has been created is certainly good enough to lose yourself in.
The sound is fairly simplistic, which actually fits in quite while with the whole aesthetic of the title. There are basic sound effects for most actions and what music there is, is of reasonable quality and tends to suit the theme nicely. It’s easy to forget that it’s there whilst you are playing, but the telltale thrum of your engines really helps to bring deep space to life.
Void Destroyer 2 is a sandbox space simulator where you start out with a crappy little fighter, that is more use for running away than anything else, and build it up into a huge armada of vessels. You are thrust into the cockpit of your ship, with a very quick tutorial, pointed in the direction of a nearby space station and then let out into the universe to explore.
The controls can be a little clunky and tough to adjust to at first, but are completely re-bindable which is always a big plus. The huge scope of the game might seem a little over-facing at first, but there is a actually a really great set of tutorials delivered through the medium of “simulations” which can be accessed from any space station. These will quickly teach you the basics and make you an expert dog-fighter in no time.
Void Destroyer 2 is unusual in the fact that there are many different ways for you to play the game. You can manage your ships in clean, top-down RTS style, or else jump into the cockpit and fly directly into space battles head first. There are several different factions for you to interact, and develop relationships, with. You can develop trust (or hatred) with different factions through various different actions and missions.
To say that it’s an early access game, there is already a huge amount of content to explore with more updates constantly trickling in. There are already an impressive amount of ships and customizable mods and upgrades available, with even more planned for the future. At first your primary method of making money will be completing basic missions, but there are many ways to make your fortune. You can go down the honorable route of mining, trading or escorting, or else join the dark side and start pirating, stealing and destroying.
A recent update has also recently added the ability to take and control space stations. Currently you can only capture space stations from other factions (which is a criminal action), but the ability to build and maintain your own stations is planned for future updates. This is merely the first step along the way, which gives players a chance to react and offer suggestions before more features are implemented.
The developer is constantly active and in touch with his players, looking for feedback and ways in which to improve the game. This is something that really should not be underestimated when dealing with early access titles. Having a dev like this really helps soothe any misgivings you might have, if you’ve been stung by early access games before, and makes Void Destroyer 2 look to have a very bright future indeed.
Conclusion
With its focus on gameplay and a tremendous amount of content already, as well as regular updates from an incredibly attentive developer, Void Destroyer 2 is already well worth its modest price-tag and promises even greater to come. With this in mind, it is no wonder that this title is being frequently compared to classics such as Mount and Blade: Warband and Freelancer. If you’re a fan of space sandbox games, or just fancy taking up the mantle of the king of space pirates, then this is one game that you don’t want to miss.
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