I did scan strategy RPG Space Scum’s trailer a few times for the hint of a feature that didn’t make me immediately think, ah yeah, that’s just like Battle Brothers innit. This is a bit unfair of me. After all, your dudes sit on chess piece-like plinths in this one. That’s innovation, right? Anyway, I like the art and the bloke from the trailer looks like he’d nut me if I dwelled on the comparison too long. With someone else’s face. So, here’s a trailer. There’s also a Steam demo from next month, although you can sign up for a playtest now.
Watch on YouTube
The gang’s all here. Turn-based battles. Procedural planets. Origins and character traits. Mercenary permadeath. Gear looting. Skill trees. The sci-fi setting does offer a few twists, though. I’m a fan of the enemy variety I’ve seen so far, for one. Space rats. Space lizards. Space bugs. All the stuff you don’t want to find in your sacks of space grain, basically. Range combat also naturally plays a bigger part here, and you can specialise your mercs in things like hacking and turret use.
Also, look how furious and/or very hungry these rats are. Very emotive. A cornucopia of different ways to be aggravated, possess these rats.
“Space Scum is a tactical, turn-based RPG, set across multiple procedurally generated planets, ensuring no playthrough is the same – though they all exist in the same gritty, Sci-Fi universe. You’ll choose your own custom origin and encounter different environments, enemy types, factions and missions, all based on where you go and what you choose to do. Of course, when all the choices are yours, so are the consequences…”
Had I a say in such matters, I would probably look at the available footage for my game, cross-reference it against the word ‘gritty’ in my marketing blurb, come to the conclusion that the audience could probably work that bit out for themselves, and then choose literally any other word, preferably one more specific to the universe I’ve created here, lest someone assume my worldbuilding process consisted of choosing the word ‘gritty’ then working backwards from there. I’ll play the demo though, sure. Looks fun. Full release is TBC.
