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[kulik]

This game catched my mind a while ago and while from the topic subject may sound weird it is actally pretty fun.

Story

A disastrous solar event in 2019 and 2020 leaves the world devastated, with only small pockets of human survivors scratching out a living in a bleak, irradiated world. Largely fuelled by the stockpiles of hardware left behind by a dead civilization combined with the desperation of a new world order, the gladiatorial deathsports begin, around 2035. The vast expanses of wilderness between the towns are menaced by gangs of road pirates armed with heavily armed cars and trucks, and travelled by equally well armed trade groups, making a living by carrying food, fuel, and other specialist equipment between the towns.

Gameplay

The focus of the game is on vehicular combat - cars with guns - both in the wilderness and in manmade arenas and racing circuits. Gameplay is split between a web interface (for strategic management) and a 3D interface which supports Windows, Mac OS X and Linux (for control of your characters and vehicles during a combat or race).

There are all sorts of activities to do within the game. Players can gain fame and accumulate looted hardware from their defeated adversaries (who may be either computer-controlled or player-controlled), but risk suffering defeat and the lives of their gang members. Wilderness actions are frequently performed by multi-player squads: by joining together, players can greatly increase their chance of survival. Alternatively, players can also join town events, such as races and deathraces, to gain fame and earn prizes. These can be joined as standard events, competitive leagues or ladders.

Eight towns are currently open to players, each offering distinct race tracks and wilderness combat maps around it. Darkwind currently has more than 20 racetracks with more under development. Camps were also introduced in 2008, allowing players to establish communities in addition to the towns on the game map. Camps can grow food, harvest water, build weapons, repair vehicles, etc.

The turn-based nature of Darkwind makes it a very unusual, tactical driving game.

The concept of turn-based racing is actually well established in a number of excellent boardgames that have been made over the last 40 years or so. Darkwind was inspired by these, most notably the [Car Wars] roleplaying boardgame, as well as films such as [Mad Max].

Darkwind is the only car game we know of that combines accurate physics with turn-based play. The race becomes purely about the tactics of entering and exiting corners, overtaking, and generally breaking down the nuances of driving. After all, real world professional racing is much more to do with tactics than reactions - just watch an F1 or Nascar race on TV. By making the game turn based we're letting the players all race more professionally, letting them battle it out tactically rather just seeing who's first to make some dumb mistake, which is what happens in most computer racing games.

Another major reason for making Darkwind turn-based is to allow highly detailed rules and strategy: these things are not possible in real-time games. Players need time to assign orders to their characters, vehicles and weapons.

It's a totally different experience to standard real-time car games. Think of it as a massively-multiplayer boardgame: you have time to chat, you have time to smack-talk, you have time to watch each other's moves as well as your own.

You win by having good strategy and tactics, not by having the best reactions.

Subscription

Darkwind is free to download and play with some restrictions. Players are limited to using pre-built vehicles in league and ladder events as well as wilderness combats (restricted to the area around the main in-game town of Somerset) while subscribers are free to buy and customize their own vehicles which they can use to enter special pro-events and participate in wilderness combats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=votjVfDK_OA

[baruk]

 I can vouch for this game, it's pretty cool. I remember an arena combat where I had one of my gang members flee a ditched vehicle, only for her to be machine-gunned, run over, then machine-gunned some more by an AI-controlled car.

[Soulwynd]

I remember there was a catch of why I didn't want to play this game.

Is it in java?

[Mr. Boh]

It's pretty cool. I played for several months a couple of years ago--it seems as though non-subscribers get a few more perks these days? I can't really remember.

The gameplay is alright, but I think I eventually quit just because it takes so long to do anything at all. Very slow accumulation of cars/money combined with slow gameplay is just a bore. There was also a very small playerbase when I played, so even finding some people to explore the wilderness could take a long time.

This may have all changed, but if it hasn't--go play Eve or something, where at least you'll be training a skill in your downtime.

[yamo]

not so newbie friendly.  could not figure out how to do some stuff not many questions answered.

[quintin522]

I'm fine with games having a premium mode, so long as it doesn't give them an advantage that free players can not overcome given time. While this game looks pretty sweet, and from what little I tried looks great, it severely limits free players.

[Sensei]

I heard of this ages ago on the Auto Assault forums.

Definitely going to try it out.

[Redd]

Nice game this. Subbed up sometime last year, although I don't play any more. Well recommended though.

[PsyberianHusky]

I cast necromancy on this thread because I want to talk about it


I want to ask how limiting the Free version of this game is, because toribash with cars sounds fun right about now.

[Sensei]

IIRC, it was more like an "unlimited time free trial", I don't remember specifically but I think you couldn't do most of the missions or own most of the cars (except for temporary rentals but who wants that, you can't customize them) until you subscribe. I subscribed for a while and had a good bit of fun a while back. It's worth trying but no, you won't really be able to get more than a week or two out of it without subscribing I think.

[Flying Dice]

So basically it's Mad Max Online? Eh, might give it a try.

[LoSboccacc]

it's a very good game, the turn based combat is absolutely brilliant.

it may be frustrating at times and ultimately I've left because late game larger engagements were becoming too long for my scarce free time. (I have actually a lot free time, only not in big contigous chunks)

also, enemy scaling 

[Imofexios]

This is fun and really addicting.
PLayed few hours and loved every moment.
Try it out!

[RexMundi]

I knew I'd find a thread if I looked! Anyone still play and wanna scout sometime?