IXION – Review
Space has always attracted humanity, understanding that Earth is only a temporary shelter. The green planet cannot always remain a home for billions of individuals mercilessly pumping out resources, polluting the soil and poisoning the atmosphere. The authors of Ixion offer their vision of the near future, in which humanity has made an irreparable mistake, putting itself on the brink of extinction.
An unusual adventure city-building strategy-survival and resource management simulator was released by the French developers Bulwark Studios, known for the highly acclaimed turn-based tactics Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus. The name is taken from ancient Greek mythology. According to one legend, Zeus invited the maddened king Ixion to the Feast of the Gods, where he tried to seduce Hera, for which he was forever tied to a rotating wheel. Ixion is a symbol of eternal punishment and endless torture. The station where the events of the game take place embodies the very wheel spinning in orbit and causing the fall of the Earth.
The DOLOS Corporation, headed by CEO Vanir Dolos, prepared humanity for finding a new home and launched a giant space station “Tikkun” into orbit. It was stated that the pioneer ship would “jump” into the planetary system of the nearest star Proxima Centauri with the help of the VOHLE engine, where it would conduct research and extract resources. But it turned out that the engine did not work as expected, and a powerful energy release destroyed the Moon. Such an event, in theory, leads to a change in the axis of rotation of the Earth, climate and loss of life. The game will begin in 2049, a little before the terrible cataclysm. The player is introduced to the basics of management. Everything happens in three locations: inside the “Tikkun”, where buildings are erected, outside – here a huge structure is repaired and equipped with solar panels, and in the planetary system, a place where minerals accumulate. A simple overview of the mechanics will gradually turn into a miniature branch of hell, when the ship after the “jump” ends up not in Proxima Centauri, but in the future.
It is worth admitting that there are plenty of reasons for fear: the VOHLE engine refuses to start, the Tikkun hull is losing its integrity and requires constant repairs, people will begin to yearn for Earth and fall into depression. The player plays the role of an administrator who not only solves current survival problems, but also fights against general hysteria, trying to maintain comfortable living conditions. Tikkun will become the only hope of the race and must find a habitable planet. And such a planet will definitely not be in the Solar System.
The game will begin in Sector 1 of the station, a conditional “glass” consisting of cells where, like in Tetris, “figures”-buildings are placed. In total, six such “Sectors” will open as you develop. Each is a miniature city, where it is advisable to establish a specialization – space, industry, food and others, as this will give additional bonuses. It is advisable to immediately understand what and how to install, measure seven times, because there will be no time for redesign later. And it is almost impossible to calculate everything correctly – you can demolish buildings, but this will cause a lot of trouble.
The first building will be a workshop, from where robots are sent to install warehouses and space-related facilities, factories, residential complexes, food farms and stability maintenance centers. Resources are mined in space by mining and cargo ships, but before that it is necessary to explore the places of accumulation of minerals using probes equipped with a special scanner. Then comes processing in factories: from iron we get alloys, from carbon – polymers, from silicon – electronics. Without these materials, it is impossible to build and repair the complex, which threatens to lose. The main resource is labor, which does not increase naturally, but is mined. Chastity harms “Tikkun” and there is only one way to get workers – to find cryocapsules with survivors, defrost them in a cryocenter and only then understand whether the new resident will be a Worker or a Non-Worker, that is, a burden. In the absence of the required number of people in the sector, breakdowns and strikes will begin – harbingers of collapse.
It is necessary to carefully monitor the state of each of the six sectors and manually transfer the population and in semi-automatic mode the missing resources. Such micromanagement will inevitably lead to errors or forgetfulness, and since there are no autosaves here, sometimes you will have to replay hundreds of in-game cycles, which take hours.
Scientific research is another integral part of progress with access to new technologies. Decisions on investing valuable points must be made wisely, because at first there are few of them, which hinders development and also threatens collapse. There are many questions: improve energy-producing solar panels, increase the capacity of the hospital or speed up the movement of the Tikkun? There will be no clear answer.
The station leader is the person responsible for words and actions. All false promises will be reflected in practice and the trust of the residents will evaporate. In general, the “Trust” scale is the most important component that needs to be carefully monitored. Ixion explains that people are extremely capricious creatures and when deviating from normality, they panic and are ready to derail their own survival. They need to be fed, hate overtime, are scared of the current situation and demand attention to their own requests. There are enough ways to increase their faith, and massive propaganda plays an important role. But it is worth making a few wrong steps, as everything will go to hell, and the game is over.
The interface is intuitive and copes with providing information. There are hot keys, a mini-map, necessary sensors, but more attention should have been paid to the Probe Scanner, since accidental launches are not uncommon.
Without a doubt, Ixion is a beautiful strategy with realistically displayed objects, where you can feel the coldness, cruelty and attractive power of space. Yes, somewhere you can find fault with small details, but the graphics are impressive. The same cannot be said about optimization, not only is the game demanding, but it also manages to slow down a lot in places on the recommended configuration.
There is incredible sound design – the tracks were written by composer Guillaume David, who worked on Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus and created fifteen compositions that fit perfectly into the unobtrusive, organic sounds of the environment and vividly convey the atmosphere of loneliness in boundless space.
A thoughtful player should expect that the passage will take at least 25-30 hours. Ixion has plot forks and several endings.
Ixion is a rather capricious economic strategy with a great story that is unlikely to surprise fans of sci-fi, but impressive within the framework of a game from a modest studio. It looks great, charms with its setting and at one point hits with a hammer of difficulty. Despite all the shortcomings and reservations, the game is worth attention and should appeal to fans of Frostpunk. Ixion can make a pleasant first impression, but a relaxing stroll will become a survival with meticulous planning. However, no one expected that an experimental flight to another planetary system will turn a spaceship into the last ark of humanity.
