Galcon is an RTS game for the iPhone/iPod that strips out all the micromanagement, tech trees, and resource gathering leaving you with a simple but engrossing game that’s a really good fit for the platform.

Each game begins with a random layout of 20 - 30 unaligned planets spread around the screen. Every planet has a number representing the quantity of spaceships defending it. In the majority of modes you and you opponent/s start with a single planet each and a large army of ships docked on this planet. Your job is to move your ships from planet to planet, expanding your empire by invading unaligned planets to build up strength before finally crushing the opponent’s planets to claim victory.

As time passes the number of ships on each aligned planet will grow - this is dependant on the size of the planet. Larger planets produce ships faster, so invading poorly defended bigger planets is an early priority. After the initial rapid expansion of both sides it’s all about finding a balance between defending your important large planets whilst eating into your opponent’s empire. This is the real core of the game, it’s really enjoyable trying to expand, defend and build up an attacking force under the threat of attack. Keeping an eye on things is made simple by the games single non-scrolling play field, even when things get busy with multiple enemies out to get you. Playing one opponent is fun, but with more opponents the game excels. The game has support for matches against 2 CPU players which was my favourite way to play until this weeks update.

The update has added local and internet play to the game, and instantly improved my already favourable opinion of the game. Other human’s unexpected tactics really spice things up. Do you go all out to squash your neighbour early on or try to stay out of the conflict to build a force to mop up the survivors of your rivals battles? The online games I’ve played (through wi-fi) have performed well and been over extremely quickly you can probably play a match a minute, stats are even tracked online with leaderboards on the games homepage, all more than I was expecting from the first wave of iTunes apps.

Units are moved from planet to planet by dragging your finger from one planet to another; it’s intuitive and works well. Multiple planets can be selected at once letting you unleash mighty armadas of green triangle space ships across the galaxy with ease.

Games generally take a couple of minutes though later more challenging AI levels can take longer to resolve, more often than not with the “You lose” screen. The speed of battles added to the simplicity of the game rules, lack of scrolling and the effectiveness of the controls make it ideal for on the go play.

Galcon is a lovely game to have in your pocket for the times you’re waiting for a bus, or on the train. It’s simple, addictive and the addition of multiplayer has elevated it to something I’ll play a bit of at home as well, as well as making the $9.99 price tag a little more palatable.

Posted in iPhone games | No Comments »