Mars
Genre:
Role-playing (RPG)
Platforms:
PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Colonisation and the great catastrophe
The game begins 200 years after the colonisation of Mars. The planet has not been terraformed as such although its air has been rendered breathable. While colons settled on the planet 70 years ago in different enclaves, Mars turned around its axis and changed its orbit. This tumult not only completely shut down communication with Earth, it also spread death and destruction, creating unprecedented chaos in the planet’s colonies.
Many inhabitants were forced to leave the cities in ruins and destroyed agricultural land, exposing themselves to solar radiation. Most of them died, but some survived and mutated, taking shelter as quickly as possible. Other colons managed to stay in more or less undamaged cities, taking shelter from the now deadly sunrays.
Very soon the survivors were confronted with a problem : water, which abounded in the past has suddenly become extremely rare. The companies in charge of this commodity became very powerful, controlling most enclaves and bargaining with the life of the people.
Isolated, at the mercy of solar radiation with no water, the colons quickly deteriorate from a technological standpoint, sinking into decadence. Factories and mines are virtually abandoned. The metal manufactured is now mostly from recovered material. The people living in Mars live in a technologically medieval standard while using highly advanced technological remains they hardly control.
Now
Today, two kinds of people live on Mars : those who never left the security of their city, the so-called True People who are free of mutations, and those who have been exposed to radiation, the Ashes from Mars, who are mostly slaves of the former.
Water circulates from one city to another as far as the cultivated lands via aqueducts which create the so-called shadow paths, covered roads which allow free movement from one place to another.
Various water guilds rule over the planet and fight for supremacy. The political power they exercise is authoritarian : any form of rebellion is punished by death without trial. Water has become a weapon like any other : by simply stopping it from getting to a village life can be destroyed. This is also the case of the sun, since exposing a district to its light is enough to get rid of all its occupants. There is virtually no opposition in place, just a few isolated individuals here and there or a few Ashes from Mars raising objections in breach of the law, living in the worst districts or city slums.
The game begins 200 years after the colonisation of Mars. The planet has not been terraformed as such although its air has been rendered breathable. While colons settled on the planet 70 years ago in different enclaves, Mars turned around its axis and changed its orbit. This tumult not only completely shut down communication with Earth, it also spread death and destruction, creating unprecedented chaos in the planet’s colonies.
Many inhabitants were forced to leave the cities in ruins and destroyed agricultural land, exposing themselves to solar radiation. Most of them died, but some survived and mutated, taking shelter as quickly as possible. Other colons managed to stay in more or less undamaged cities, taking shelter from the now deadly sunrays.
Very soon the survivors were confronted with a problem : water, which abounded in the past has suddenly become extremely rare. The companies in charge of this commodity became very powerful, controlling most enclaves and bargaining with the life of the people.
Isolated, at the mercy of solar radiation with no water, the colons quickly deteriorate from a technological standpoint, sinking into decadence. Factories and mines are virtually abandoned. The metal manufactured is now mostly from recovered material. The people living in Mars live in a technologically medieval standard while using highly advanced technological remains they hardly control.
Now
Today, two kinds of people live on Mars : those who never left the security of their city, the so-called True People who are free of mutations, and those who have been exposed to radiation, the Ashes from Mars, who are mostly slaves of the former.
Water circulates from one city to another as far as the cultivated lands via aqueducts which create the so-called shadow paths, covered roads which allow free movement from one place to another.
Various water guilds rule over the planet and fight for supremacy. The political power they exercise is authoritarian : any form of rebellion is punished by death without trial. Water has become a weapon like any other : by simply stopping it from getting to a village life can be destroyed. This is also the case of the sun, since exposing a district to its light is enough to get rid of all its occupants. There is virtually no opposition in place, just a few isolated individuals here and there or a few Ashes from Mars raising objections in breach of the law, living in the worst districts or city slums.
Released on Dec 31st 2010
Summary:
Mars is a Sci-fi RPG action game that innovatively merges character development and light and rythmic fights. it takes you on a journey deep into an original futuristic universe and presents you with scenarios dealing with difference, racism and environment.Mars aims to renew the RPG gaming experience with more intuitive, faster and more gratifying action phases, while at the same time keeping the specific main features of the genre. The idea is to blend two genres, Beat’em all Action and RPG, combining character progression, immersion, equipment collection, additional quests and a solid storyline with rhythmic combat sequences, a sense of power from the beginning of the game and of course QTE and bosses with sequential behaviour.
This combination leads to a true innovative gameplay supported by many other key features : you can choose between two characters whose different stories intertwine and whose skills vary.
The game’s environment has been designed to be an asset in itself, or an important part of the gameplay, with lighting effects which create unprecedented combat situations.
The world created for Mars has been designed to offer a true voyage in the heart of a totally new universe mingling decadent futuristic technology and precarious survival on a planet with highly extreme conditions.
The storyline leads you to discover your own identity in a web of political intrigue and complex conflicts between forces, allowing you to better understand the world you are travelling. Many scripted sequences give rise to the action and storyline, creating unforgettable moments.
- Combat
The combat phases are dynamic and spectacular no matter your level of implication during the quests.
Most confrontations are brief : you move from one enemy to the other striking or throwing spells one after the
other. Combat against the bosses or champions lasts longer though, as you must use different tactics to beat them.
As you can also modify your environment by breaking part of a roof or moving metal plates to use light as a weapon, the fights gain a more strategic dimension.
Playing the role of Pandora is as intense as playing Seth. To make her cast her most powerful spells a precise timing is required as well as constant movement to avoid being interrupted. Even though she is less powerful she is more agile, and just like the warrior needs his weapons, she is nothing without her gauntlets which allow her to canalize her fluid.
All enemies, if wounded enough, can be finished off in a spectacular way.
- Two characters : two stories and two forms of gameplay
Mars allows you to choose between two characters with different skills and
Abilities : Seth, is an elite soldier and highly skilled fighter who tends to act brutally even if athletically. As he progresses in the game he can learn many special attacks and how to master new weapons.
Pandora on the other hand is a technomancer who handles fluids with catalyst gauntlets to produce devastating magic. But more than just using different skills, playing each character results in a different control and gameplay. Their story varies a lot even though it follows a similar course, allowing you to discover two versions of Mars.
- Light effects
On Mars sunlight is deadly, which means you can use it during combat to beat your enemies. Seth and Pandora can make gaps in rooftops of different buildings they are fighting on to expose their opponents to sunrays, use mirrors to reflect light on them or push them away from the protection of shady paths.
You can modify the architecture of the environment during combat while making sure your character is not exposed to sunrays and watch out for shadows moving position around the sun’s movement. The impact the sun has on the gameplay provides a new feature not only during combat but during the entire game itself.
- A new world
The Mars universe is unprecedented, not at all like normal mythological or fantasy worlds, offering a journey in a credible futuristic world where survival and the ability to adapt are keys to be able to withstand a hostile, desperate and decadent environment. The game’s story, complex political system and religion, as well as its many creatures and different inhabitants lead you through an unforgettable journey in an "extraterrestrial" world.
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