The v0.7a release of Steam Marines adds two new enemy droids to the procedurally generated, steampunk set space Roguelike. The Thopter and the Bucket are lighter faster enemies that are designed to split up and eviscerate your squad of vulnerable fleshy marines.
More below, including a link to the free release(!).
It seems that space travel is forever plagued by killer whatsits and murderous thingamibobs, Steam Marines is no different: this time it’s rampaging death-inducing robots that are on the loose and you’ve only an array of guns, grenades, and turn-based wits between you and their bloody demise.
Currently a free release, each game of Steam Marines generates a new ship for you to cower within, tasking you with forever travelling deeper into the belly of the machine, facing tougher enemies and more explosives reminders of your mortality. It’s a standard fare for roguelikes in that respect. Though Steam Marines does play differently from other roguelikes, employing things like splash damage, ammo, and action points it’s as reminiscent of XCOM as it is ofAngband.
I’ve played a few quick games (you can download the current version, it’s completelyfree) and things worth noting:
- Engage robots from a distance – in the early stages of the game it only takes one hit from an enemy to turn a marine into two very separate halves of a marine.
- If used in close proximity, the grenadier’s weapon, as should be expected, will vaporise the grenadier as well as the droid.
- Separating your team will not end well. At all.