Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander Reviews
Halycon 6: Starbase Commander may lack the nuances of some of its peers, but it nonetheless delivers a charming and moreish strategy RPG for science fiction fans to enjoy.
Despite a few small details holding it back, Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is one of those titles that cannot be recommended enough to fans of 4X games, JRPGs or space-based science fiction.
I have, despite my gripes, but it’s less than the sum of all those parts that I couldn’t help but see the edges of as I played, and I was longing for more engaging combat long before the end. Even if the galaxy continues to grow, I don’t think I’ll return even.
It feels like a missed opportunity. It starts okay, but it’s not long before the downtime or micro-management begin to push the enjoyable segments of gameplay further and further apart.
_____________________________ “An intimidating UI and a stark jump in difficulty prevent Halcyon 6 from true greatness, but the game in its current form is still quite unique, and unlike anything I’ve ever played before.
An addictive mix of strategy, RPG, exploration and storytelling, Halcyon 6 is slow to start but should satisfy anyone craving a deep, retro-affectionate science fiction adventure.
Ultimately Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a game that’s fun in short bursts with considerable levels of potential that shine through in its combat, but the sheer level of busywork in-between sometimes felt unnecessary and too time-consuming for my liking.
All in all, Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a deeply-involved game with a huge number of things to keep players busy. With a freshly-generated map and sequence of events for each new start, the experience is ever-changing and presents a wide variety of ways for players to approach it.
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a fantastic game. The gameplay, visuals, and goofiness of the game are treats. I didn't necessarily enjoy the ramping difficulty of the game; I found myself almost destroyed 30 days into the campaign against a single alien fleet that ripped my three ships apart. Combined with the randomness that can potentially kill you (I ended up losing one of those ships in a random encounter) means even the best intentions can kill you. If you enjoy the threat of imminent death with fun gameplay, this one is for you.
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a fun (and funny) game with great art and novel ideas. For a casual experience, it’s a game that offers a lot of enjoyment, but can get a little stale pretty quickly. It’s a large improvement on everything that’s good about the games I love on iOS, but it doesn’t manage to bridge that gap to a full-fledged PC game completely, leaving you hanging in a few areas wishing for a bit more depth.
Strategy, resource management, and RPG combat in one charmingly nostalgic package
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is an addictive title that require tons of micromanaging, but it's somehow still fun.
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander presents a tough game to rate: its composite elements set it up to be an awesome experience but it fails to meet the bar it raised. The mix of so many great franchises easily could set itself up to be a great game with crazy replayability; the problem is as it currently is, the novelty wears off quickly and the grind becomes real with no end in sight. The resource gathering is far too bland and repetitious, the battles start cool but devolve into similar, repetitive outcomes. There is nothing new as it is just more of the same, which was grindy to begin with. All the elements present come close to being this awesome game, but in the end the repetition of the core elements and the endless grind make it hard to recommend at this point, which is very unfortunate.
For some, these performance issues will be a bit too much to handle. While they didn’t entirely ruin my experience with Halcyon 6, I could see it being a problem for others. The addictive “one more turn” aspect of the gameplay was enough to get me hooked, as you are almost constantly making micro – and macro – management decisions in order to improve the efficiency of your dealings, as well as keep your galaxy safe. If it weren’t for these technical hurdles, I would go as far as to say that Halcyon 6 is a must-own for the Switch, but you’ll have to watch some gameplay in order to see if those hiccups are worth the entry price. Either way, I can’t recommend it enough, as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into.
This is one of the few titles I have played this year that I plan on revisiting over the years for a great time.
Halcyon 6 has tremendous promise, but tedious resource gathering, repetitive combat, and bugs hurt what is otherwise an ambitious and interesting space sim. I can't quite recommend it right now, but I'd check back in six months or so: It may well be on its way to being something truly special.
when I look back at my overall experience with Halcyon 6 Starbase Commader, I can’t help but nod at the enjoyment I had with the game. Its elements weren’t all original, particularly with the blatant X-Com base set up, but the game’s character helped set it apart. With enjoyable gameplay split between space and ground, battling your foes in Halcyon 6 is engrossing and loads of fun.
A bit too repetitive when it comes to missions, but Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander makes up for it with an addictive character progression system.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review