Alliance of the Sacred Suns

Alliance of the Sacred Suns is a 4X (explore, expand, exploit, exterminate) strategy game with RPG elements. The gameplay provides as much freedom as possible in building a cosmic empire. The game was developed by the KatHawk Studios.

Plot

The action takes place in the year 3050. A thousand years earlier, humanity left Earth escaping from the alien Xyl race and found a home on the planet New Terra, and then spent years rebuilding its population. As the player, we take on the role of Emperor or Empress of an intergalactic human empire that is in decline. Its regions are ruled by Noble Great Houses, powerful families competing with each other for influence in the feudal system. Our task is to mitigate any disputes and take care of fragile peace between warring parties.

At the beginning of the game we create our own ruler, and in the course of the game we'll have to make decisions determining his attitude towards particular factions and officials. These relationships are important for the functioning of the empire, so it is important to know with whom it is better to live in friendship, and who we don't have to bother.

Mechanics

Leading an empire has one main goal - to prepare for the attack of the Xyl, who plan the ultimate destruction of humanity. To do this, we must, within a certain time, strengthen our empire by uniting all the families or getting rid of those standing in our way.

Actions in the game are taken in turns, during which we have a limited number of action points. Lack of possibility to perform all available operations causes, that effective management of the state can be achieved only by reasonable estimation, on what it's more profitable to spend resources in the given moment. As befits a 4X style game, the tactical layer focuses mainly on diplomacy, economics and the economy of the country, not on combat, and it is in these fields that we will have to make the most decisions.

An important part of the game is taking care of relations with other characters. As the Emperor / Empress we make friends or alliances, thanks to which we receive a supply of new resources produced by a particular House, or punish those who disobey. Of course, you have to be careful here - holding someone hostage or ordering their execution can put your allies or family members at risk.

Each House has its own unique traits, determining their field of specialisation. We also have them, which we can choose at the beginning of the game, when creating our clan. Among the options available are bonuses to the development of new technologies, the ability to generate greater profits from trade or high efficiency diplomacy. Some of these differences result from the race of particular societies. During their escape from the Xyls, humanity encountered many new organisms on the way, which they mixed with, creating new species with their own characteristics.

The growth of our power accelerates the colonization of other regions of space. While exploring planets we gain information what resources are available on them and if we find them useful we can build and develop new settlements there. Space exploration also has another purpose: it allows us to contact other human civilisations, who can help us in our fight against the Xyls.

Technical aspects

Alliance of the Sacred Suns at the time of release featured an eye-pleasing graphic design, not differing in level from other games of this type. The game code itself was written with support for mods in mind, allowing players to create completely new factions and empires.