Cantata

Release Date: August 15, 2023

Strategy, science fiction, turn-based, 4X, tactics, for 2 players, indie games, multiplayer, singleplayer, hot seat, internet

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Cantata is a tactical 4X strategy focusing on characters and logistics. We take part in a conflict of humans, conscious machines and aliens on a distant planet, fighting turn-based battles and taking care of supply chains.

Plot
Mechanics
Game modes
Technical aspects and other

Cantata is a 4X science fiction strategy with a focus on tactical battles and logistics. Contrary to many similar games, the action takes place not in space, but on the surface of the planet. The game was developed by the New York-based independent studio Afterschool with support from Modern Wolf. Previously, the developers created an unusual battle royale The Beach.

The project began life as a kind of answer to the established schemes of strategy games and initially was to be set in a cyberpunk universe. Only later did the developers changed the style and storyline, referring to the classic conflict of three civilizations, although it is not another copy of StarCraft.

Plot

Cantata takes us to the distant planet of Shoal, where three factions fight against each other: humans, robots and aliens. Players must lead one of them in a huge conflict, in which survival is at stake. However, this is not the typical clash of machine pragmatism, human determination and emotion, and advanced alien technology. We learn about each side's motives through a campaign divided into nine vast maps.

Mechanics

Following the rules of strategy, we start the game with a small base and a limited number of units. The game is played in turns, in which - just like in other 4X games - we explore the map and develop our facilities in order to eventually eliminate other players. The vast maps are divided into square fields on which we move units.

Cantata lets you choose from nine officers (COs), as in Advance Wars, with unique abilities. The game focuses a lot on these characters: it is around them that the whole story revolves, and each of them has their own huge map in the campaign. In addition, all three factions use a number of units and buildings unique to that faction. What's more, maps are more than just a theatre of warfare. All locations are full of secrets and fauna, which, together with the weather conditions, can be used for your own purposes - as long as you carry out reconnaissance beforehand.

The developers of Cantata have applied an unusual solution to the economy. As in other strategies, development boils down to constructing more buildings and finding new resources. However, no structure is independent - it is necessary to create supply chains like in Factorio. This means that the lack of even one element (for example, destroyed by rivals) is enough to collapse logistics, which will deprive us of access to advanced units and even technologies.

Game modes

Cantata allows you to play solo in skirmishes against the artificial intelligence or nine story campaigns (one for each map) with an estimated 20 hours of gameplay. The multiplayer mode was not forgotten either. The game allows to compete (or cooperate) both online and locally using the hot seat mode.

The developers have also prepared an editor, which allows you to create new maps, but also extended scenarios that can offer significantly different gameplay from that prepared by the Afterschool studio.

Technical aspects and other

Afterschool Studio team decided to use old-school graphics in a pixel art style, although cutscenes are presented in the form of cartoon animations. The authors were inspired by the colourful visuals of Beglitched from 2016 and used unusual colours to give familiar objects and landscapes an alien feel.

The game offers support for fan modifications and allows you to combine them in various combinations to add variety to the gameplay.

Videos and Screens

[1:00] Cantata Early Access trailer

[1:30] Cantata gameplay trailer #1