Fractured Space: Big Guns in Space!
As soon as the timer hit zero, with the colossal warship TDS Leviathan at my command, I activated my jump drive and warped to the Beta Sector where an enemy starship warped in as well - a USR Colossus. Undetected, I carefully positioned my ship behind a rock and waited for the Colossus to reach my ship's range threshold.
The moment my Tempest Cannon's indicator lit up, I immediately came out from hiding and launched a Magma Lance torpedo to break the Colossus' armor. I then activated the Leviathan's Fusion Beam ability, shooting a powerful laser on the Colossus' port side and cutting its hit points in half. Startled and terrified, the half-charred enemy Colossus launched his fighter squadron and started bombarding me with his Flak Cannons and dorsal missiles.
I knew he would use all his abilities so I decided to fight fire with fire. I wound up and fired my Tempest Cannons to deliver the killing blow. With a fiery explosion complemented by a shockwave, the Colossus was split into half, earning me a compliment from my team for taking out that tanky ship.
Fractured Space is a free-to-play shooter and MOBA mashed into one. That's right, it's totally free. At the start of the game, you will be brought to your hangar where you'll see the ships you own. The way the game works outside will probably remind you of War Thunder and World of Tanks - you collect ships and crews, upgrade them, and customize them. However, the moment you enter a match, that is where the MOBA factor kicks in.
Fractured Space offers two modes - Frontline mode which offers a single land-type game and Conquest mode where you will feel that "MOBA vibe".
In Conquest Mode, which is their standard game mode, the map is divided into sectors: the Alpha and Beta Sectors on both sides, the Gamma Sector in the middle, and the two home sectors for each team.
Just like in League of Legends, the goal of the Conquest Mode is to destroy your enemies' base. But, to do that, you must first capture the enemy forward base to gain jump access to their main base. To level up your team's ships, you must take control of the mining stations located in the Alpha and Beta sectors. Similar with LoL's dragon, every few minutes, the Gamma sector will be online and the team that takes control of it will be granted a buff for the whole team.
In terms of map visuals, the entirety of the space looks stunning. Large chunks of floating rocks, asteroids, and towering pillars of obsidian set the "mood" that you really are battling in space. These elements were placed there strategically, that's for sure.
The gameplay basically relies on your your tactical judgement, crew choice, and your ship. For example, if you're using a USR Colossus which is the biggest ship in the game, you should have a crew that gives movement speed, fire rate and armor buffs, don't expect subtlety when warping in sectors, be aware of your firing range, and be ready to engage ships smaller than you. Although the controls are three-dimensional (up and down/left and right), your ship can't roll over and your degree of tilt is limited. Aiming comes in manual and a few cases of homing system so a good decision-making is vital.
For new players, the interface might be pretty overwhelming at first, even after doing the tutorial. Heck, I felt like being eaten alive by the interface way back in its Closed Beta. But as you play the game over and over again, everything else will start to come by as a normal thing. Although, I think the slow pacing of every match will turn most gamers off. But, that's what you should expect with a game that has huge spaceships.
As of right now, the game offers more than 40 ships, 3 of which will be unlocked after the tutorial while the others can be unlocked by earning credits from matches and buying them. Every ship is unique in a way that their abilities and looks differ from each other regardless of their class.
The Leviathan, for example, belongs to the Heavy class, the same class of the Colossus, but it's more mobile, has a sleeker silhouette, and is better at medium range rather than at close range. This ship is currently my favorite because of its Fusion Beam, which in my opinion, sounds so satisfying when fired.
The Colossus, on the other hand, is a heavy defence ship, and fulfills this role by placing its bulky armour between enemy fire and vulnerable friendlies before moving in to tackle the foe at close range.
Fractured Space is a game that feels rewarding and exciting. It requires you to think to be able to outmatch your opponents. It's still in the progress of growth, and I'm sure that as it matures, more and more people will notice and jump in. Fans of sci-fi series like Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica will definitely feel that they're commanding a huge ship while playing this game. I know I did. Download the game via Steam by clicking here.