Carnage Heart
Manufacturer: SCEA
Designer: ArtDink
Release: March '97
Controller: Standard Pad (No Mouse Support?)
Save Game: 5 blocks
Players: 1

Overview

Carnage Heart is a deep strategy game, in which you assume the role of Fleet 
Commander of the World Federation forces, waging futuristic war against a 
corporate conglomerate on the moons of Jupiter. Overkill Engines (or OKEs) 
are your tools of destruction as you build them, give them AI and set them 
loose against enemy units. From start to finish, the player is ultimately 
responsible for the success/failure of their designs. 

Gameplay

Two modes are available - campaign and vs. battle. You must have a saved 
campaign in order to play vs. battle. Four scenarios are available in 
campaign mode in increasing order of difficulty. The scenarios are 
independent of each other so they can be tackled in any fashion. Menus are 
well organized and easy to navigate through. The tutorial CD provides some 
insight into the game but ultimately, testing your designs is the best way 
to move along the learning curve.

Each scenario requires the player to conquer all enemy bases on the map(s). 
The player is responsible for setting up production of OKEs. Three basic 
designs are always available, but these units are inferior and can never be 
modified. Since an important part of the game is researching and purchasing 
new technologies for your OKEs, designing your own OKEs is mandatory to 
winning each scenario.

Movement is turn based, as is production. Combat is real-time, but since 
there is no human element involved, success hinges on good OKE design - 
both hardware and software. Choosing the hardware is simple: the hardware 
design screen has distinct icons for OKE body, engine, primary weapon, and 
so on. The key to good hardware design is balancing firepower, armor, fuel 
capacity, and production time. Players can try to overwhelm the enemy with 
hordes of cheap, easy to produce OKEs, pound the enemy with expensive 
technological terrors that take multiple turns to assemble, or blend 
strategies to produce victory. Software design is critical - players 
assemble "programs" using over 40 basic "chips" that perform basic 
functions such as scanning for enemies (and friends), movement, and firing 
weapons. Linking the chips together in a flowchart-like fashion completes 
the "program", but it is best to test your OKE against the basic designs 
provided by the game (or your own) before putting it into production.
The greatest enjoyment to be found in this game is from the creation of 
efficient "programs". I have beaten the game on all difficulty levels 
using hardware that was inferior to what the enemy used, but cheap and easy 
to produce. A good design excels at a particular task, whether it be 
evasion or relentless assault. When the campaign mode no longer presents 
a challenge to you, you can test your designs against other players using 
the vs. battle mode. The battle mode allows you to load up to 28 OKE 
designs from any saved campaigns, set up one-on-one or three-on-three 
battles, and have OKEs battle it out in single matches or tournaments. 
This feature definitely adds value to the game, especially since the 
Underground CD came out with the downloadable designs from the game's 
creators.

Graphics

This is a strategy game, so the map graphics and menus are nothing fancy. 
Battle graphics are well done, and slow downs are only noticeable when both 
sides are firing shotgun pellets all over the place. Collision detection is 
good, although the game does not have any discernible damage penalty for 
running into things (other than mines). Four basic camera views are 
available, and the free camera option is good for following battles that are 
spread out over the entire area. Zooming in and out, and camera rotation are 
possible using the d-pad and/or buttons with most of the camera views. 

Sound/Music

There are five music soundtracks that can be chosen by the player, or no 
sound at all if one wishes. One minor annoyance is that you cannot change 
the music while designing software "programs". The soundtracks are nothing 
fancy, so some players (like myself) will just turn to other musical sources 
for inspiration while playing. Sound effects in battle are excellent - each 
weapon has a distinct firing noise. Firepower and proximity affect the 
volume level of explosions.

Game Life Span

The campaign mode is (for most people) a one-shot deal. Once you complete 
the campaigns, one of the few reasons you might play them again is to see 
how much technology you could develop by deliberately delaying the enemy's 
demise. If that were all Carnage Heart had to offer, this game would 
probably be for die-hard strategy folks only, and it would have a life of 
about four weeks. The vs. battle mode gives Carnage Heart an added dimension 
of fun that will keep most people from shelving it for a few months. With 
enough players, Carnage Heart tournaments could become possible. Note that 
when thinking of playing vs. battle, it is best to have a saved campaign 
where the best possible technology is available. 

I was impressed with the depth of this game, and I'm still trying to make 
an OKE that can win 100% of the time. Bottom line: Check this title out!

- Russell Lautzenhiser