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Introduction

Take the typical real-time strategy formula, toss out the resource management, unit production, and base construction, then throw in some nice graphics and what you’ll get is Dogs of War. While not entirely innovative, this new brand of RTS gaming is fast becoming the latest effort in trying to overcome the drawbacks and shortcomings of the classic RTS platform. It’s questionable whether this alternative perspective will ultimately reign supreme. With Dogs of War, it produces some moderately pioneering gameplay, although the new formula in this case has not been perfected as much as it could have been.

You can’t fault Talonsoft for wanting to expand their lineup of games, but Dogs of War may not have been the best vehicle for achieving diversity. The game has its high points, while failing in several key areas that in the end, produce an overall frustrating experience. After playing Dogs of War, it makes you wonder if the game finished its course in the play-testing department because of some seemingly overlooked problems that are simply not fixable with a patch. Dogs of War is a visual treat, but upon closer inspection it is revealed to be a tightly scripted puzzle game sprinkled with a few elements of real-time strategy gaming. Like many RTS games of today, Dogs of War does away with base building and resource gathering. However, after eliminating two-thirds of what would be the standard RTS formula, the one-third that is left–tactics and story-- must be reinforced with greater focus on action, and stronger character development, a la Myth. Sadly, with Dogs of War these elements largely remain as they would have been in the classic RTS mold–in a word, boring. With mission scripting that leaves no room for strategical maneuvering or even tactical planning, you are left with a game that looks nice but plays like a dog. That’s not to say Dogs of War is a lifeless game. Nevertheless, there is one, and only one way to play it.

An introductory cut scene sets the stage for an exciting game about some alien reptilian creatures attacking a human outpost on a foreign planet somewhere in space. Combined with a funky soundtrack, the intro conveys the story behind Dogs of War as good as any FMV could. Additionally, the first publicly released screenshots of Dogs of War showed a promising real-time tactical strategy game with a very impressive 3D engine. In deed, Dogs of War features some rather impressive visual designs. Most notable are the smoke trails of rocket-propelled weapons and the spectacular way in which units explode. Apart from the pyrotechnical and lighting effects, are very detailed urban settings that are quite convincing. Everything in the game is done to scale, so that a human really looks small compared to some of the towering buildings in the cities. Also, in many games of this type the infantry are the fastest units on the map. In Dogs of War however, infantry are more accurately depicted as the slowest units. Most of the maps are well-designed with careful attention to detail, especially for some of the bridges and various other structures which are quite realistic in appearance. Maps consist of a variety of natural landscape, with human structures placed in designated locations. The only visual glitch with the map designs is the way in which the edge of the map is simply cut off, creating an ugly layered cake effect that becomes distracting when you’re rotating your view of the game.