The reasons that contributed to the different success stories of space RTS games Homeworld and O.R.B. Faculty of Arts Department of Game Design Author: Rokas Paulauskas Bachelor Thesis in Game Design, 15 hp Program: Game Design and Programming Supervisor: Masaki Hayashi Examiner: Patrick Prax May, 2021 Abstract Sometimes games that belong to the same genre achieve different levels of success among the player base of the genre. As an example, of two space RTS games Homeworld (released in 1999) and O.R.B. (re‑ leased in 2002), which feature a similar setting and similar gameplay mechanics, Homeworld has been more successful. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the reasons for the different popularity of the two games, using game reviews as the primary source of data to learn about the strengths and the weaknesses of the two games. Thematic analysis has been applied to a total of 27 game reviews of space RTS games Homeworld and O.R.B. Codes describing various strong and weak aspects of both games have been extracted from the texts. The codes have been grouped into various categories tradi‑ tionally described in game reviews, such as the story line, the UI, the graphics, etc. Using these codes as a basis, a number of explanations have been suggested as to why the game Homeworld has been more successful than the game O.R.B. The main reasons discovered are that Homeworld was released several years before its competitor and that some of important game features of O.R.B. suffered from poorer technical execution in comparison to equivalent features in Homeworld. Key words: Homeworld, O.R.B., space RTS, game design, thematic analysis, game reviews Table of Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Background 2 2.1 Target games ............................................ 2 2.1.1 Space RTS game ..................................... 2 2.1.2 Homeworld ........................................ 3 2.1.3 O.R.B. ........................................... 4 2.2 Popularity of the two Games .................................. 4 2.3 Game Review Analysis ...................................... 4 3 Methodology 6 3.1 Thematic Analysis ........................................ 6 3.2 Process of the Analysis ...................................... 6 3.2.1 Data ............................................ 6 3.2.2 Coding ........................................... 7 3.2.3 Grouping the Codes ................................... 8 4 Results and Analysis 10 4.1 Full 3D Environment ....................................... 10 4.2 Storyline and Plot ......................................... 11 4.3 UI and Camera Control ...................................... 11 4.4 General Graphics ......................................... 12 4.5 Models, Textures and Details .................................. 13 4.6 Cinematics and Cutscenes .................................... 13 4.7 Sound ................................................ 14 4.8 Music and Soundtrack ...................................... 14 4.9 Multiplayer ............................................ 15 4.10 Technical Execution ........................................ 15 4.11 Other ................................................ 16 4.12 Design Decisions ......................................... 17 5 Conclusion 19 References 21 Appendixes 23 1 Introduction Whether a game becomes a successful product or not depends on various factors and often without a deeper look at the context surrounding the development, release and critical reception of the games in question it is not easy to understand why games of seemingly comparable quality achieved different levels of success. Two games, Homeworld (1999) and O.R.B.: Off‑World Resource Base (2002), target similar audiences of game players who play space RTS (Real‑Time Strategy) games. Homeworld has been more successful of the two, although both games feature a similar setting and similar gameplay mechanics. Different outcomes after the release of the two games raise the question why they have been received differently by the space RTS player base. This paper introduces a case study of two games of the same genre, aiming to suggest an expla‑ nation for how specific differences in the two games made thegame Homeworld more successful than O.R.B. The case study in this paper can be useful to RTS game developers by presenting a comparative study of two similar RTS games and revealing gaming community reactions to various aspects of these games so that developers working on future products can hopefully find useful examples appropriate to their projects. Therefore, the research question is: “Which factors made the game Homeworld more successful than the game O.R.B.?” The thematic analysis method was used to analyze game reviews of the two games to discover each game’s strengths and weaknesses as perceived by the reviewers and players. The subjective player experiences are linked back to the underlying game design decisions and other factors in the two games. Then it becomes easier to reason about how a specific factor succeeded or failed in helping each of the two games to achieve its current standing with the player base of space RTS fans, where Homeworld is clearly seen as superior to O.R.B. 1 2 Background 2.1 Target games The two games chosen for this case study are Homeworld (1999) by a Canadian video game developer Relic Entertainment and O.R.B. (2002) by another Canadian video game developer Strategy First. Both games are RTS games set in space and feature a full 3D game environment where units can freely move in any direction. (a) Screenshot from Homeworld (b) Screenshot from O.R.B. Figure 1: Screenshots from Homeworld and O.R.B. single player campaigns The games belong to the RTS genre and make use of typical RTS gameplay elements, such as resource harvesting to gain money, building units and researching technologies to unlock more pow‑ erful units and special abilities. As in most RTS games, the objective is to eliminate the opposing force using an army that the player has built. 2.1.1 Space RTS game RTS (Real‑Time Strategy) is a video game genre that appeared in the 1990s and was very popular since then until around 2010. Famous RTS games and game series like Warcraft (1994), Command and Conquer (1995) and StarCraft (1998) contributed significantly to the growth of the genre. In a strategy game, the player usually controls multiple units instead of just the main hero (the avatar) to represent the player. The player also owns structures (land buildings) which produce new units to build an army. The army is then used to destroy the opponent’s army or achieve a particular goal in the game. 2 The gameplay mechanics of a strategy game imply that the player is in control of a whole military‑ economical system rather than just the units. In most strategy games, it is necessary to gather resources to be able to build new structures and units as well as research new technologies to improve existing or unlock new units. Strategy games belong to either of two broad categories – turn‑based strategy and real‑time strat‑ egy. In a turn‑based strategy game, players take turns issuing orders to their armies. While the player whose turn it is is planning what to do, the other players have to wait for their turn. In a real‑time strategy game, there is no concept of “turns”; instead all players act simultaneously and the game world experiences the consequences of the player’s actions as soon as they are issued. A space RTS is a real‑time strategy game set in space. “Space” here refers to the overall premise of the game; players might be able to control space stations and build ships, harvest asteroids for re‑ sources and fight using advanced futuristic technologies. The conflict is fueled by extreme differences in the motivations, values and nature of large‑scale opposing forces, such as two civilizations based on different planets or even galaxies, each seeking domination in space, or by a civilization’s fightfor survival against a powerful destructive force. The first RTS games were strictly confined to 2D terrain even if they depicted a conflict inspace. The players would control two‑dimensional units, usually from a top‑down perspective, similarly to how chess pieces are moved around the chessboard. In the second half of the 1990s the first game titles were released which featured units and other in‑game objects that were animated using an isometric perspective, thereby creating an illusion of 3D. However, it was only with the release of the PC game Homeworld (1999) by Relic Entertainment that introduced a completely 3D game environment where there was no “terrain” and where the units could move in any three‑dimensional direction. All in‑game objects were actual 3D models that could be viewed from any angle. Several titles, such as O.R.B. (2002) by Strategy First were released later and also featured a completely 3D environment. 2.1.2 Homeworld Homeworld is a 3D RTS game set in space that was developed by Relic Entertainment and released in 1999. It was the first RTS game that used a fully 3D game environment and this feature was notedand praised by game critics and players. Homeworld follows the journey of the protagonist race, called the Kushan, from their home planet Kharak to what they discover to be their true home planet, Hiigara, from which they had been expelled long ago for some unknown reason. As they travel across the galaxy, they have to stand their ground against the Taiidani Empire intent on destroying them. Apart from the innovative 3D environment, Homeworld has all the characteristic features of a typ‑ ical RTS game – harvesting, researching and building units (space ships) to fight the enemy. The 3D environment expands the strategic possibilities of the RTS genre since attacks on the player can come from any direction and likewise, the player can plan and attack from any angle. 3 2.1.3 O.R.B. O.R.B. is another RTS title set in space that was developed by Strategy First and released in 2002. Its similar 3D game environment following the success of Homeworld set the basis for extensive compar‑ isons between the two games by the gaming community.