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Homeworld: Cataclysm
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An Expansion-Sequel
Vancouver-based newcomer Barking Dog Studios was also inspired by Homeworld's design. So inspired, in fact, that it jumped at the chance to write the next chapter. But Cataclysm will be more than the expected simple mission pack or add-on; Barking Dog wants it to be more like a sequel.

Blow it up!

Blow it up!

Blow it up!

"Cataclysm will be a full-fledged game that incorporates the Homeworld engine, several new features, and many more missions than would be found on an expansion pack," explains Chris Stewart, a designer at Barking Dog Studios. Sierra claims there will be 17 missions in the finished product; Homeworld featured 16. Consequently, Sierra is planning to price Cataclysm at $49.99. Barking Dog has some new concepts in store, as well as a radical departure in terms of story; the new elements should help put that price in perspective.

Cataclysm takes place some 15 years after the events in Homeworld. The Kushan have settled Hiigara and set about taming their surroundings. One faction, the Somtaaw, feels marginalized and disenfranchised by the Kushans; that faction has moved to the outskirts of Hiigara and begun trading and mining. The game begins with you in possession of a large mining ship (similar to a mothership) and answering a distress call from the Kushan fleet.

It seems that pirates have attacked a Kushan vessel, but the threat soon reveals itself to be something much greater. Soon, the small ragtag group of miners and tradesmen who operate the mining ships must transform their vessels into a mothership and start creating warships, all in the name of survival.

From that first pirate attack onward, Cataclysm becomes a battle of choices. For every decision you make, there is a trade-off. If you beef up your shields, you are probably doing so at the expense of your weaponry.

"Homeworld was all about making tactical decisions, and, in Cataclysm, everything we've added is designed to deepen existing choices or create new strategic options," says Stewart. "Every choice a player makes will focus their resources in one area, but take away from another. What fleet will I play with, how will I use my support units to build a fleet, should I use my workers for salvage or harvesting, should I move my command ship, should I develop weapons or armor? These are just a few of the questions players will be asking themselves constantly throughout the game."

Here comes The Beast

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