Criminally, Drox Operative has not yet got a steam release and so may not yet yet have registered on the radars of every gamer. However, I'm not alone in loving this little gem of space exploration and combat. As usual the brilliant review at 'Rock Paper Shotgun' encouraged me to try the game out properly.
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/12/21/wot-i-think-drox-operative/
I'm exceedingly glad I did. After dabbling my toes in the demo previously, I have completed my first sector in as close to a single session as I have clocked since completing Halo 1's Library on Legendary difficulty.
The gameplay can be a bit confusing at times. There are half a dozen buttons that I haven't dared to press yet and it can feel somewhat incongruous to be sitting in space after a furious battle comparing the energy output of different battery arrays. However, the vividly living universe and the quality of the narratives created more than make up for the slight learning curve.
I started the game and appeared in the sparsely populated home system of the brutish Brunt. I quickly became their favourite operative as I carried out quests and handed over nuclear technology with only slight ethical concerns. As I strayed out into the wider area I realised that this sector was unmistakably a dangerous place. Notifications came in that the plant-like Dryads and expansionist robot Utopians had been eliminated by more aggressive rivals.
However, I had little trouble in locating three stargates and meeting a few more races offering range of different missions. Initially this went fine and I managed to keep the Shadow, Talons, Brunt and Drakk happy. Even as their wars began I managed to stay on the sidelines and profit from the strife.
Then in the mid-game things hotted up. On a routine run into the most dangerous area I found myself fleeing from monster ships and braved a surprise wormhole to the previously unexplored Sion system. This turned out to be crowded with more enemies and I made a wild last stand at the Hive home planet. I was quickly overwhelmed and may have accidentally blown up the colony and exterminated the Hive faction (I certainly got rewarded for doing so).
After this blip I had to work a bit harder to keep above board. The Talons declared war on me and I ruthlessly wiped out each of their colonies with nuclear missiles. This pleased everyone else and I kept the Brunt sweet by supplying them with every technology that the Talons had researched for a meager 34 credits. However, slowly relations with each faction started to sour.
This meant that my last wild ride and its unexpected ending was a welcome relief. I picked up all the 'kill enemy' missions I could find and set out for a border area where a power vacuum had developed with the extermination of the Talons.
Thus began a 15 minute battle as I nuked my way through legions of enemies. I made sure to collect rewards as I finished the various quests and after taking down an especially nippy boss craft that easily outpaced my nuclear warheads I was confronted with the 'economic victory' screen and a tidy reward.
Granted this was the first sector and was probably comparatively very easy but if such a fast-moving space game even slightly appeals to you then you should seriously consider giving the demo a try:
http://www.soldak.com/Drox-Operative/Overview.html
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