Homeworld
Description official descriptions
A discovery is about to turn the culture of Kharak upside down. The people, Kushan, are not native to Kharak at all. The discovery of the Guidestone is the ultimate proof that Kushan had came from another solar system, far away. And it's time to go home. The Mothership project united the world. Part base, part construction yard, the Mothership is capable of everything, as you never know what you will find in the void...
Homeworld is a 3D strategy game where you control a mothership and a fleet as you harvest resources, conduct research, and build up your fleet that can vary from small, fast, and nimble scouts to lumbering heavy cruisers. Move your camera in full 3D (up/down/around) and issue full 3D movement orders. Specify 3D formations for your ships, employ cloaked vessels to ambush enemy or employ salvage vessels to capture enemy ships, or defend against them with prox sensors and mines. There is a 17-mission single player campaign, or you can play online in true internet multi-player.
Spellings
- 家园 - Simplified Chinese spelling
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Credits (Windows version)
175 People (132 developers, 43 thanks) · View all
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| [ full credits ] | |
Reviews
Critics
Average score: 90% (based on 35 ratings)
Players
Average score: 4.1 out of 5 (based on 96 ratings with 10 reviews)
3-D Gaming that breaks new ground
The Good
The tutorial makes learning the interface a snap...When I heard of the game, the first thing I thought was that they couldn't pull it off becuase it would be difficult managing in 3-D...but they did it, and just spending the few short minutes in the tutorial can familiaize you with the interface fast...
The unit balance of the game is good...even in the late game process, you still have to build basic units and each ship class has its disadvantages and its strong points...
The single player campaigns are extremely well scripted...the ingame scripts makes the game very interesting, but doesn't interefere with the game play...
The idea is fresh...In a desert of no end of C&C clones, this is one hell of an oasis...
The graphics is detailed to the point that you can see the engine trails of a scout, or the tractor beams of a salvage corvett...zoom in to see every little detail on the ship, or zoom out to control your whole fleet...the camera control is extremely easy to master...
Brilliant control scheme...you can basically play the whole game with a mouse...Homeworld allows you to command an armada with a mouse wheel and two buttons...
Everything from formations, to rules of engagement, Homeworld provides a large amount of tactics for RTS fans
The Bad
I tried as hard as I could but could only find two bad things about this game...
The two sides are almost the same, with the exception of two units...As different as they may look, they are still all do the same thing...This doesn't take away anything from the game, but just lacks the depth in that area that Starcraft revolutionized
With wonderfully scripted missions in single player, it would have been nice if a editor was included in the game, so that more missions and maps can be created, as the single player campaigns were a little too short...
The Bottom Line
Tired of C&C clones? Homeworld is leading a revolution in RTS gaming, space combat has never been so entertaining...
Windows · by MadCat (53) · 2000
The Good
Being the first 3d RTS released by Sierra, the game looks too good, and too well done.
At first the 3d graphics, although made in Open GL , looks really great. The game mechanics are really clear, the interface is really easy to master.
In the pack you will recieve:
1. Training stage to help you understand the controls
2. A well built single player campaign, with over 21 missions, good story line and "keep your forces with you" feature, that will make your fleet move with you from stage to stage.
3. One of the most comprehensive and optional multiplayer. Includes skirmish,LAN and internet (via WON) play. Each game can be adjusted:
how much cash will you have, research tree, how many computer players, what will be their AI, which map will you use, what type of game, will harvesting be allowed, will there be money injected, and many many more.
This game rocks the house!
The Bad
Can I say nothing ?
Oh, yeah, the fact that there is a sequel coming out soon .
The Bottom Line
A 3d RTS in space.
Windows · by Henry Aloni (46) · 2003
Great game, but be ready to spend a lot of time at the screen
The Good
This is the best game I 've ever played. The screens are beautiful and are so surreal. The mothership is home and the battles to keep her are awesome. If you buy the game, you get Prima's Official Strategy Guide. It's a must to not only stay alive, but to learn the tactics for every ship in the fleet.
The Bad
I love the game, but some could consider it very time consuming. It could take some players months to reach the Homeworld. Be ready to spend hours to learn the strategy and tactics.
The Bottom Line
It's worth the money, ten fold. The 3D's are the greatest. You will see why Homeworld was game of the year.
Windows · by Ken Bodiford (1) · 2003
Discussion
| Subject | By | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Not a 4X game | SharkD (424) | Feb 4th, 2009 |
Trivia
1001 Video Games
Homeworld appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.
Cut content
When asked, The development team at relic said the game will feature 5 different races: Taiidan, Kushan,Turanic Raiders, Kadeshi, and T-mat. In the final version the T-mat was absent. Although the modders community have found a reference to some of their ships in the source, Relic never released more info about them. The T-mat are lost in the Relic development lounge.
Music
The British rock band YES approached Alex Garden to have their coming song put into an idea for the game. They both came into an agreement liking the idea of how Homeworld is pretty down to reality ('we're all finding a way home') and for this specially this game, YES produced the song Homeworld / The Ladder which was the newest single of 1999 and the opening song for their album The Ladder. On the album was a Homeworld trailer.
References
The game contains a reference to the movie Blade Runner. After playing past mission 7, look at your autosaves. Some of them will have a prefix of "Tenhauser Gate," which is part of the dying words of replicant Roy Batty.
Server shutdown
The official Sierra game servers were shut down on 1st November 2008.
Source code
On September 26 2003, the Homeworld source code and accompanying documentation was released by Relic on their Relic Developer Network. It has been stripped of code not owned by Relic Entertainment (including but not limited to the Bink SDK). On February 21, 2004, the code was released to the public
Awards
- CNET GameCenter
- 1999 - Strategy Game of the Year
- Computer Gaming World
- March 2000 (Issue #188) – Strategy Game of the Year
- March 2000 (Issue #188) – Best Manual of the Year
- Gamepower
- 1999 - Top 5 Strategy Games
- Gamespot
- 1999 - Best Music of the Year
- GameSpy
- 1999 - Strategy Game of the Year
- 1999 - Outstanding Music Award (together with Omikron: The Nomad Soul and Nocturne)
- 1999 - Outstanding Sound Award (together with Hidden & Dangerous)
- 2012 – #9 Top PC Gaming Intro
- GameStar (Germany)
- Issue 12/1999 - #98 in the "100 Most Important PC Games of the Nineties" ranking
- Gonegold
- 1999 - '99 Must Have
- I.D. Magazine
- 2000 - Silver Award (Interactive Media Design)
- PC Gamer
- 1999 - Game of the Year
- April 2005 - #46 on the "50 Best Games of All Time" list
- PC Player (Germany)
- Issue 01/2000 - Most Original Game in 1999
- PC Zone
- 1999 - Game of the Year
- Power Play
- Issue 02/2000 – Most Innovative Game in 1999
Information also contributed by Carlos Aquino, DarkDante; Henry Aloni, Indra was here, Maw; PCGamer77, Sciere and Scott Monster
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Related Sites +
-
Homeworld
Relic's website for reference of the game. Includes screenshots, concept art, ships descriptions... -
Homeworld @ GamingHaven.com
Game reviews, links, screenshots and more. -
Pilotview How-To
View the battles from a pilot's point of view! Right click your Homeworld shortcut and add the switch /pilotView to homeworld.exe. In game, focus on any unit and press "Q". This even works for enemy units! The pilotView functionality requires Homeworld version 1.4 or greater.
Identifiers +
- MobyGames ID: 296
- Wikipedia (en)
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Rynok.
Additional contributors: Kasey Chang, Unicorn Lynx, Arvin Chandra, Scott Monster, DarkDante, cow, Patrick Bregger, FatherJack.
Game added September 30th, 1999. Last modified August 14th, 2023.