Gameplay: 8/10
Story: 7/10
Graphics: 2/10
Performance: 9/10

Overall: 6.5/10

Oh boy...another quirky Russian developed space game! I seem to really have a knack for picking these out! This time it's Space Rangers HD: A War Apart. First, I need to premise by stating that I have never played a Space Rangers game before. From other reviews, apparently there were previous Space Ranger games that were somewhat different in terms of balancing and features. Therefore, this review is definitely more for someone who is going into this series without having played any of the previous games.

Alright, so Space Rangers HD: A War Apart (which I'm just going to shorten to Space Rangers HD), can best be described as several different games rolled into one. So much so that it's honestly better to describe what genre Space Rangers HD doesn’t cover! But, for the sake of simplicity, I'm going to categorize Space Rangers HD as something of a space roleplaying adventure game with 4x elements in a simulated galaxy where events happen regardless of the player. There is a lot of content in such a small sized game. This is also one of those space games where you can basically do anything. Want to be a pirate? Go ahead. Merchant? Yep. Want to stop an alien race of machines from controlling the galaxy aka Commander Shepard style? You can do that. Want to become a governor of your own planet? Yeppers, you can do that too. There is so much you can do in this game that it can become overwhelming at times, which is why I highly suggest playing the tutorial once you are prompted to when starting a new game. The tutorial will explain most of the basics such as trading, getting missions and combat. Most of Space Rangers HD plays out in a turn-based fashion, including space combat, although ground combat turns the game into a real time strategy game. Between this, you’ll have hyperspace minigames where the game turns into a bullet shooter and text-based adventure missions where you need to read and solve puzzles. Also, as stated previously, the game can even turn into something of a 4x in the late game when you start managing your own planets.

Best part about Space Rangers HD is that… it just works. No, but seriously. Everything works relatively well and with few bugs from the brief time that I spent playing the game. This is something of a miracle given the vast amount of gameplay that is made available to the player. The gameplay works, performance is decent, what little sound design exists tends to be okay. So then where are the flaws in this game? Two words, “dated graphics”. Now before you start downvoting this review, keep in mind that I am a huge proponent for gameplay over graphics. Check my other reviews and you’ll see that I’ve played more than a few very old games and rated them positive even with their dated graphics. Games from the 90s and early 2000s are probably my most played genre. So usually, I could care less about a game’s graphics. But that is entirely dependent on when a game is released.

Remember when I stated earlier that I’d never played previous Space Rangers games? Well, Space Rangers HD is apparently meant to be an updated version of Space Rangers 2 from 2004. That’s all well and good, but Space Rangers HD was also released in 2013, and for an HD version, it’s sorely lacking. Until you get to ground battles, most everything in the game takes place on a 2d plane or is just a text box with a static background. It would have been really cool to see what planet surfaces looked like without resorting to randomized ground battles. Or even a little animation of your ship in combat with another ship (i.e. like Galactic Civilizations). But I mean the developers couldn’t even be bothered to have animated backgrounds for the various planets or menus in a 2013 game! At the very least, the aliens you interact with are animated, but that’s about it. It’s really immersion breaking for a game from 2013 that is meant to be an HD version of a 2004 game. Difficult to call it an “HD” edition when it’s essentially the same game but at 1920x1080 resolution and with a few new features. I hate to say it, but for everything that Space Rangers HD does, in reality, most of it is a glorified text adventure game.

Despite the aforementioned flaws, Space Rangers HD is still a solid game. If you can look past the dated graphics, you will find a space adventure experience that is filled with depth and unlike anything else on the market. I only wish that a proper remake could be made. Until then, Space Rangers HD won't be the game for me, but I'd still recommend it towards fans of the genre.

Gameplay: 8/10 Story: 7/10 Graphics: 2/10 Performance: 9/10 Overall: 6.5/10 Oh boy...another quirky Russian developed space game! I seem to really have a knack for picking these out! This time it's Space Rangers HD: A War Apart. First, I need to premise by stating that I have never played a Space Rangers game before. From other reviews, apparently there were previous Space Ranger games that were somewhat different in terms of balancing and features. Therefore, this review is definitely more for someone who is going into this series without having played any of the previous games. Alright, so Space Rangers HD: A War Apart (which I'm just going to shorten to Space Rangers HD), can best be described as several different games rolled into one. So much so that it's honestly better to describe what genre Space Rangers HD doesn’t cover! But, for the sake of simplicity, I'm going to categorize Space Rangers HD as something of a space roleplaying adventure game with 4x elements in a simulated galaxy where events happen regardless of the player. There is a lot of content in such a small sized game. This is also one of those space games where you can basically do anything. Want to be a pirate? Go ahead. Merchant? Yep. Want to stop an alien race of machines from controlling the galaxy aka Commander Shepard style? You can do that. Want to become a governor of your own planet? Yeppers, you can do that too. There is so much you can do in this game that it can become overwhelming at times, which is why I highly suggest playing the tutorial once you are prompted to when starting a new game. The tutorial will explain most of the basics such as trading, getting missions and combat. Most of Space Rangers HD plays out in a turn-based fashion, including space combat, although ground combat turns the game into a real time strategy game. Between this, you’ll have hyperspace minigames where the game turns into a bullet shooter and text-based adventure missions where you need to read and solve puzzles. Also, as stated previously, the game can even turn into something of a 4x in the late game when you start managing your own planets. Best part about Space Rangers HD is that… it just works. No, but seriously. Everything works relatively well and with few bugs from the brief time that I spent playing the game. This is something of a miracle given the vast amount of gameplay that is made available to the player. The gameplay works, performance is decent, what little sound design exists tends to be okay. So then where are the flaws in this game? Two words, “dated graphics”. Now before you start downvoting this review, keep in mind that I am a huge proponent for gameplay over graphics. Check my other reviews and you’ll see that I’ve played more than a few very old games and rated them positive even with their dated graphics. Games from the 90s and early 2000s are probably my most played genre. So usually, I could care less about a game’s graphics. But that is entirely dependent on when a game is released. Remember when I stated earlier that I’d never played previous Space Rangers games? Well, Space Rangers HD is apparently meant to be an updated version of Space Rangers 2 from 2004. That’s all well and good, but Space Rangers HD was also released in 2013, and for an HD version, it’s sorely lacking. Until you get to ground battles, most everything in the game takes place on a 2d plane or is just a text box with a static background. It would have been really cool to see what planet surfaces looked like without resorting to randomized ground battles. Or even a little animation of your ship in combat with another ship (i.e. like Galactic Civilizations). But I mean the developers couldn’t even be bothered to have animated backgrounds for the various planets or menus in a 2013 game! At the very least, the aliens you interact with are animated, but that’s about it. It’s really immersion breaking for a game from 2013 that is meant to be an HD version of a 2004 game. Difficult to call it an “HD” edition when it’s essentially the same game but at 1920x1080 resolution and with a few new features. I hate to say it, but for everything that Space Rangers HD does, in reality, most of it is a glorified text adventure game. Despite the aforementioned flaws, Space Rangers HD is still a solid game. If you can look past the dated graphics, you will find a space adventure experience that is filled with depth and unlike anything else on the market. I only wish that a proper remake could be made. Until then, Space Rangers HD won't be the game for me, but I'd still recommend it towards fans of the genre.