Dominari Tournament (PC) Preview

To explain a game like Dominari Tournment it is necessary to state that the sci-fi strategy genre ranges from more of the simple and arbitrary to painfully complex that makes Microsoft Excel look streamline. This sits very squarely on the 'simple' side of things, and while depth is sacrificed, the gameplay perhaps is allowed to rise in its absence.

As of right now, the premise is very simple: start with one homeworld and take out the opponents. Everything is the same; ships are the same, there are no races, no perks, and no traits - nothing. Many fans might be like 'What!?' but the strategy is in how people utilise these similar forces.

Primarily, ships spawn at a slow rate, as well as resources coming in. A map will have somewhere around twenty planets and the player must send ships to the nearby ones, which after capturing them (simply have more ships than the planet had) it becomes conquered. Now it starts to spawn things for the player. From there it is possible to advance them as more resource, or more ship focused.

As these numbers are slowly increasing, then, there is a need to balance where to send fleets. Try to capture a planet off to the side? Muster a big attack at the enemy's planet? The pace is very fast, and this is where Dominari Tournament shines; strike at one side, only to see a different side fall. In many ways, it is very reminiscent of an older, free online game called Solarmax, which beyond this one, never before has a game been as simplified in terms of the combat.

The other major aspect is building orbital platforms; one per planet. There are four major types; a long-range one, an economic one, a defensive one, and an offensive one. All of this works, but there is a lot more to it. There are 20 total abilities to be managed - things like boosting speed, increasing range, extra guys, and so on. This part is one of its criticisms right now, as it is a much steeper learning curve than desired, and anyone that simply knows more hot keys will beat someone with better strategy/reflexes. This is unfortunate as the overall pace/strategy is ruined somewhat by this 'ability spam' the game devolves into.