The legendary Ukrainian studio GSC Game World is back in operation. True, the language does not turn out to be called a full-fledged studio, since its staff consists of specialists working remotely. Recall, GSC is known for the release of cult games in the STALKER and Cossacks series. The first game is a first-person shooter that tells about the events taking place in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. But “Cossacks” is a historical real-time strategy that has won the love of fans from all over the world. And it happened! The restored studio released the game "Cossacks 3" after a ten-year hiatus since the release of the first part. So, let's figure out what the “Cossacks 3” are. Review and first look at the new strategy.
Previous parts
The first parts of the “Cossacks” came out at the beginning of the two thousandths. At that time these were "bombs." Especially they liked the players from the CIS countries, as the plot was based on the history of the Russian Empire. And she is very close to us. At that time, these strategies were distinguished by a well-thought-out control system and large-scale mass battles. And the level of artificial intelligence for that time was not bad. Then all AI was supposed to stupid. And in “Cossacks” he was surprisingly savvy.
Of course, we did not have to wait for any unsurpassed graphics from the first “Cossacks”. At that time, even shooters did not really attract attention. What can we say about strategies. But then nobody paid attention to the schedule. Glane - gameplay and game mechanics. And in this "Cossacks" were on top. Now a new era has come. Do Cossacks 3 comply with modern standards of real-time strategies? Let's try to figure it out.
An old game in a new wrapper?
Those who were waiting for the development of the old “Cossacks” and a fundamentally new strategy will be severely disappointed. Cossacks 3 is not a new game, but just a remake of the 2001 release strategy. Why did we decide this? Yes, because in addition to the graphic component and some changes in the balance of nations in the game there is nothing new. After playing for a few minutes, you clearly understand that in front of you are the same “Cossacks” from distant “zero” ones. Nostalgia rolls over.
"Cossacks 3", a review of which showed that we have before us the game of 2001 in a new cover, look somewhat archaic in 2016. What was in the order of things at the beginning of the century is now completely irrelevant. But the game came out without any special problems, since the Cossacks have no competitors in this genre at all. Real-time strategies are extremely rare. Of the similar games of our time, only the second starcraft can be distinguished. But he is not from the niche of the “Cossacks” and has nothing to do with history.
Features of nations and units
So what about the gameplay? Does Cossacks 3 stand out? A review of units shows that some changes in the balance of nations are taking place. For example, Ukraine has the most powerful warriors at the initial stage. Their hearts can grind into cabbage any units of other countries. But in the sea battles Ukraine is at the bottom. Here the old woman of Britain rules (as it should be, in accordance with real history).
But if a random generator of maps and nations throws Britain to the mainland, then here it will be easy to roll it into the asphalt with infantry of any country. The Poles have cool winged hussars. France has the most powerful horse musketeers who are able to smash everything to smithereens. These are the features of nations and units in the game "Cossacks 3".
The review, of course, does not end there. Some nations (such as Turkey) cannot go into the 18th century on gameplay. This, of course, is not good. But as an alternative, these countries are able to easily "give" other players in the initial stages due to the cheapness of soldiers. But as soon as the opponent moves into the 18th century, then the Turks will end. For shouting against muskets and rifles with scimitars in their hands is pure suicide. But if the Turks will not slow down, then their opponents simply will not be able to enter the new millennium due to the untimely death at the hands of evil janissaries. Against them, even the Ukrainian Serdyuks are not able to do anything, because the Turks simply crush the mass.
Campaigns
When you see the campaign menu, you involuntarily think that everything here is exactly the same as in the previous parts. But no. The developers have bothered to think through new stories. And it turned out they did well. During the campaign, players are even given an alternative. For example, something like "Execute cannot be pardoned." This is an important innovation. In the old "Cossacks" this was not. Still, this is "Cossacks 3" 2016. The review would be very boring if they weren’t anything new.
Now the main task of the campaigns is to train the player to build the right buildings in a given period of time and properly manage the troops. True, the whole point of campaigns comes down to the escort-deliver-kill formula. But this is already progress. “Cossacks 3” (Cossacks 3), a review of which somewhat spoiled the impression of the game, still managed to pleasantly surprise.
Multiplayer
But with the multiplayer in the game so far, everything is bad. Of course, developers are releasing patches with might and main, but a multiplayer game over the Internet works very badly. Also, the multiplayer system itself is not happy. Play on the left servers will not work. And for the official will have to unfasten the monthly fee. This is somehow not to the liking of fans of the good old “Cossacks”. Multiplayer frankly no. And it seems that everything will remain so.
Here the GSC studio gave a blunder. They should learn from Blizzard. But that is - that is. Still, this is not “Starcraft” and not “Warcraft”, but “Cossacks 3”, the review of which is taking its course. And we move on to the most interesting for many players. Namely - to the graphics of the game. Let's forget about multiplayer. That's when they bring it to mind, then we can talk about the delights of a multiplayer game.
Graphics
The graphic component of the game has been redesigned very much. It would be worth calling the game "Cossacks 3D." For the way it really is. But the 3D graphics in the game are somehow strange. One cannot immediately understand what happened to the graphic component. "Three Dae" in the game is not noticeable until you turn on the dynamic camera. But you need to enable it with a special command from the console. No way without it. However, toss and turn a free camera and at the same time control troops is another test. So it will be better if everything remains as it is.
The rest of the picture of the game pleases. Everything is drawn clearly. The colors are vibrant and juicy. And units move quite realistically. And this despite the fact that a particularly powerful video card to run the "Cossacks" at maximum settings is not required. And at minimal, the game is able to run even on the integrated processor graphics. And the general system requirements do not differ in something terrifying. So, the best real-time strategy is the Cossacks 3 Empire, a review of which shows that it will behave perfectly even on computers with medium iron.
System requirements
The requirements of the new "Cossacks" are minimal. And compared to the hardware requirements of other modern games, they seem generally ridiculous. To start the game you need a computer with a single-core processor and a frequency of 3000 megahertz. RAM needs just nothing by modern standards: 2 gigabytes. The video card also does not need much power. The integrated graphics core of the second-generation Intel Core i3 processor is quite suitable. Not to mention discrete graphics cards. These are the minimum system requirements that will allow you to run the game "Cossacks 3", an overview which is the topic of our article.
As for the requirements recommended for a comfortable game with all the graphic twists, they are somewhat different from the minimum. Although even they do not reach the minimum requirements of modern games. Judge for yourself. Requires a Core i5 family processor, 4 gigabytes of RAM and a graphics adapter equivalent to the "invisible" 560 series. Agree, the recommended requirements are pretty moderate.
General opinion about the game
So, what can we say in general terms about the game "Cossacks 3"? The review of the game is in the final stage, so you need to somehow summarize all the information and give a short review. In general, this is not a full-fledged game, but just a remake of the original 2001 strategy with updated graphics. But in this version there are some innovations that distinguish it from the original part. Mostly these innovations relate to the balance of nations and campaigns. The mechanics remained exactly the same. Even the location of the controls copies the original of 2001.
However, the game will appeal to many. Those who once played the original version will be especially happy. For them, a new ideal will appear in the world of real-time strategies - "Cossacks 3". Overview, passing - all of these gamers are not particularly interested. The main thing is to return to the “zero" and again play for the Cossacks. However, the game will be interesting to those who have never played in the original "Cossacks", because there are no analogues to this strategy at all. In this regard, we can say that the developers got a very good game. And in any case, it will be popular due to the lack of competitors.
Conclusion
We just reviewed a relatively recent release from the creators of Stalker. Even taking into account all the flaws in the "Cossacks", the game is doomed to success. Already now the debate on the Web about the orthodoxy of the "Cossacks" does not subside. Some argue that the game has retained its best traditions, while others with insane stubbornness prove that such "Cossacks" in our time are the wildest anachronism. Which of them is right, we will find out a little later. But for some reason it seems that the new “Cossacks” have every chance of becoming a cult real-time strategy. They are quite capable of repeating the success of their "ancestors."