Review: FTL (Faster Than Light)

FTL (Faster Than Light) is thrilling indie game by Subset Games. And it's utterly nerve-wracking. I don't think I've ever been so attached to a bunch of little sprites in a video game. Well, except for maybe Pokemon. I got pretty attached to my starter and some of the first Pokemon I caught. Anyway... The premise of the game is that you are one of the last of a fleet of federation ships with a mission to deliver vital data to somebody whatzit. You are fleeing an ever-advancing fleet of rebel ships by traveling from sector to sector (There are eight) each of which has a certain type: civilian, which is an easier area that has more shops to buy upgrades and repairs; nebulae, which are full of (you guessed it) nebulae that block your scanners but slow the progress of the rebel fleet; and enemy-controlled sectors, which are highly hostile and dominated by slugs, mantises, rebels, rock people, and so on. Each sector has a bunch of planets on it. You want to travel to as many planets as possible, engaging various starships in order to take their scrap.

The random sector generator sometimes decides to give you a cakewalk. 

The combat itself is genius. The entire system is based on micro-managing your crew and power, using the pause button to give commands and switch systems on and off at will. You have to manage your power supplies to make sure you are utilizing your weapons, shields, and engines to their full potential. If you're feeding too much into your shields, your engines aren't going to have enough juice to evade incoming missiles and lasers. If you give the O2 system full power all the time, you're robbing your weapons systems of precious energy. It's all a balancing act that only gets more complex the more you upgrade your ship. Not only do you have to manage the power, but the placement of your crew affects the outcome of battles as well. Individual crew members gain experience with whatever you assign them to, so it's generally a good idea to pick a person for each task. I like to start out with a crew of Joker, Tali, and Garrus, assigning them the roles of pilot, engineer, and weapons operator respectively. After a few sectors, they all become pros at their jobs and the additional crew members you pick up along the way become invaluable in operating other areas of the ship, as well as repairs.

"Kinetic barriers down. Multiple hull breaches. Weapons offline. Somebody get that fire out!"

FTL is beautifully designed. The music has an 80s retro game vibe to it. The art style is simplistic without missing any detail. Combat features minimal movement, showing both your ship and your enemy in separate windows while you choose your plan of attack. Crew members, while only a few pixels tall, are full of character (providing you have any sort of imagination.) The HUD is extremely easy to read, and you'll never wonder why something isn't working.

The game starts you out with one ship, but unlocking various achievements rewards you with new ships, weapons, and abilities.

All in all, for a $10 indie game, it's a must-buy. There's not all that much game to it, but its difficulty and unlockables allow for endless replayability. While it could use a little more variety (which I'm sure will come in future updates) it accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do, which is to be an fun, intelligent, challenging, space-based strategy/puzzle game.