This Means Warp Preview

I always love finding new incredibly addictive games that I can’t put down. The first time I loaded up This Means Warp, I started playing then all of a sudden an hour had passed; I was so engrossed in the game I didn’t even notice how much time had gone by. This was a great thing though because it means I was so into exploring space. You are the captain of a ship named The Platypus — if you don’t like the name you could change it but seriously who doesn’t like it?! After deciding the name you get to choose which character you will be playing as; my favourites are the alligator named Pants and NobNob the goofy bird. Each character has three attributes and varying strengths in each, so you need to figure out which of the skills will aid you the most in your run. I found a fast running speed very helpful when the ship is under attack!

Upon starting the game you see a news report showing that the alien race known as the Norg has destroyed an outer rim planet and have declared war. As the pilot of The Platypus you are sent to destroy the Norg mothership by Captain Kirk; being optimistic, he is quite sure that everyone will die. So with that vote of confidence, you head out into space. This Means Warp can be played with up to four players locally or online, but if you don’t have other people to play with, that’s okay, there is a single-player mode available too. So far I have only been able to check out the single-player gameplay but I can’t wait to share this experience with some friends. 

When playing you have a view of the ship from outside so you can have an overview of all the different sections, including your weapons and the captain's chair which is used for navigation. Inside The Platypus you'll see areas with tool boxes that will give you repair kits to use to fix up damaged areas, and an ammo station that creates bullets to use to fire at the enemy ships. Each of these stations produces one item at a time, and you can only carry one bullet or kit, so you will have to constantly go back and forth between the dispensaries and the guns or damaged areas. Because of this, you will have to figure out what is more important to you; either firing at the enemy ship before they can repair the damage, or fixing your ship before it is destroyed. When or if you do manage to destroy the enemy Norg, you will have a small amount of time to repair your ship before the damage it has taken becomes permanent. The Platypus’ health won’t automatically replenish itself, so it is important to make sure you do the required repairs in a timely manner as you don’t want to head into the next fight severely damaged.

As you defeat the enemy you will earn boxes that appear in your ship, containing power-ups to distribute to the various areas of The Platypus. Some of these tokens will give you an increase of five HP, but you have to figure out if you want one of your weapons to have more health, the ammo producing machine, or the body of the ship itself. Each can hold three of these power-ups so you will have to figure out which is the most important to you. Luckily as you explore the depths of space you can find other characters that you can “hire” to work with you on the ship. You can choose what part of the ship will be their primary focus, like repairing the ship when it is damaged or firing upon the enemy. Don’t worry if there is no damage on the ship; the character won’t just stand around, they will then start shooting at the enemy until there is more damage to be fixed up. It is extremely helpful to have this helping hand on board; on your own it is easy to feel overwhelmed but when there are more of you things are a lot more manageable. I recommend that if you see an icon that looks like a person, navigate to that spot on the map.

While you are flying through space on the navigation map the game will show you exactly what type of space you are going to. If there is an icon with a sword and shield this is a battle with a Norg ship, a pocket watch is a timed challenge that will earn you rewards when it is successfully completed, and a skull means a boss battle. Since you are the pilot you can choose which area you go to next, so if you feel that you aren’t ready for the boss battle you can head somewhere else. I recommend checking out the spots with an exclamation mark as these are merchants that sell items to upgrade your guns, and make sure you have a crewmate on board before the boss battle. These ships are a lot stronger than your usual opponents so the battle will be a lot more challenging. If your ship takes too much damage it will be destroyed meaning that your run is over and you will have to start a new one. When you get a game over This Means Warp will show your stats, listing: total run time, how many enemies you defeated, damage dealt, damage repaired, and how many items you purchased.  

If you successfully defeat the boss, you will receive power-ups for your ship to improve the hull, upgraded ammo, and even a translator that can understand a few words of the Norg language — this way when they try to talk with you, you can decipher a tiny bit of the message. As you unlock more of these items, more of the words are shown. When you finish applying the boss power-ups, you will be taken to a warp zone that will take you to a new sector of the galaxy. There will be a choice between two so you can select the one that you want to explore next. Before you go exploring you will be taken to the market to go shopping for new weapons and upgrades for your ship. Each sector has different enemies, some that will require some trial and error to defeat. How do you take down enemy ships that have shields when it seems like they have no weaknesses?

This Means Warp is full of strategy and craziness that will keep you on your toes. It feels like a mix of Overcooked and FTL: Faster Than Light. Even though the game is in Early Access it already feels quite complete. During my hours of play, the only type of bug I had was a pop-up menu not disappearing when it should have, which was easily fixed by pausing and resuming the game so it wasn’t really much of an issue. There are nine different sectors to explore, and so far my record is four. I can’t wait to get further and try out all the different characters that you can unlock. If you like strategy survival type games this is a title you should really check out, especially if you enjoy Star Trek references!