Game: Sins of a Solar Empire: Entrenchment
Platform: PC
Publisher: StarDock
Developer: Ironclad
ESRB: T
Genre: Strategy Addiction
Players: 1-10
What's Hot: Rebalances combat by adding a wealth of new units and research items geared towards filling a defensive gap in the game's unit tree. The expansion also beefs up the AI and graphics, adds the ability to 'stack' mods, and further shows the commitment the developers have towards their fans. It's also cheap.
What's Not: For all the cool enhancements, there still isn't all that much to the expansion compared to what you'd see with other games. This works out well for the low price, but still leaves us wanting a more. We're greedy that way.
Review by: Dave VanDyk
First in a set of "mini-expansions", Sins of a Solar Empire: Entrenchment is the latest addition to a large string of updates and enhancements for Ironclad Studios' award winning 4X strategy game, but carries with it the benefit of being a formal retail add-on pack. Going for a ridiculously cheap $9.95 pittance through Stardock's "Impulse" platform, the expansion adds a truckload of engine updates, AI enhancements, and graphical features, along with an array of new units and a completely new research tree. These goodies alone should make this an instant "must-buy" for any existing fan of the original game, but how much does this new release truly add to the experience, and will it be enough to draw in new players?
As its name suggests, Entrenchment is all about defense, and the game has been significantly rebalanced with the addition of new units and structures to this end. For example, the laughably-ineffective Gauss Platforms for the TEC can now be overhauled with longer range, more powerful weapons, and even set up to deliver missile barrages. The hangars can also now be upgraded with flak cannons for added defense. This is all thanks to the new research tree dedicated to defense, which lets players build things like minefields, secondary defensive enhancements, and upgrades to the new Starbases that can be built.
Ah yes, the Starbases. These actually form the cornerstone for each of the three race's new defensive abilities. Costing nearly as much as a Capital Ship, only one of these stations can be built per-sector, but the number of upgrade options included allows you to set them up for nearly any role, be they full-blown battlestations, dedicated trade / repair platforms, or a mix of both. Depending on the race you play, Starbases may be either mobile or static and will have their own unique design and feel.
With such a focus on defense all of a sudden, what's to stop players from just bunkering down behind an impenetrable wall of mines, turrets, and stations? Fortunately, new dedicated anti-structure cruisers have been included to help offset this and keep the game balanced. This further encourages players to keep a well-rounded fleet on hand for either patrol or offensive maneuvers to help deal with threats like this, and ultimately further expands the options players have for smiting their foes.
