Best Mobile Strategy Game – Rebel Inc
When was Rebel Inc released? On first glance, it seems a lot like any other military simulation game, but underneath, everything is happening behind the scenes. All of the exciting aspects are there, but it’s the details that make the difference between a good game and a great one. It helps that all of the work is done by Obsidian, a studio headed by fanatical video game enthusiasts who’ve made quite a few hit games.
In Rebel Inc. you take command of a single of four factions in the midst of a never-ending conflict. Each faction has its own unique starting skills and weapons, and you’ll have to use your resources to push back the Insurgents and the Coalition forces. The storyline is simple enough that the player doesn’t need to put too much effort into it – just keep his or her eyes peeled for the various pickups, which can range from basic weapons to more complicated weapons and armor upgrades. Over time, you’ll earn crates and other rewards, which open up new mission areas and weapons as you fight the war.
Once you begin playing Rebel Inc., you’ll quickly learn that the resistance isn’t all she claims to be. There are terrorists and sleeper cells running around, and while the rebels are good at taking out the regular enemy troops, they lack what the rebels have, an ability called “psychological warfare.” This allows them to psychologically manipulate the enemy into fighting and hurting themselves rather than the enemy. When this happens, the terrorist groups often win by taking out several enemy soldiers at once. Rebel Inc. offers this power as part of the campaign, and it’s an interesting bit of advice to give to players as they plan their campaigns. There are a variety of benefits that can be gained by using psychological tactics, so if you feel like you need to toughen up your rebels, this could be just what you need.
Although most of the content in Rebel Inc. is focused on the use of psychological tactics, the rebels themselves are not without advantages, too. In fact, they’re arguably more powerful and skilled than the enemy. Because the rebels have an overwhelming number of forces, they can easily overrun larger groups of grunts and aliens. Although there are some weak points in Rebel Inc. – especially in the campaign against the Goliath – the overall design and mechanics of the game make it worthwhile.
The story in Rebel Inc. is told through a series of vignettes. Vignettes, as they’re called, are short stories that tell part of the history of a character, usually the main character, and show the actions that make up that character’s past. Often, the vignettes will alternate between the perspective of the Rebel and the perspective of the antagonist. For example, one of the vignettes focuses on the perspective of the Rebel spy working inside the Goliath. This spy’s objective is to sabotage the Goliath’s main supply line. By destroying a massive shipment of weapons, the Rebel spies to turn the tide of the war in their favor.
Rebel Inc. provides both narrative elements for the player to follow along and visual cues for the player to understand where each piece of information is coming from. However, it also uses many of the same tricks that strategy games use to great effect. For example, Rebel Inc. uses its time management mechanic to ensure that players never run out of action. If you run out of time during combat, you automatically choose to quit. Likewise, if you exhaust all of your Rebel troops during a mission, you’ll receive a mission failure screen, forcing you to either re-start the mission, or accept defeat.
Likewise, the missions often have multiple objectives. While the Goliaths may seem mighty, they’re not as invincible as you might think. You can’t attack them without also destroying one of their primary supply sources-roads. This means that most missions will have you either protecting the supply sources, destroying enemy supply sources, or attacking the enemy and then defending against their counter-attacks. Combined with the regular Rebel troops you can field, this makes the overall goal of Rebel Inc. much more achievable than just trying to annihilate Goliaths and keep them from doing damage.
All of these choices add up to make Rebel Inc. a very engaging game. The player gets the opportunity to really become an insider of the rebel group by taking control of some of their activities. The graphics and sound add a sense of reality to the game and really bring it into the realm of reality. Most importantly, though, is the ability of the iPhone to allow a player to communicate directly with members of their own army through a text message system. It gives you an unprecedented level of access to your own forces and lets you fight toe to toe with the enemy, rather than just running around as a part of a group.
