I’ll be the first to admit that my knowledge of Battlestar Galactica is pretty much limited to knowing there are robots called Cylons and that people seem very stressed out about them. I’ve never watched an episode (which my brother Jon would be very disappointed to hear), but when our fearless leader Andy Burns gave me a review copy of Battlestar Galactica: Scattered Hopes, the promise of a high-stakes space survival roguelite game was enough to get me to try it out. After spending the last little bit trying, and mostly failing, to lead a ragtag fleet to safety, I can tell you that you don’t need to be a superfan to appreciate how tense and addictive this game is.
Battlestar Galactica: Scattered Hopes throws you right into the deep end. You’re tasked with guiding a handful of civilian ships through deep space while being hunted by an unstoppable robotic force. Since this is a roguelite, the loop is all about making it as far as you can, dying spectacularly, and then using what you learned to try again.
What really hooked me was the constant balancing act of leading your fleet. It’s not just about the space fights; it’s about the decisions you have to make between battles. Do I risk my limited fuel to save a drifting freighter? Do I use precious resources to fix my ship now, but increase my repair costs in the future? It’s a game that makes you feel like every choice comes with a heavy price, which keeps me coming back for more to try different outcomes. The little narrative events in the bar are also neat – they help create an emotional connection between you and your crewmates, which in turn makes decisions that involve them more difficult and weightier.
When the shooting actually starts, the game switches to a tactical view that looks kinda complex, but is surprisingly easy to wrap your head around. You control a massive protector ship and manage squadrons of smaller fighters. Even though I don’t know the technical difference between a Viper and a Raptor, the game makes their roles clear: some are for attacking, and some are for support. I used the tactical pause button more than a few times in the first little bit to get my bearings and slow things down. The space combat gets incredibly chaotic with missiles and lasers flying everywhere, but being able to freeze time, look at the map and give orders at my own pace made things feel a little more manageable. After all, it doesn’t take much for what seems like a perfect run to spiral into a total disaster because of one bad jump or a lucky shot from an enemy. Some of the random events also start to repeat themselves after a while, which can take a bit of the mystery out of the exploration, but seeing the FTL ready pop up and escaping just as ships are closing in is always incredibly satisfying.
All told, though, Battlestar Galactica: Scattered Hopes is a pretty fun game that captures that “one more try” feeling perfectly. The presentation, from the heavy, thumping drum soundtrack – which I’ve been told is the actual music from the series, though I could be wrong – to the lo-fi UI and visuals, makes the whole experience enjoyable. I might still be totally lost when it comes to the overarching plot of the TV series, but as a standalone sci-fi strategy game, this is one of the better ones I’ve played this year. If you like space, strategy, and Battlestar Galactica, you should definitely give this a look.
Let us know if you’ve played it in the comments!
