Hands on with N.O.V.A. on iPhone
You had me at halo
That N.O.V.A. resembles iconic console shooter Halo is no mistake. Just as Microsoft's intergalactic epic proved that shooters were possible on console, Gameloft's own looks to confirm iPhone and iPod touch as capable of handling a stellar shooter. Derivative as it may prove to be, N.O.V.A. looks good and plays just as well.
There are differences, however nuanced they might be, and at the very least the delivery of such a visually stunning first-person shooter on iPhone and iPod touch counter any me-too criticisms.
Trekking through an alien jungle makes the point clear. Enemies, both large and small, trundling through the lush foliage are a sight to behold. Later missions are equally rich with visual variety, such as the dark decks of a cruiser punctuated by neon lights and weapons fire.
You play as Kal Wardin, a former space marine summoned by the government to investigate alien activity. With Earth no longer habitable due to excessive pollution and drainage of natural resources, orbital satellites have become humanity's new home (hence the game's acronym, N.O.V.A.: Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance).
Leaving a comfortable retirement aboard an orbital space station, you confront the extraterrestrial threat in a ten mission single player campaign that takes you to the jungles of an alien world to the inner workings of a gigantic cruiser.
The graphical detail is unparallelled, yet it's the level of interactivity in combat that promises to set the game apart. During one battle, a brutish alien grabs Karl by the neck, forcing him to quickly pull out a pistol to shoot it in the neck.
Two big boss battles - one of which involves shooting out the legs of a massive spider - point to dynamic combat scenarios. It looks to be a marked improvement from the static run-and-gun firefights of Modern Combat: Sandstorm.
The game's sci-fi setting provides an platform for unique combat abilities that promise to heighten the drama of battle.
Drawing from your health gauge, freeze and haste powers can be triggered that stop enemies in place and speed up your own movement. Since each use drains your health a bit, you're inherently limited in how often you can use them.
Of course, you have an arsenal of traditional weapons at your disposal. Joining the aforementioned pistol are five other firearms: assault rifle, sniper rifle, plasma gun, shotgun, and rocket launcher. Expect fragmentation grenades, too. Ammunition can be gathered from fallen enemies or by hacking supply boxes.
These ammo boxes open only after you've completed a simple mirrors mini-game, which is also used for breaking into locked doors at specific points during the campaign. It's difficult to get excited about these mini-games, though they provide variety.
Creative objectives and epic set-pieces should be enough to keep things entertaining without having to resort to mini-games.
Thankfully, they're absent from multiplayer, where it's all about grabbing the best weapon you can find and unloading its ammo in the nearest opponent.
N.O.V.A. will launch with deathmatch/team deathmatch modes playable online via wi-fi and peer-to-peer using Bluetooth. Network play won't be available, Gameloft citing concerns over performance given the game's high graphical fidelity.
The lack of 3G multiplayer is disappointing, but not as questionable as the decision to opt out of a multiplayer ranking system. Leaderboards and trophies will be offered through Gameloft Live, but no in-game progression and awards tree exist. Considering the game's hardcore appeal, a system of ranks and rewards would provided incentives for investing time into multiplayer.
Since Gameloft didn't provide hands on with multiplayer, it's impossible to form any specific opinion until the game's release later this month. You can be certain that we'll have a comprehensive review when it appears on the App Store some time in the next couple weeks.
