Ceres Review (PC)

good
key review info
  • Game: Ceres
  • Platform: PC
  • Show system requirements
  • Gamepad support: No
  • Reviewed on:
Ceres space combat

My first proper battle in Ceres resulted in a defeat so severe that I was scared to return to the same side-quest for about 2 hours, annoyed that I had no plan on how I would be able to defeat the carrier and escorts that managed to turn my three ships into slag in less than five minutes.

I traded as much as I could, I pushed a few of the core campaign missions forward and took out the occasional group of pirates that thought I would make an easy target to accumulate more resources and currency.

My captain gained in skill, my crew turned into experts, I managed to put on better armor and to improve my turrets, and then I ventured back to the place of my first major defeat, with three hired allies in tow, ready to enjoy some revenge.

I managed to draw out some enemy fighters and take them out one by one and then attempted to assault the actual carrier from three directions, twisting my ships around to absorb damage while taking out its escorts.

Unfortunately, my ship exploded just as I managed to breach one layer of full on the enemy flagship, and I quickly began to think how I could get the resources to return with an even more powerful fleet and finally win this battle.

Ceres offers an interesting take on the tactical space sim genre, with hints of Homeworld and Freelancer, giving players a lot of freedom to choose their aims and how they plan to achieve them.

The game is developed by Jotunn Games and published by Iceberg Interactive, and gamers can only play it on the PC.

Story

When the campaign in Ceres starts, Earth, the cradle of humanity, is destroyed, turned into space dust by a malfunctioning gate that was supposed to connect us with other systems and bring about a new Golden Age.

Humanity has mastered space flight before the disaster, which means that plenty of ships are still roaming the solar system, but they are now joined by monsters pulled in from alien worlds and by fully AI-controlled constructs.

Out of the disaster, four major factions have emerged, the Terran Alliance, the government of New Mars, the AI-driven Hydra and the mysterious Kuiper Simulacra, all of them dominating one area of space, on the brink of war with each other and with a range of less organized groups.

Ceres combat dance
Ceres combat dance

The Sol system has been transformed by Earth's destruction, and players will start off as a young adventurer, with a profile that gamers can decide, who finds a mysterious AI named Ceres and starts off on a quest to save what remains of humanity.

Ceres uses plenty of interesting science fiction ideas, with the added twist that Earth is destroyed, and will certainly appeal to those who love the Spin series or The Expanse universe.

The writing created by the development team at Jotunn does not stand out, but it manages to communicate the core concepts of the universe, and the story is engaging in the long-term.

Gamers can also simply move around Sol creating their own narrative, turning into pirates or mercenaries that hold their destiny in their hands.

Gameplay

Ceres is a tactical space sim experience that allows players to control a fleet of ships that seek to stay alive and prosper while navigating the solar system and dealing with a range of threats and quests.

The game uses a point-and-click movement system to direct the space-faring vessels in the 3D space, which tends to work with surprising accuracy, aided by a list of waypoints and place of interest, as long as no one is firing shots in anger.

Thankfully, time can be sped up to make sure that boredom does not set in during long bouts of travel.

When the gamer's fleet meets an enemy once time returns to normal and careful tactical thinking becomes necessary in order to determine the power of the opponents, prioritize threats, find the best way to take them out and use the ships available to execute the plan.

It's important to take into account the relative movement of the engaged ships relative to one another and the weapons that each of them can bring to bear.

Gamers will need to choose which systems to repair when to use special abilities and whether to attempt to hack or use drones in order to capture or disable an enemy vessel.

Unfortunately, during battle the movement system becomes clunky and gamers often find that their ships do not behave exactly as they want, but it's always possible to hit Space in order to pause the action, re-evaluate and then deliver new orders.

Victory in combat results in materials and parts that can be salvaged and upgrades for the captains of the involved ships, who get to improve their skills and develop powerful perks.

Space stations can then be used to make money from spoils and to then use the resources to improve each ship with new weapons, better hull plating and a range of subsystems that can improve battle efficiency.

The Sol system, sans Earth, is split into a variety of locations, each controlled by a faction and characterized by a degree of risk, and gamers can travel between the regions in order to find the one where they need to achieve an objective or where they can do some solid trading.

Ceres has some solid core systems, and I like the way they interact and produce interesting results, but the hit-and-miss nature of movement, especially when a fleet is under fire, makes the game more frustrating than it should be.

There are also some annoying glitches, including one that can damage ships that are moving in formation, although the development team is working to eliminate them.

Despite the obvious potential for human controlled fleet on fleet action, Ceres includes no multiplayer modes, which feels like a missed opportunity.

Graphics and audio

Ceres manages to deliver a solid portrayal of space and fleet battles, giving gamers a complex and mostly easy-to-use interface that allows them to control their ships and enjoy the sights of combat at the same time.

Zooming in reveals some limited models and textures, but when the player is looking at his ships moving around the various system areas or directing a battle, the title looks good, with plenty of explosions and effects to keep the action interesting.

The development team at Jotunn has made the post-disaster solar system an interesting place, filled with a lot of special phenomena, and it's always a pleasure to simply move around and explore the anomalies and wormholes.

I would have appreciated a little more detail and an interface that makes text easier to read and destination easier to set, but overall, Ceres understands its own complexity and tries to make it as simple as possible for the user to direct the action.

The sound design is less impressive, with voice acting that fails to enhance the writing in any way and a soundtrack that feels a little unsuited to the frenetic action that the game tends to deliver, although it certainly understands and underlines the vastness of space.


The Good

  • Space sim mechanics
  • Interaction between systems
  • Role playing elements

The Bad

  • Movement can be frustrating
  • Limited narrative

Conclusion

Ceres is a niche game, and only those who already have a deep love for the tactical space sim genre will probably have the patience to explore all its core systems and find out how they can be best used both in and outside of combat.

The battles can be exciting when it comes to strategy and resource use, but unfortunately, the fleet management and movement systems are not solid enough to make it consistently fun.

Ceres has plenty of potential, but the development team at Jotunn needs to continue to deliver updates for it to make sure that all the core features work as they should and do not push players to abandon the experience because of frustration.

story 7
gameplay 7
concept 8
graphics 7
audio 8
multiplayer 0
final rating 7.5
Editor's review
good
 
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