Sacraboar Capture The Flag PC Strategy Game Reviewed
Capture-the-Pig
Pitching you against a computer controlled or network opponent, Sacraboar is a new real-time strategy game with a twist – rather than capturing a flag, you capture a pig.
Sensibly labelled “Capture-the-Pig”, the aim is to steal the opponents pig trophy while your own remains on its stand. To do this requires the creation of units and a strategy – which may or may not involve defending your own pig and power supply.
Units can be built with money that is generated from Resource Towers – with 7 different types of unit available there is plenty of scope for some great battles in Sacraboar!
System Requirements
Sacraboar is designed to run on older PCs running Windows XP or later, with a minimum requirement of a 2.2 GHz CPU (Intel Pentium 4 or Athlon 64 XP) and 1 GB RAM.
350 MB of hard disk space is required, as is a DirectX 9 compatible sound card – meanwhile a 256 MB DirectX 9 compatible graphics card (NVidia 7600, ATI X1600) is needed to enjoy this game.
Available via the website www.sacraboar.com, the demo can also be downloaded from Steam, where you can also purchase the full version of the game.
Playing Sacraboar
Getting started in Sacraboar doesn’t allow for planning and creation of a vast army of units – the mouse-controlled game moves with pace and throws you straight into the action as the enemy intends to capture your pig from the word go.
This adds an element of urgency that is rarely seen in games from this genre; however given the disposable nature of multiplayer releases (Sacraboar can be played in single, LAN and internet multiplayer mode) this is a clever option which may well give the game some longevity.
Great Graphics, Pig Sounds
The graphics in Sacraboar are colourful and detailed, with good use of visual FX. The animation of the individual units is as smooth as you would expect while the unit design is evocative of the Warhammer series. Meanwhile the backgrounds are remarkably detailed, although all of these graphical elements naturally depends on the quality of your video card.
An in-game control console is also available – from here you can manage your resources, control the creation of new units, and via a map oversee the progress of your campaign.
There are some great audio elements to the game, from pig noises to the sounds of combat. The accompanying soundtrack to the levels in unobtrusive and adds to the thrill of trying to capture the opponent’s pig.
Quick Start Magic, Pig Style (4 out of 5)
Sacraboar is great fun – from the quick start philosophy to the use of magic, there is something for strategy newcomers and veterans alike. Pleasing graphics and easy gameplay are often enough, but the added element of a pig flag adds a hint of madness to proceedings, as well as an idea of what is to come in later levels.
Set across a well-realized scrolling backdrop there is little to fault – while RTS games aren’t for everyone Sacraboar is a strategy title that you can get stuck into without hours of stockpiling and planning.
