Apparently UT:3 is doing so poorly they had to give it away on Steam this weekend. I gave it a shot and after a few games it became apparent that UT as a franchise is on it’s death bed. Graphics are great, but the gameplay is reminiscent of the fps’ of yesteryear. I was able to find some silver lining on the edge of this dark, dark cloud however. A Total Conversion Mod called Angels Fall First: Planetstorm that immerses the fps player in the Angel’s Fall First universe. If the name “Angel’s Fall First” sounds familiar then you are probably old enough to have played the AFF mod for Homeworld, which was hands down the best Homeworld mod created, and believe you me there was plenty of competition in the HW mod community.

The AFF team has continued their legacy of excellence with Planetstorm. I cannot say enough good things about this mod. In it’s current public beta there are only two maps, one terrestrial and one space. Both maps play like an insurgency “push” mode map where the offensive team has to capture point A before point B is made available. This style of gameplay is great for FPS because it localizes the action, you know where the fight is going to be when you spawn. The game feels somewhat “BF2142-ish” in that you can commandeer a host of vehicles , repair your ships, and drop turrets. The space map, titled Meudeverre, plays almost like a “Titan” mode bf2142 game. You choose which type of ship you want to spawn in, fight your way through enemy defenses in a 3rd person space flight sim mode, land in a space station built into the side of an asteroid, disembark, and take part in a large scale shootout.

Like any mod, AFF:P is a little rough around the edges, but there is no doubt that the direction this game is being taken will put it on course for FPS classic status. Let’s all pray to the gaming Gods that AFF brings this mod full circle, because it is the own. Check the screens below.

[Angel's Fall First Universe Website]