Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak is a superb RTS, but it’s also got another trick up its sandy sleeve: it’s absolutely gorgeous. I’ve been playing it a lot over the last couple of days, and there have been few moments where a finger wasn’t hovering over the screenshot key. I now have more pretty pictures than I know what to do with.
Instead of letting these images languish on my desktop, I’ve put some of my favourites below, so you can sit and gawk at them, and hopefully use them to warm yourself up during these cold winter months. Enjoy!
The following screenshots were taken during missions rather than in the middle of cutscenes. Homeworld’s flexible camera is a boon to anyone looking to capture some pretty snaps of the desert planet.
This is the last time you’ll see civilisation for a good long while. Say goodbye and enjoy the sunset.
See that giant cloud in the distance? Yeah, that’s a sandstorm. You’ll be spending a bit of time inside it later. Also, Kharak looks even more striking at night. If you look up at the sky, you’re able to see the smokey galaxy above you, and Blackbird Interactive use the texture from the Homeworld Remastered Collection. It’s the same sky.
When you mobilise your entire force, giant carrier included, it’s hard not to feel untouchable. To get some perspective, the carrier is around half a kilometer in length, so those tanks scurrying alongside are not as diminutive as they appear.
Up next are some snaps taken from cutscenes. Many of them are evocative of the stunning pieces of subtly animated art from the original game, but with considerably more colour and animation. Occasionally a cutscene will pop up in the middle of a mission as well, rendered using the game engine.
This ominous-looking individual is a Gaalsien, one of Homeworld’s fundementalist baddies. You can play as this faction in multiplayer, and aside from the mechanical differences, their radio chatter is also unlike their Coalition enemies. Those masks that they wear make their voices sound malevolant and croaky.
The wreckage of long fallen ships peppers the desert, one of the few things that breaks up the barren dunes. Aside from being mysterious, haunting relics, they also serve a practical purpose. Wreackage can be blown up, spewing out resources in the resulting explosion. This shipbreaking mechanic also gave the game its original, but since changed, name: Homeworld: Shipbreakers.
And that’s your lot! You’ll be able to fill folders with your own snaps when Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak launches on January 20th.