O.R.B.: Off-World Resource Base Critic Reviews

No major breakthrough, but it is an exceptional outing suited to longtime RTS fans and newcomers alike.

If "Warcraft 3" is a tactical blitz, O.R.B. is the slower, relaxed alternative. It's a seldom-traveled path: a game of patience, development and, lest we forget, strategy.

Other than a few specific problems, O.R.B. is a well-made game. It lacks inspiration, but it's a good enough real-time strategy game for those who are tired of being confined to terra firma.

The vast majority of the single player campaign feels anti-climatic. It is still good don't get me wrong, but at times gameplay begins to drag. Thankfully there is an excellent multiplayer component.

While I had my issues with the movement controls, it was really the lack of creativity and focus in the objectives that got me.

While the mechanics are solid, the single-player campaign often feels as soulless and hollow as the vacuum in which it takes place.

O.R.B. has a nearly perfect interface, and its graphic engine renders everything from the wisp of exhaust trails to the imposing bulk of planets with great skill.

There are precious little true innovations in O.R.B.. This is altogether an interesting game, in spite of the cliché story and occasionally slow-paced missions.

Good visuals don't make up for mediocre gameplay and horrible controls.

Even with the weak campaign, O.R.B.'s compelling and interestingly paced skirmish mode more than make up for it.

The end result is a jigsaw puzzle where many of the pieces don’t fit with the others, and a substantial chunk of the picture seems to be missing.

Blandoid RTS knock-off.

Graphics aside, the final nail in O.R.B.'s coffin is its pace. Ships crawl across the screen, and even at triple speed (as fast as it gets), it seems to take an eternity for anything to navigate the map.