Etherium is the name of a new real-time strategy game from Tindalos Interactive, the French developer responsible for Stellar Impact . It's also the name of the precious resource that fuels its science fiction premise. Stupid names for important resources is an important facet of all great franchises. Command & Conquer has Tiberium, which is thankfully less obvious than Avatar's Unobtainium, which, unfortunately, is a term engineers actually use . So based on that alone, Etherium at least seems to be checking all the RTS boxes.
The game will feature three playable empires, fighting each other to control said precious etherium. As to be expected, each empire will have its individual characteristics, strengths, weaknesses, technologies, and special skills, such as climate control, espionage and precognition. Each empire will also have different “colossi of war,” like that gigantic ( and awfully familiar ) robot spider we see in the trailer below.
One standout feature about Etherium is its weather system. Each of the seven planets in the game will present different weather conditions, allowing you launch surprise attacks by crossing frozen rivers or using a sandstorms to cover your approach.
According to a press release from the publisher, the single-player campaign will be non-linear, giving you a measure of control over how to proceed with your conquests, and the online multiplayer mode will allow up to four players to compete simultaneously.
Etherium is set to release in Spring 2014.
