Finally, after 13 years, Half-life RTS Lambda Wars has been released

LAMBDA WARS AND THE RECENT RELEASE

Lambda Wars is a free multiuser Source Engine modification for Alien swarm based on the Half-life 2 gaming setup, which brings the battle between humankind and their brutal Combine overlords to a standard real-time strategy (RTS) setting. Lead the revolt as a leader of the resistance or destroy the uprising as an overlord of the Combine, including both factions highlighting a full provider of units, abilities, buildings, research, and defenses. Lambda Wars features fully developed RTS game-play, a strong RTS configuration, and is focused on multiplayer but planned AI enemies and exclusive single-player operations are included as well. 

The various unique features include: The ideal real-time strategy (RTS) game-play in the Half-Life 2 universe, Multi-User assistance and game lobby which consists of the spectator mode, immense diversity of maps for up to 8 human players or AI players, can be played as “Combine or Resistance and also as Antlions in the Sandbox mode,” Full unit tech tree which allows you to take hold of everything from Manhacks to Striders, fully developed RTS interface and HUD including everything from mini maps and fog of war to unit and production building groups, build manufacture and research competency to request for improved teams and unlock the abilities and customize defensive compositions, steeple and mines help shield your headquarters and significant resource points, more than one game modes, single-player missions, and offline AI battle mode.

Lambda Wars finally left beta after 13 years since the start of the project, which started way back in 2007, and till now, the team has made lots of progress. In the past so many years, Lambda Wars has transformed from a proof of concept into a fully-fledged asymmetrical real-time strategy (RTS) game with single-player, co-op multiplayer game modes.

The recent updates include four new units, new buildings, remodels of the buildings, and piles of bug fixes or balanced tweaks.

CHANGES IN THE OVERALL GAMEPLAY

GAME:

It added new models for combat garrison, mech center, rebel special operations, triage centre, mortar. They also added a game timer, and now the timer starts when the screen is prepared. It also includes production sounds for the buildings and new events notification voice lines for both Combine and rebel, voiced by kung fu cheese, Blitherpaladin. Roller mines now become red on death in the recent updates, and stalkers can’t change into zombies. Drop-ships now have idle animations. It has also been updated to Korean and Russian localization.

COMBINE:

New units were added at Synth Factory (Mortar Synth and Crab Synth) and added units at Special Ops building Combine Heavy. Tech Center said a new building Tech Center (made by Spok) has new upgrades for teams. This recent upgrade makes clawscanner’s hopper-mines invisible for enemies. The added move and attack upgrade for the Mortar Synth unit also increases movement speed by 25% and escalates attack speed by 1 second. Strider cannon upgrade moved into this building. Metrocop with Pistol build time reduced from 19 sec to 15. Metro riot build time reduced from 17 to 15. Man hack adds the ‘metal’ attribute. For Sniper, the bonus for the damage against medium units increased from 10 to 100, bonus damage against heavy units rose from 20 to 60, and the attack range reduced from 1280 to 1152. Hunter adds a new attribute, ‘flechette’ that gives seven extra damage against units with a ‘large’ characteristic. Roller mine health increased from 115 to 155. Energy cell health increased from 200 to 250.

Mech: Factory health increased from 450 to 500. Garrison is required now again. Build time reduced from 45 sec to 23. Armory health increased from 500 to 750.

SPECIFIC FIXES AND BALANCE

FIXES:

The fixes for the new release include selection sounds on Scanners and Claw Scanners. Patrol command, Frag grenade bug, falling animations for stalkers and zombies is fixed. Flamethrowers and Molotov cannot attack when inside bunkers. It also set grenade prices when sometimes units could get grenades for free. Error in overrun game mode when comb also fixed, now the bunker required garrison. It also attempted to fix metro riot and hunter game crashes.

The more fixes include vort—antlions when they could sometimes be stuck underground. Scouts infiltrate sound, which could play when you don’t have the energy to usability. Rebel Medic healing ability, which had broken cool down. Dog’s slam ability could be utilized while the unit is moving—shield generation connections.

MAPS:

It updated some minor bug fixes, map design and added two new ways blocked by destructible walls.

BALANCE:

The new control points for level 1 cost reduced from 30/15 to 25/15, and for level 2, cost reduced from 40/30 to 35/30. Now Level 2 gives 60 req. Per-minute, it was 76 req earlier.

Now, Mount turrets require an Armory/Munition Depot in the new version and added a new attribute ‘large’ for Dogs and Strangers. Grenades damage radius decreased from 320 to 256, pulse attribute withdraws bonus damage against metal units, metal attribute damage from ‘plasma’ reduced by 50%, and AR2 attack speed changed from 0.09 sec to 0.08, reload rate changed from 0.04-0.05 to 0.03-0.04. A new rebel unit was added with a new tech centre building, C4 upgrade shifted to a new building from the munition depot. Dog Jump and slam damage reduced from 230 to 180, and bonus damage to jump and attack abilities +50 against light and medium units, Increased bonus damage for jump and attack abilities from 150 to 200 against synth units.