Overdue for about a month (devs from Fishlabs initially scheduled it for 30th of August), the “Supernova” expansion for the best space game for iOS has been finally released. Android version is rumored to follow. Exact date is not known yet.
Galaxy on Fire 2 is the closest thing to EVE Online one can get for mobile devices, including iOS and Android. “Supernova” is the second content expansion, which brings several new ships, weapons and another few hours worth of singleplayer campaign. Some of the features are available for free when you install the update, but the new campaign is a 5.49 EUR in-app purchase. It is also possible to buy both expansions (Valkyrie+Supernova) for 7.99 EUR.
This is what the official patch notes say in the App Store:
# # # SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE SUPERNOVA ADD-ON # # #
• An epic new storyline with more than 10 hours of action-packed sci-fi gameplay
• Eight new spaceships (incl. Most Wanted Ships)
• Dozens of new weapons, power-ups and commodities (incl. cluster missiles and gamma shields)
• New mission types and gameplay modes (e.g. bounty hunting, plasma collecting, hacking)
• Seven new star systems (incl. the spectacular Supernova systems)
• New capital ships and structures (e.g. Vossk Battlecruiser and Mido Mining Plant)# # # SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE FREE UPDATE # # #
• New arcade mode “Supernova Challenge” incl. iOS6 support
• Six special ships (only available for owners of the Kaamo Club)
• One retro ship (the legendary Gryphon from the original GOF)
• Possibility to modify the stats and capabilities of your spaceships
• Kaamo Club VIP Card (for exclusive discounts on all Kaamo-Offers)
• Four new primary weapons
• Nine new achievements
• Complete German voice-over
• Minor bugfixes and enhancements
The story of Supernova expansion begins with an insterstellar disaster in the Midorian sector, forcing Mido out of their space and creating new ground for a conflict with Nivelians. Mido decide to ask Maxwell to become an emissary of peace to the Nivellians to negotiate treaty and aid. Despite his valiant efforts, the situation only gets worse. Slowly Keith realizes there must be a new, hidden enemy, who tries to make matters even worse.
According to the press information, the Supernova expansion brings about 10 hours of action, and believe me, this is a high quality entertainment. Players can expect new missions, new systems (and new hidden systems as well!) and loads of new content such as space ships, blueprints, weapons and commodities.
Let’s dig deeper
The expansions brings several new ships, namely a heavy battleship “Bloodstar“, which according to galaxyonfire wikia sports 180 cargo space, 1 turret, 4 primary weapons, and 4 secondary weapons. There is limited information regarding other ships, apart from their names (and looks – Fishlabs has published several screenshots).
- The new ships:
- Gryphon
- Rhino
- Bloodstar
- Amboss
- Gator Custom
- Blue Fyre
- Ghost fighter
- Most Wanted – a bounty hunter office. Track and hunt down most wanted criminal bosses to be able to buy their ships in Loma/Kaamo later. These are really tough enemies!
- New modules:
- Gamma shield – to withstand the gamma radiation after the supernova explosion
- Repair laser (Large Remote Repairer I anyone?)
- Leech beam (another mod from EVE: Nosferatu!)
- New primary weapons:
- Sentry Turrets – similar to sentry drones in EVE. Launch them and allow them to shoot your enemies.
- Matador TS – new, manually controlled turret
- M6 A4 “Raccoon” – improved version of the M6 series
- Mass Driver MD 12 – improved version of the MD series
- New secondary weapons:
- Cluster missiles
- Improvements to mining
- Gas Harvesting: fire a ionization missile into a gas cloud, then once the cloud has been ionized and starts to disperse, you can harvest it with a plasma harvester (which is basically a turret, so you need a ship that has a turret slot).
- Mido Mining Plant at Coromesk in Skavac system will happily convert 30 units of ore into a single core.
PS. I still wonder if CCP could release an EVE-themed mobile game using the resources from “Classic” EVE Online client. This would work! Second expansion to Galaxy on Fire II is a “living” proof that mobile games can be profitable.