Turn based combat strategy games usually come in three flavours; on PC they're usually themed around historical battles and on consoles they're either medieval fantasy or feature 30-foot robots. Rim is different as it is set far in the distant future, on the outer rim of the universe, and although being on the PC, it has strong console gameplay sensibilities.

The game system works in three phases. In the movement phase you can move each of your various units within their respective fields of movement, sectioned off into grids. In the attack phase you can fire, within each unit's range of fire, also represented as a square grid around the units. In this phase you can also use the special function of your units, which for the race you start as in single player is a force field, but in multiplayer you can you can play as other races, which have weapon deflecting shields, cannibalistic regeneration and long-range reflective lasers. This style of movement and attack is reminiscent of console strategy games such as Front Mission and Vandal Hearts, but the third phase makes it different.

The third phase is the entertainment phase, in which the battles planned in the attack phase take place, in real-time, along with the special functions and story events. This means that units may attack simultaneously, allied forces doing collateral damage, or opposing units destroying each other at the same time. This adds an extra level to the strategy. The game environment is also set in full 3D with range of fire and movement determined by the terrain and a fog of war determined by the atmospheres on the different planets encountered.

In the single player campaign you follow the story of Max Adamski, a commander aboard the research spaceship RSS Solarius as it makes its first exploration into deep space in the Outer Rim. The Solarius was built by a race of humans known as the Rey, who after a galactic war decided to further explore the universe. The first planet the ship encounters in the outer rim is a planet called Paradise. An away team of scout and combat vehicles are sent down before any research takes place in order to check the planet out. On this planet, it is soon found out, due to a lack of communication, that the inhabitants of the planet are biological monsters called Nurgs and they're none too friendly either (or at least so it appears). Adamski is commanded to fight them, but it seems that the Rey's greatest foes from the galactic war, the Slakz, have followed the Solarius and are about to launch an attack of their own. There are other races in the outer rim too, most of them highly dangerous and hostile.

The story in Rim is epic and it gradually unfolds in the 28 exciting missions you lead Adamski and his troops through. It follows the fate of six different races existing in the rim, most of them searching for the home world of the ancient race known only as the Old Ones, who were highly technically advanced and held the secret of the ultimate weapons called Dimension devices.

Within missions and cut scenes there is a lot of speech from the main characters, which is acted quite well. Interestingly there is a choice of either classical or old skool techno music to be played during the game, each actually suiting the game rather well in different ways.

The graphics are very nice and render the terrain and each of the units for each race with style. There are over 70 different units in Rim spread out over the six races, with more conventional flying ships and futuristic tanks for the Rey, monstrous genetically altered creatures for the Nurg, insect-like, biotechnological units for the Slakz and very surprising and imaginative ones for the species encountered later. The types of weapons used are as you would expect; futuristic plasma cannons and lasers, mixed in with chemical and biological weaponry for the monsters and also the prototype Dimension devices I mentioned earlier. These weapons cross into other dimensions and so are able to fire straight at an enemy through any terrain and are very destructive. This comes at a price though, as the technology is not perfected and so they are very unstable and can backfire.

If you are looking for a change of pace in your strategy, this innovative game is worth a look. With good graphics, a complex and thrilling storyline and a large number of varied missions, it will keep you occupied for a long time and serves as a very good introduction into turn based strategy games.

Reviewed for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).