Ludography
72/100
Players5 ratings
66/100
Critics5 reviews
More scores
Metacritic14 critic reviews
71/100
Metacritic usersuser score
75/100
GameFAQsJust Right
3.8/5
Player reviews
80% positive964 reviews
Steam Deck
Verified
Runs on
Windows, Mac, Linux
Price
US$14.99

Where to get it

Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander cover

2016 · Indie · Role-playing

Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander

Nintendo console exclusive

Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a retro sci-fi strategy RPG with a unique blend of base building, exploration and deep tactical JRPG style combat system with capital starships and their idiosyncratic officers, all captured in stunningly beautiful modernized pixel graphics. In Halcyon 6, an unknown alien force is carving a path of destruction towards Earth and you, as the Commander of an immensely powerful, newly discovered derelict starbase left behind by a precursor alien race, are the best chance for the New Terran Federation to stop the impending invasion.

Released
2016
Platforms
LinuxNintendo SwitchWindowsiOSmacOS
Genres
IndieRole-playingSimulationSpace operaStrategyTurn-based strategy
Developers
—
Publishers
—
Modes
Single-player
Perspective
Side viewText
Themes
Science fiction4X (explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate)
Country
Canada
Age ratings
ESRB TPEGI 12GRAC 12+
Languages
English
Time to beat
14hmain story24hwith extras35hcompletionist

About

Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander is a strategy video game and turn-based tactical RPG hybrid developed and published by Massive Damage. It was released on September 8, 2016 for Windows, OS X and Linux, and October 19, 2017 for iOS. Taking place in a science fiction setting, the player must reclaim and rebuild the derelict ancient space station Halcyon 6 in order to stop an impending alien invasion of Earth.

The game received mixed reviews from critics, praising the game's concept but criticizing its slow progression. This caused the game's developers to release an enhanced version, Lightspeed Edition, which decreased the game's length significantly, in addition to adding new features.

Players say

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The game revolves around managing and building the player's base, which has individual rooms that must be cleared out. To do this the player must gather resources from nearby worlds. They must also deal with attacking enemies such as pirates and aliens entering through portals that must be closed. There are two types of combat, ground and ship-to-ship, both of which operate in the manner of a turn-based RPG. The player can use combos to exploit vulnerabilities and apply status effects.

Development

Halcyon 6 was funded on Kickstarter, where its initial budget was USD $40,000. It ended up making almost $200,000 due to coverage from large gaming sites and promotional assistance from Square Enix Collective. The developers emulated the successful marketing campaigns of Darkest Dungeon and Moon Hunters. Its development team was based in Toronto.

The game was inspired by the setting of Star Trek, and by the gameplay of Master of Orion, Jagged Alliance, and Star Control. Its base-building gameplay also took inspiration from XCOM: Enemy Unknown. Combining the individual systems of different genres was stated to be difficult, with the developers going through "5 or 6" different combat systems. Each aspect of the game was assigned to a different developer.

Reception

Halcyon 6 received mixed reviews, with an aggregate score of 71/100 on Metacritic.

Adam Smith of Rock, Paper, Shotgun called the game enjoyable, but "less than the sum of its parts", saying that its mixture of gameplay genres "don't quite fit" with each other. He described the game's aliens as "dangerous [...] but also kind of adorable", saying that "Halcyon makes cosmic horror cute". Jason Bohn of Hardcore Gamer rated the game 4/5, calling it "one of those titles that cannot be recommended enough to fans of 4X games, JRPGs or space-based science fiction", despite "a few small details holding it back". Kat Bailey of USgamer rated the game 60/100, calling it "flawed but promising", praising the game's overall concept and calling its soundtrack "phenomenal", but criticizing its "tedious resource gathering, repetitive combat, and bugs".

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Windows8 September 2016Worldwide
macOS8 September 2016Worldwide
Linux8 September 2016Worldwide
iOS19 October 2017Worldwide
Nintendo Switch31 January 2019North America

Title IDsone per regional release, with its latest update

PlatformTitle IDRegionLatest update
Nintendo Switch01006B30092F0000—v2

Editions and related releases

Expanded editions
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander Lightspeed Edition
Built on it
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander Lightspeed Edition

Games like this

Collections1 collection

Years

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.