Homeworld

                                                               
Homeworld is a real-time strategy computer game released on September 28, 1999, developed by Relic Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment. It was the first fully three-dimensional RTS. In 2003, Relic released the source code for Homeworld; to work with the code one must sign a license agreement and become part of the Relic Developer Network. Homeworld was the beginning of a series, followed in 2000 with Homeworld: Cataclysm and in 2003 with Homeworld 2.

Plot

For thousands of years, the Kushan survived on the arid planet Kharak, corralled into the temperate geographical poles by a vast hot desert. Scarcity of arable land and natural resources had colored Kushan history with near constant warfare between the many clans. One day however, everything changed: a satellite detected a huge spaceship under the sands of the Great Desert. It carried advanced spaceflight technologies. More importantly, a stone with a galactic map bearing two coordinates was found: One, located at the outer rim of the galaxy, was Kharak. The other, located near the center, bore a name so ancient it was common across all their languages and dialects: Hiigara.

The discovery united the people of Kharak. They worked for nearly a century on building the "Mothership", a vast ship that would bear 600,000 of them to their destination. Technologies that never existed before were developed. Central to the Mothership was Karan S'jet, the scientist who integrated the Mothership's control system into her own nervous system. She became the core of the Mothership and was known as Fleet Command.

The maiden voyage of the Mothership turned into a tragedy: As scheduled, the Mothership performed its first hyperspace jump, disappearing from its location near planet Kharak and appearing outside the Kharak solar system where it expected an engineering crew onboard a support ship, the Khar-Selim. Instead, it found a hostile alien fleet known as the "Terranic raiders". Which had destroyed the Khar-Selim. The Kushan managed to defeat the raiders and return to Kharak, only to find it in flames. Those left on Kharak were all dead. The chosen 600,000 were all that had survived.

The Kushan began their journey with an act of revenge on the fleet that had destroyed Kharak. Having captured an enemy frigate, they learned that their enemy, the Taiidan, were rulers of a tyrannical interstellar empire. The Taiidan Emperor had ordered the destruction of Kharak merely because the Kushan's development of a faster-than-light drive was a violation of a treaty signed four thousand years before – a time that predated Kharak's known history. The ships that had destroyed the Khar-Selim and attacked the Mothership, were mercenaries in the service of the Taiidan Empire.

The Kushan become aware of huge Taiidan outposts along their way and set out to circumvent them. Their course took them through many hazards: A dangerous asteroid field, a turbulent nebula in which a huge fleet of zealous adversaries lay in ambush and a mysterious ship that took possession of whatever capital ship that approached it. Occasionally, they were visited by the Bentusi, a benevolent race of space traders who sold them advanced military technology. The Bentusi promised to summon the Galactic Council and help establish the Kushan claim to Hiigara.

The Emperor saw the Bentusi as a serious threat and ordered their destruction. He would have succeeded, had it not been for the Kushan fleet that arrived in time to rescue the Bentusi mothership. In return, the Bentusi told the Kushan about how their ancestors were exiled to Kharak four thousand years ago and how their return was prophesied.

The Kushan later gave sanctuary to a defecting Taiidan rebel, Captain Elson of the destroyer Kapella, who rallied others to his cause. With the help of Captain Elson and his rebellion, they penetrated the Hiigaran system blockade and engaged the massive Taiidan fleet, commanded by the Emperor himself, in one last epic battle. The Emperor mysteriously lashed out at Karan and put her into a coma, leaving the Mothership paralyzed. But despite the loss of their Fleet Command, and the superior numbers and strategies of the Taiidan fleet, the Kushan managed to destroy the Emperor and emerge victorious. The Galactic Council arrived shortly thereafter and approved the Kushan's claim to Hiigara, which turned out to be a beautiful lush world. Karan S'jet, who awakened from her coma after the Emperor's death, survived the extraction from the Mothership, and was the last person to set foot on Hiigara.

                                               
Characters

In Homeworld's story, individual characters have very little significance; rather, it is the races or organizations around which the story takes shape, supplemented by the context-sensitive game music and the narrations given between missions. When there is a need for a race to speak, usually an unseen and usually unnamed spokesperson does so. Overall, there are only four individuals in the game that have some form of personality.

    Karan S'jet: Also referred to as Fleet Command, Karan was a neuroscientist who gave birth to the technology of integrating a person's neural system into a starship's control systems, thus enabling very close interaction with the machine and eliminating the need of a forbiddingly huge crew. Using this technology, she was integrated into the Mothership and thus became the leader of the Kushan fleet. Karan is heard frequently but is not seen except in cutscenes at the beginning and the end of the game. She is a slender middle-aged woman. During the game, she alerts the player of important events in the game. Her voice actor is Heidi Ernest.
    Fleet Intelligence: A male character in charge of analyzing sensor data and generating mission objectives in the single player campaign. Unlike Fleet Command, he is quite formal and his voice is often emotionally level. He is not heard in multiplayer games. His voice actor is Michael Sunczyk.
    Captain Elson: Commander of the Taiidani destroyer–class ship Kapella and the leader of the Taiidan revolution against the Emperor. He appears in missions 12, 13 and 16. He and the other revolutionaries believe that the Taiidan Empire has grown corrupt over the centuries, and wish to overthrow the current regime in favor of a republic.
    The Taiidan Emperor: A paranoid and ruthless dictator, he commands the Taiidan flagship in the final mission of the game, during the battle for Hiigara. Known only as "the Emperor" in Homeworld, he was identified as Riesstiu IV the Second in the manual for Homeworld: Cataclysm. The appelation "the Second" is so added because the Emperor was in fact a clone of the original Emperor Riesstiu IV, who had killed any potential heirs for fear of assassination. Cataclysm's manual further describes his reign as having lasted nearly four centuries by the time of Homeworld, and was marked by pogroms against "enemies of the state" and high taxation to maintain an overly large military. The final straw came when Kharak's destruction was broadcast as Imperial propaganda displaying the Emperor's power; rather than serve as an inspiring victory over supposed enemies of the Empire, watching three hundred million people die merely to prove a point was the catalyst for the people to rise in rebellion.

Races

    Kushan: The primary protagonists of the game. Four thousands years before the events of the game, they were defeated in a galactic war and were sent into exile as punishment. The convoy of prison ships traveled the void for centuries using conventional drives, though of the many vessels only five eventually made it to Kharak, some ships being destroyed by malfunctions and others breaking off from the main group. The Exiles who settled on Kharak eventually forgot their history, holding onto only a few vague myths and legends and forgetting a treaty never to redevelop hyperspace technology. The Kushan are one of the two teams available in multiplayer games.
    Taiidan: An interstellar empire that rules much of the galaxy in which the game's story takes place. The empire is ruled by a ruthless and mad emperor, against whom a rebellion has risen. The Taiidan is the primary antagonist of the game and one of the two playable teams in multiplayer games. Though they are designed quite differently, the vast majority of Taiidan ships are mostly functionally identical to their Kushan counterparts.
    Bentusi: A peaceful space-faring race of traders. The Bentusi are an enigmatic race, speaking in a poetic and guarded fashion, though they are friendly and only attack those who unwisely provoke them. In mission 11, a member of the Bentusi breaks their silence regarding the larger events of the galaxy and tells the Kushan the story of their ancient exile. This particular individual is voiced by Campbell Lane, who also narrates the game.
    Kadeshi: A race seen only in missions 7 and 8, they are descendants of the Exiles who never reached Kharak. Instead, they entered an electronically charged nebula that hid them from detection by any outside sensors. This nebula, christened the Gardens of Kadesh, eventually became the center of their existence and religion. Their needle-shaped motherships can prevent enemy vessels from performing a hyperspace jump, allowing them to ensnare any who wander into their home and present them with an ultimatum: join them or die. Their unforgiving approach to intruders meant that prior to the Kushan, no-one who entered the Gardens would ever leave again, making the nebula feared by the rest of the galaxy.
    Turanic Raiders: A race of marauding space pirates who were at the time of the game employed by the Taiidan Empire to help attack Kharak. They were not seen since mission 5, although two ion array frigates show up in Mission 9: Deep Space - Sea of Lost Souls amd a single Turanic Raider fighter can be found in the final level.
    The Galactic Council: A deus ex machina device, no detail is given about this race or organization except that even the Taiidan must answer this council. They arrive at the end of the game to approve the Kushan's claim on Hiigara
    
    
    Allusions
    The game features multiple instances of allusion, a literary device which involves invoking similarities with other famous works of literature or the real world. The game's main storyline has many resemblances to The Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their search for the promised land. In addition, the titles of Missions 7 and 8, respectively "Gardens of Kadesh" and "Cathedral of Kadesh", allude to the real-world Kadesh. Finally, Mission 13 ("The Karos Graveyard - The Shining Hinterlands") also bears some resemblances to Homer's Odyssey. For one, the mission's objective is to send a strikecraft to dock with a derelict ship to establish a communication link, an allusion to the search for the blind oracle. For another, the Karos Graveyard is protected by a ship called Junkyard Dog, an allusion to Cerberus.
    Gameplay

    The game takes place in outer space where there is no gravity and ships may travel in any direction in the three dimensions. Few elements, such as asteroids, dust clouds and intense radiation may impair ship movements.
    The player may choose to play as either the Kushan or Taiidan, both online and in the single-player campaign. While each unit serves a particular function and represents a tradeoff in strength, offensive power, speed, and cost, the differences between the two factions are mostly in cosmetic ship design. Parallel ships (e.g. the Kushan Assault Frigate versus the Taiidan Assault Frigate) look different but have identical vital statistics and functionality. However, each race features two unique units: The Kushan possesses Cloaking Fighter and Drone Frigate, while the Taiidan produces Defense Fighter and Defense Field Frigate.
    Resources are gathered by harvesting dust clouds and mineral-rich asteroids using special resource collector ships. Resource collectors may return their harvest either to a mothership or a resource controller ship.
    The user interface is minimalistic: The only toolbar appears only when the cursor is moved to the bottom of the screen. Orders such as moving or assuming certain formations are given either from a context menu (invoked by right-click) or via hotkeys.
    The inclusion of unrestricted unit movement in all three dimensions adds a tactical dynamic not encountered in typical ground based real time strategy games where movement is on a two dimensional plane. Since the area of play is generally void of significant obstacles to create "terrain", there is little emphasis on the control of a certain choke point in order to establish defensive perimeters, although minelayer corvettes can be used to create them.

    Allusions
    The game features multiple instances of allusion, a literary device which involves invoking similarities with other famous works of literature or the real world. The game's main storyline has many resemblances to The Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their search for the promised land. In addition, the titles of Missions 7 and 8, respectively "Gardens of Kadesh" and "Cathedral of Kadesh", allude to the real-world Kadesh. Finally, Mission 13 ("The Karos Graveyard - The Shining Hinterlands") also bears some resemblances to Homer's Odyssey. For one, the mission's objective is to send a strikecraft to dock with a derelict ship to establish a communication link, an allusion to the search for the blind oracle. For another, the Karos Graveyard is protected by a ship called Junkyard Dog, an allusion to Cerberus.
    Gameplay
    The game takes place in outer space where there is no gravity and ships may travel in any direction in the three dimensions. Few elements, such as asteroids, dust clouds and intense radiation may impair ship movements.
    The player may choose to play as either the Kushan or Taiidan, both online and in the single-player campaign. While each unit serves a particular function and represents a tradeoff in strength, offensive power, speed, and cost, the differences between the two factions are mostly in cosmetic ship design. Parallel ships (e.g. the Kushan Assault Frigate versus the Taiidan Assault Frigate) look different but have identical vital statistics and functionality. However, each race features two unique units: The Kushan possesses Cloaking Fighter and Drone Frigate, while the Taiidan produces Defense Fighter and Defense Field Frigate.
    Resources are gathered by harvesting dust clouds and mineral-rich asteroids using special resource collector ships. Resource collectors may return their harvest either to a mothership or a resource controller ship.
    The user interface is minimalistic: The only toolbar appears only when the cursor is moved to the bottom of the screen. Orders such as moving or assuming certain formations are given either from a context menu (invoked by right-click) or via hotkeys.
    The inclusion of unrestricted unit movement in all three dimensions adds a tactical dynamic not encountered in typical ground based real time strategy games where movement is on a two dimensional plane. Since the area of play is generally void of significant obstacles to create "terrain", there is little emphasis on the control of a certain choke point in order to establish defensive perimeters, although minelayer corvettes can be used to create them.
    Allusions
    The game features multiple instances of allusion, a literary device which involves invoking similarities with other famous works of literature or the real world. The game's main storyline has many resemblances to The Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their search for the promised land. In addition, the titles of Missions 7 and 8, respectively "Gardens of Kadesh" and "Cathedral of Kadesh", allude to the real-world Kadesh. Finally, Mission 13 ("The Karos Graveyard - The Shining Hinterlands") also bears some resemblances to Homer's Odyssey. For one, the mission's objective is to send a strikecraft to dock with a derelict ship to establish a communication link, an allusion to the search for the blind oracle. For another, the Karos Graveyard is protected by a ship called Junkyard Dog, an allusion to Cerberus.
    Gameplay
    The game takes place in outer space where there is no gravity and ships may travel in any direction in the three dimensions. Few elements, such as asteroids, dust clouds and intense radiation may impair ship movements.
    The player may choose to play as either the Kushan or Taiidan, both online and in the single-player campaign. While each unit serves a particular function and represents a tradeoff in strength, offensive power, speed, and cost, the differences between the two factions are mostly in cosmetic ship design. Parallel ships (e.g. the Kushan Assault Frigate versus the Taiidan Assault Frigate) look different but have identical vital statistics and functionality. However, each race features two unique units: The Kushan possesses Cloaking Fighter and Drone Frigate, while the Taiidan produces Defense Fighter and Defense Field Frigate.
    Resources are gathered by harvesting dust clouds and mineral-rich asteroids using special resource collector ships. Resource collectors may return their harvest either to a mothership or a resource controller ship.
    The user interface is minimalistic: The only toolbar appears only when the cursor is moved to the bottom of the screen. Orders such as moving or assuming certain formations are given either from a context menu (invoked by right-click) or via hotkeys.
    The inclusion of unrestricted unit movement in all three dimensions adds a tactical dynamic not encountered in typical ground based real time strategy games where movement is on a two dimensional plane. Since the area of play is generally void of significant obstacles to create "terrain", there is little emphasis on the control of a certain choke point in order to establish defensive perimeters, although minelayer corvettes can be used to create them.
    Compatibility
    Homeworld remains fully compatible with both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Vista, and 7. Graphical glitches may occur when not using the software renderer. OpenGL may be enabled by running the game in compatibility mode of Windows NT 4.0 (Service Pack 5). The game is locked at a 4:3 aspect ratio. Widescreen resolutions may be applied by editing the registry.
    Design
    In Homeworld, there are five classes of combat ships, in the order of size, armor, speed and maneuverability: Fighter, corvette, frigate, destroyers and heavy cruisers. Fighters are the smallest, the fastest, the weakest and the most maneuverable ships. Heavy cruisers are the largest, the slowest, the toughest and the least maneuverable combat ships. Apart from the combat ship there are several non-combat vessels, including mothership, carrier, resource collector, research and sensor class ships.
    Fighters and corvettes are small crafts. They run on conventional propulsion and have limited fuels. They must "dock with" (enter or attach to) a mothership, carrier or support frigate to refuel, receive repairs or travel long distances. Whereas fighters are equipped with fixed guns, corvettes have one or more rotating turrets. In addition, not all the corvettes are armed: Salvage Corvettes (which can capture other ships) and Repair Corvettes (which can repair other ship and refuel fighters) are not armed.
    Frigates, destroyers and heavy cruisers are all heavily armed. They are also equipped with their own power generators and hyperspace engines; therefore, they can enter hyperspace independently. All three can move while attacking. While frigates have only one type of weapon, destroyers and heavy cruisers are equipped with both guns and ion cannons. Each player may have no more than a handful of destroyers and two heavy cruisers.
    Mothership is the largest, the slowest, the toughest and the least maneuverable class of all ships. Each player has only one irreplaceable mothership. With the exception of the Bentusi's and the Kadeshi's, motherships are lightly armed. The mothership can produce all other ships. Fighters and corvettes may enter and "dock with" their mothership. Resource collectors can also drop gathered resources inside their mothership.
    Carriers are smaller versions of motherships. They have less dock sites for ships or resource collectors and cannot produce destroyers, heavy cruisers or other carriers. They are also not as tough as a mothership but they are faster and more maneuverable.
    The spaceship designs in this game bear a strong resemblance to the designs popularized by illustrators Chris Foss and Peter Elson, who are both mentioned in the special thanks section of the game's credits, and the latter being referenced in game by the leader of the Taiidan rebellion during the Homeworld War.
                                                           
Link of game to download : http://sh.st/qWPMN
size of game to download : 631.22 MB
Program to mount Iso games Best : Deamon Tools
                                          

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

MINIMUM PC REQUIREMENTS

Minimum CPU Type: Pentium II

Minimum CPU Speed: 233 MHz

Minimum RAM Required: 32 MB

Minimum Hard Disk Space: 100 MB

Graphics Type: SVGA

Graphics Resolution: 800x600

Color Depth: High Color