How Homeworld Almost Got Lost in 3D Space | War Stories | Ars Technica

On this episode of War Stories, Ars Technica sits down with Rob Cunningham to revisit the groundbreaking 1999 3D real-time strategy game, Homeworld. When Rob and a group of friends founded Relic Entertainment, they set out to marry the gameplay of Command & Conquer with the feel of Battlestar Galactica - all in a full 3D environment. On top of the everpresent memory limitations of the day, the team needed to get creative in figuring out how to orient players when, in space, no direction is up.
Directed and Produced by Justin Wolfson
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How Homeworld Almost Got Lost in 3D Space | War Stories | Ars Technica

[@Ulmaramlu]

"Homeworld 3 which we're working on right now." wait what!? How did I only just hear about this?

[@davidbrenner5806]

Same reaction

[@Jack2421992]

I've already backed it on Fig. The collectors edition

[@bluhardt]

it was announced in september 2019

[@TanteEmmaaa]

It still is a small team. Release will be far in the future.

[@JINORU_]

@Re Up And they don't bother Blackbird about it.

[@TheIntox23]

"Kharak is burning." No, I'm not crying, you're crying

[@stevedoolan1540]

Right - I don't remember getting truly moved by a computer game before. Except maybe when the boot came down on Manic Miner.

[@benjamincardoza5335]

Damn space ninjas as their space onions!

[@FloorFerret]

"The subject did not survive interrogation" I always felt chilled by that line.

[@davidbrenner5806]

I will never forget trying to save what few people left alive in cryopods as the world burned in the background. I couldn't save them all as the music "adagio for strings" kzbin.info/www/bejne/n6u0pJp7ZbFna5I was driving the point home.

[@feldamar2]

I believe we are ALL crying. The music selection there was inspired.

[@bajsbrev4651]

Replay it almost every year, no other game has made me feel like I'm an actual commander. Truly the most immersive RTS out there imo.

[@slickysan]

Exactly this. It is and will remain the perfect RTS with the best immersion and scale. The only other game close to this is House of the Dying Sun in VR. That game has the same ship like gfx and stuff it is amazing to see all that upclose and personal. I still dream of a Homeworld conversion for full VR though.

[@Canweevenfixit]

@@slickysan I think Sins of a Solar Empire does a nice job

[@metanumia]

@@slickysan ​I really hope we get to see House of the Dying Sun 2 from the same devs! Where the Homeworld games have been the most immersive RTS games ever made, House of the Dying Sun is the single most immersive space combat simulator ever made. When I play House of the Dying Sun in VR it's like I'm hooked up to a continuous IV drip of epinephrine on flush while actually occupying the consciousness of the space fighter pilot in the song *_Universal Nation_* *by* *Push:* kzbin.info/www/bejne/iIXViXyid5aFmKM

[@grassygnoll3345]

I was the first game I ever brought a new PC simply to play. It's the best hard sci fi game on PC. I me3an teh original game, not the sequels or remake, nice as it looks.

[@MattanIngram]

@@metanumia Apparently House of the Dying Sun is made by only one person.

[@UselessDuckCompany]

I loved homeworld so much. I still have the original game manual because I loved the ship designs inside.

[@zach49490]

Same that manual was huge!

[@mainpage725]

The grey paperback one with all the lore in it???

[@ChristochatBTW]

Dude, my dad got me to try out the hd collection because he played homeworld growing up, I'm simply hooked

[@cn6519]

Yes. Me too. A tribute to the idea that some of the best games start with great art design.

[@jp99301]

One of the greatest games of all time.

[@barnmaddo]

I still miss the formations of Homeworld 1. Even if they were mostly the same.

[@mokkabonna]

The music, the sound effects, the feeling of docking with the mothership. Never had I felt magic like that before.

[@barnz3000]

That sound design. Absolutely top notch.

[@DoubleATam]

Other War Stories: ah yes, I designed the game exactly so that x, but when y happened I was stumped for weeks This War Stories: WE HAD NO IDEA WHAT WE WERE DOING, WE GOT LOST AND CHANGED THE SHIPS TO BE MORE OBVIOUS BUT IT WASN'T ENOUGH SO WE ADDED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLS AND-- now this is real game development.

[@JackalSon1]

The part that blows my mind is. (and I'm paraphrasing here) So we went to this guy at Sierra we barely knew and we pitched him the idea and the next day we he gave us a million dollars and we started developing. Like what? Does that happen anymore in gaming or movies. Just a bunch of unknowns walking and then walking out having closed a deal.

[@icipher6730]

@@JackalSon1 No, that doesn't happen anymore. Honestly, even in the late 90s and early 00s it was becoming less and less of a norm, because it was a time period in which the gaming industry had been slowly transitioning from a niche "nerdy" endeavour to "serious business with serious money", and I believe that this process was fully completed during the era of 7th gen consoles like XBox 360 and PS3. Nowdays, maybe *some* projects from indie dev studios can or have been greenlit this way, but not in the "triple A" market. 90% of successful "triple A" games of the last 10-15 years had been a product of not just very careful planning, but also focus group testing ad nauseam, over and over and over again, until team leads and publisher (and even investors sometimes) are pleased. I guess that's mostly unavoidable, because game development these days became so costly, that even a single AAA game with poor sales can sometimes lead to a dev studio bankruptcy, but these aforementioned practices can lead and have led to so many games becoming washed out faceless *products* with no identity, because they were specifically designed to appeal to so many target groups and were trying to appeal to a whole bunch of very different people with very different tastes in games at once.

[@si2foo]

@@JackalSon1 from what i hear it still does but not often

[@Freakazoid12345]

War stories: people I cared deeply got blown to bits in front of me. War stories from nerds and socially awkward people: I did some programming for video games and made a lot of money.

[@IRMentat]

DoubleATam It’s certainly the birth of franchises, it’s rarely (if ever) the successful continuation of them. Some devs are food at the concepts, others the slow improvement, those who can do both are few, far between and increasingly rare.

[@DavidAddis]

That map "zoom out" sound was just perfect.

[@stevedoolan1540]

I'm surprised he didn't mention the quality of the art / music / voice work. They were WAY ahead of most other games, which still had a lot of bad acting at the time. That, combined with the ground breaking engine, was why the game still stands up as one of the absolute best of all time. Also, I always thought that Bear McCreary (who composed the music for Battlestar Galactica) was heavily influenced by the music in Homeworld.

[@alexkramerblogs]

I'm sure he goes into it in the extended cut. Hopefully @ Ars Technica releases that one as well, as they have been doing with other interviews.

[@thechickengod]

Yeah that soundtrack alone was so top tier.

[@icipher6730]

Not only music, but the sound design of the Homeworld series is also absolutely legendary.

[@stevedoolan1540]

@@icipher6730 Definitely

[@Deadeye313]

This game deserves an hour long, narrated documentary about it. It's that important to gaming as a whole.

[@semihtor]

11:45 "The first solution that we had to come up with each problem had to be the final solution." I wonder: Since he said they were so young and inexperienced, were there some cases where they didn't know something was considered undoable and they ended up doing that very thing because they didn't know it was undoable. Like with the case of George Dantzig and him being able to solve two famously unsolved statistics problems because he thought they were homework...

[@HurricaneSA]

While I agree to a large extend with the sentiment of your post I do think one has to temper dreams with reality at least a little bit. The early 80's and the 90's were uncharted territory for everyone making games. There was nobody around to tell you that something was impossible because everyone was learning as they went along. However, there were still plenty of limitations imposed by the reality we lived in back then. There were no GPU's and there were no shaders and SSD's and all the stuff we take for granted today. The average gamer had a rather big imagination at the time since quite often 3D models were little more than a cube with a texture on it. And yet it still became the greatest era in the history of computers. Not because people were told they couldn't do something and then did it anyway. No, because people saw the games they could someday make with this amazing new technology and decided to lay the groundwork.

[@semihtor]

Akanaro O.O exactly! He even said in the interview that homeworld 2 ended up a visual upgrade of homeworld 1 because they couldn’t release the homeworld 2 game they envisioned due to system constraints...

[@Atlessa]

There's been a case like that not too long ago when a team of 'modders' were trying to create "Mechs" in the crysis Wars engine. Crytek told them "nope, absolutely not possible in our engine". They did it anyway. Crytek then hired them.

[@karan_hiremath]

It’s the paradox of engineering - having more “knowledge” can be paralyzing because you aren’t “smart enough” to understand the difference between an impossible and a brilliant idea

[@jwsxyz]

I'm currently studying computer science, that statement blew my mind because we are constantly taught not to do that. With that knowledge I believe that it is a miracle that my favorite game was even made. It is also quite important to remember that software engineering and game making are still extraordinarily young fields now, and this game was developed over 20 years ago.

[@NazarovVv]

I remember seeing the first screenshots of Homeworld in a gaming magazine back in 1999. That thing blew me away. I didn't even have a computer back then. I played it for the first time in 2002. Just in time for Homeworld 2 the next year. And I remember my crappy GeForce 2 MX absolutely giving up the ghost trying to run it. I swear apart for my parents I have hever loved something so much for 21 years straight. So glad Homeworld came home so to speak to BBI.

[@bvbxiong5791]

same! i will always remember the vapor? trails. for some reason, seeing those in 3d and in space was mind blowing back then.

[@NazarovVv]

bvbxiong Yes, the engine trails! Shame they are bugged in the classic version of HW2 in the remaster even bigger shame it’s in this video! However I found it to be linked with the widescreen resolutions.

[@Elenduful]

Same here! RIP Computer Gaming Monthly (CGM), back when gaming/technology magazines had interesting articles, and not just a publication of ads!

[@azndragon75]

I play this game single game and multiplayer with my roommate in the dorm room. We get addicted to the point that we skip class for it lol.

[@JosephAlanMeador]

Ars f***ing Technica! The hits just keep on coming... Homeworld changed my life. I had never seen anything like it before, and I remember thinking "wow, games can look like this?" You really felt as if you were IN IT, clinging to life on an epic journey to guide your people home. Bonkers.

[@AdamCheong]

What he said!

[@Aurumk1]

try playing it with mods.

[@JosephAlanMeador]

@@Aurumk1 We're talking about the year 1999/2000 or so.

[@BlingLingification]

Rob: Let's get the Homeworld IP out of the THQ bankruptcy proceedings so we, the original developers, can keep it and develop it some more. Nobody will probably outbid us because Homeworld is worth nothing because we haven't been able to make Homeworld 3 yet. *Gearbox outbids them and buys the Homeworld IP* Randy from Gearbox: Yea, we bought the Homeworld IP because we love it so much and we don't want some randos to mess it up. Rob: Bruh

[@palava8500]

Fjuck gearbox

[@hammer326]

Literally how it worked out. You meant homeworld 3 at end of Paragraph 1 btw.

[@BlingLingification]

@@hammer326 ty fixed it

[@captainviggo4575]

If I understand what Rob says, it seems that Gearbox outbid other companies which had already outbid him anyway. So, even with all the legitimate critics that can be made against Gearbox, it seems that it was surely the least worse solution. Imagine if it had been bought by EA...

[@BlingLingification]

@@captainviggo4575 You're absolutely right. But Rob's reaction was still hilarious, because his plan, like the game development of the Homeworld series itself, made sense at the logical level but just fell to pieces once it came into contact with reality. Rob: Who would want the Homeworld IP more than us, the original devs? Reality: Literally everybody.

[@Eener1000]

These games are so atmospheric. "The subject did not survive interrogation" I love everything about it. So sad this genre seems to have almost died.

[@PlagueOfWasps]

After 21 years I’ve finally completed the voyage home, thank you to everyone who created this masterpiece. I can’t say enough how much this game deserves to be preserved forever.

[@SolidRoot]

I remember playing Homeworld 2 and thinking how much ahead of its time it felt graphically (and otherwise). Quite a unique game. Now it makes sense... like he says, because it was set in space, the entire gfx budget could go to rendering the assets, and not the rest of the world. Quite clever. It was also veeeery polished, and the scale of those battles was unlike anything else I'd played. Even when a huge battle was raging you could zoom all the way out and... serenity. Zoom back in - mayhem.

[@Winghelm]

Same actually applies to games like DOOM 3, The Chronicles Of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay or F.E.A.R. for example. Having your game happening in a bunch of tight corridors and rooms actually allows to bump up the level of detail in departments of geometry, textures and shaders as opposed to large open spaces. There's also the same deal with the fog in Silent Hill which was a smart way to reduce the render space in an atmospheric fashion but the ultimate goal was to fit in the tight PlayStation memory budget.

[@SolidRoot]

@@Winghelm Damn right, all the games you mention had a similar ahead-of-their-time feeling to them. Riddick was a great game too - graphically I remember how everything was kind of "shiny". But it looked great.

[@Aurumk1]

Would be cool if youo could take control of fighters and have you and your friends team fighting it out.

[@hammer326]

Thought it was just my nostalgia goggles and that I was a fairly late bloomer gaming wise even for a now 20-something but even playing HW2 in 06-07 I felt exactly as you did.

[@taiyoctopus2958]

Yeah, came out about the same time as starcraft: Broodwars. (iirc). And the 3d and visuals were so far ahead of starcraft broodwars... as much as I love the early starcrafts.

[@ExtremePragmatist]

I remember how I was immersed by both the gameplay and the storyline of Homeworld. The first few levels, traveling through a cold and mostly hostile galaxy, confused after the traumatizing destruction of Karak. And then encountering the Bentusi, finally a faction who didn't immediately attack us, but were willing to trade with us, and then encountering them again later, as they were being brutally attacked as punishment for it. The emotion I felt seeing their defenseless mothership taking damage, clearly not able to endure the onslaught for much longer. Suddenly overcome with emotion and my blood boiling. "Oh, hell, no. They were the only ones showing at least some friendliness towards us so far, the closest we had to a friend in this dark corner of the universe." Immediately and almost instinctively scrambling all my military units to intercept the attackers. "Hang on, Bentusi! Help is on the way!", I remember feeling impatiently and with genuine concern as I saw my fleet slowly crawling towards them, hoping that we wouldn't be too late in saving them. And the dramatic cinematic battle music kicking in, as a subtle confirmation that I was doing the right thing. And then their expression of gratitude after successfully defending them. I have rarely had a game instill such an emotional response in me. Homeworld was truly magical in many ways. It's a shame I never finished it. I eventually got stuck in this one level and gave up. I still have the CD somewhere, though. Maybe I should give it a spin again, one of these days, even though I haven't played it in 20 years...

[@Keithustus]

Get the HD Remaster.

[@kaihanstein52]

Your comment is as moving as was the game. Very, very well written. Made my day!

[@d3ltabrav0]

I also got stuck, could never find the right mix.of ships to survive the last mission. I died quickly every time

[@nice2care]

Wow, you brought me back some real memories.

[@panan7777]

@@d3ltabrav0 I have commandeered half of the Taidani fleet. The last mission: very good spatial orientation and memory helped; they always come from the same direction, so you can send ships there in advance. Took me all night for the mission before the last, but I had MIGHTY fleet. Extremely sensitive approach of my fleet to attract 1-3 destroyers and flip one or two the rest destroyed. A tiny bit too close and ALL of them came after me, game over. Saving like mad all the time. The last episode is pure mayhem and confusion, but mastered it in a few tries. Try Deserts of Kharak. Replayed it a couple of times, but this time on normal setting. Accidentally seen stats of Steam: less than 5% of players finish on this setting. There is something I've learned in these years: they ALWAYS program the solution, you just have to find it. Once you realize this, any game can be beat. I'm getting one of the oldest players at 67. Now I'm on Destiny2 and see that PvP has no attraction to me - too many hours to play to be any good, but where some strategic thinking in Gambit is required, I can just sit in awe at the younglings not being able to track a few separate parameters and adjust the play. Running around as headless chickens, loosing winning games.

[@mrKozmoz]

Homeworld blew my mind in 99, and I'm happy to see the franchise still going to this day, even with spin off titles like Hardspace, even if it's not 100% in the same universe, the soul is stll there

[@thechickengod]

Playing Homeworld on my family's Gateway computer really makes me nostalgic. Even when I wasnt playing the game I would be sitting around reading the lore in the massive manual it came with. I still have that book and occasionally flip through the pages. It's by far one of the defining games of my youth.

[@Chiefjoseph82]

This is the greatest RTS ever made. Everything was perfect the story, game play, music, and mechanics. Also you can't tell me that Homeworld didn't have a big influence BSG show.

[@dmomintz]

Homeworld is a truly a one of a kind experience. This game changed everything and pushed the industry and hardware to new limits. The moment Adagio for Strings started playing as the view slowly panned across the enormous Mothership, you knew you were in for something special. "... What a beautiful sight..."

[@javachan]

"People looking back remember it better than it actually was because it actually touched them and that feeling you had was just so unique and iconic that it's not like anything else." WORD.

[@StanleyBraganza]

I’ll never forget my first contact with home world 1; that opening scene with the flyby of the mothership, the music, and that soul aching sensation from mission 2 when you feel you are all alone in the universe

[@jagvillani338]

This was the game that made me get a subwoofer. The bass on the engines was just so full.

[@abmong]

Good news the original HW composer is back on WH3

[@CenterpointConnect]

Still to this day, I cant listen to a "Yes" song without thinking of "The Ladder" or Homeworld in general. Thanks guys for imagining this game to start with.

[@picnicking5884]

This game had a pretty formative impact on my aesthetic sensibilities. The scale, colors and geometry of the ships is something that's really stuck with me. It was a great game and I'm glad you guys took the risk and made it, really cool story behind it too.

[@idiocracy9530]

Homeworld is one of my absolute favourite games. When gearbox announced they were going to remake it, it was like christmas and i immediately bought it when it launched. Replayed the entire story when deserts of kharak launched.

[@CreatorOfWorlds]

For me this was the greatest game at release and for a long while. I also very much liked the concept of the ‘persistent fleet’ that carried over from mission to mission.

[@slimpyman]

i remember having a buddy on ICQ i used to play MUDs with had a broadband connection. he downloaded this and sent me a burned CD of the warez. Lakanta, buddy, if youre still alive from 1999, it would be great to chat!

[@chunkblaster]

Upvoting and commenting for awareness. I hope you find your friend.

[@casedistorted]

slimpyman lol I remember ICQ. Wish I knew my old account from the 90s, tho sadly it was a like 10 digit long number to remember. Good design choice there ICQ devs.. that’s why I used AIM from the 90’s until it died a few years ago to get in touch with old friends.

[@hycron1234]

lol It looks like we all had that friend on ICQ that we played Homeworld against.

[@Derlaid]

Uhoh!

[@Runenschuppe]

@@casedistorted Wait, you do not still remember your number by heart? And it was 9 numbers long 3x3.

[@GeoFry3]

HW had the best 3D control interface that has ever existed.

[@johnvermintide]

Hw2 for me was the best ui

[@dsdy1205]

_for now._

[@Spectre124]

Homeworld to this day is still my all-time favorite PC game. Other games have come close, but never surpassed the wonder and amazement that Homeworld instilled in me. I actually recently purchased the remastered collection and the game still makes me feel excited and emotional. I can't wait for the third installment!

[@Xune2000]

The music, the artwork, the minimalist cut-scenes, the crew chatter and ambient sound, the story and the voice actors who delivered it; every part of that game was sublime!

[@iLeoviana]

Best, storywise rich manual, ever put in a video game. The technical description of hyperspace cores were just wonderful. Sublime game series.

[@strelok2812]

I basically grew up with Quake, Homeworld, Starcraft and DOOM. I love the remastered (even though it's not a perfect remake) and I pledged for the HW 3 Fig campaign as soon as it was announced. My only regret is that Homeworld Cataclysm is not being remade as the source code was lost. Would have loved the see the Beast rendered with a modern engine. Other than that, I can't wait to see Homeworld 3. :)

[@jonbyrne86]

Homeworld: Emergence on GOG.com www.gog.com/game/homeworld_emergence?gclid=CjwKCAjw7LX0BRBiEiwA__gNw3p6Cu8U4NmqXSvuNsXGSpzn6l-SCSrajOEKRhJ5opDdkZJJcQrFaxoCHgcQAvD_BwE Bought it last week. Just a few minor tweaks for copyrights but still the same great game.

[@6StimuL84]

@@jonbyrne86 Cataclysm is great......

[@liesdamnlies3372]

@@jonbyrne86 It exists, but remastering is still out because of the source code being gone. For a non-canon spin-off, damn did Cataclysm do a lot right. The game by the same devs they did after, Sword of the Stars, was good in its own right. (Sad that SotS 2 was such a...it was a disastrous mess on release, to put it mildly.)

[@lifehackertips]

You forgot Diablo

[@sigepohio]

The art design of Homeworld is still some of my favorite ever. Beyond the game being all-time great, the thing is just gorgeous top to bottom. So good

[@andrescolon]

I am absolutely loving these Ars Tecnica series on retrospectives on these games of the past. The technology, the art, the amazing challenges these teams overcome. We enjoy the fruits of their labor that often made us see life in new ways and gave us amazing adventures. It’s great to peek behind the scenes and see the story of the people that made these possible, how they innovated and the hurdles they overcame. It will definitely inspire a new breed of inventors and creators. You have my gratitude for these series. Keep up the great work!!

[@Canweevenfixit]

I was hooked ever since I saw the teaser set to Adagio for strings, choral arrangement on my Half Life CD.

[@LukeVilent]

I've played HomeWorld only once, still in 2000. But it was one of the most impactful, most inspirational games in my life. I have shivers just watching this video.

[@ivoxx_]

Oh god, thanks ARS!! I replay all homeworld games even now and them. Still the best RTS ever made. It has one of the most amazing game design in all of its aspects. One of the masterpieces of videogames.

[@TheQwertyCast]

This made my entire month! Homeworld was my childhood

[@officialbeans]

man homeworld is honestly my favourite game ever. the gameplay is great but it's set against this tone and feeling of isolation that's totally captivating. homeworld 3 is going to be incredible if they're now able to do things they previously considered dreams!

[@kaigreen5641]

Homeworld and Homeworld 2 are two of the best games ever. Still revisit them after all these years

[@Domzdream]

SUCH A BRILLIANT GAME. I've still got the first release on CD when it got launched.

[@cornwelj]

I remember getting all emotional when I played Homeworld for the first time and I watched the burning of Kharak. The voice acting was perfect. The music was perfect. The pacing was perfect. It was the first time I'd become emotionally invested in a computer game like that. And so few games have resonated similarly since.

[@matthewhoyle3343]

never clicked so fast

[@JosephAlanMeador]

same! XD

[@AbbreviatedReviews]

It's great to hear how so much innovation went into Homeworld and how lucky we are that it all came together so wonderfully.

[@bravepart]

Gonna attempt to keep this brief. The opening sequence for Homeworld was one of the first games I ever saw, Adagio for Strings had me in total awe. It's genuinely the most stunning experience ever, a total work of art in every aspect, sound, art, mechanics just everything! Also Gearbox..what a bunch of snaaakes! I'm so happy to have bought a PC recently to rediscover these masterpieces, can't wait to see what the future brings!

[@MrTimotheousWard]

The sensors manager is such a masterful piece of the game. Makes you feel like you are standing in a situation room making life and death definitions.

[@quartzofcourse]

Wait homeworld 3? Did I miss that announcement? Holy crap now I’m excited

[@nicolasinvernizzi6140]

yes......yes you missed the announcement..... HW3 BABYYYY!!! go see the teaser the showed some months ago

[@icipher6730]

It will be in development until 2022 at least. I was both exited and sad when they've announced it.

[@TabularConferta]

Homeworld remains one of my favourite RTS. Have there been any others that have brought this amazing feel of play and the use of 3D? As much as I love Battlefleet gothic, its still fought on an single plane. I remember some people teaching me how tactics train in 3D and it blew my mind.

[@dietermitplatten]

Can't believe this came out almost 20 years ago! I remember being hooked on this game and its unique atmosphere. Still getting goosebumps when I see all these captures. The ship designs and music were just awesome the whole concept was fresh! It had me stunned for months back then.

[@alecsnider3225]

The original Homeworld blew me away in '99. I still play it today via Steam, and it's still an amazing experience. Bridge of Sighs :)

[@Lightshockie]

This series is amazing, every interview is kickass

[@VoxFelis]

Who disliked this? There's literally nothing to dislike.

[@annoyedchef7124]

Yeah. Like what gives? Are they the ex girlfriends?

[@TheXev]

Fat thumbing on YT mobile is something even I have been guilty of. I normally catch myself and fix it though.

[@PixelPariah]

Statistically, for every certain number of views there's a ratio of people who accidentally fat-finger the dislike button. Pretty sure that's what's going on here.

[@abmong]

I bet one of them is Philippe Boulle... You know, the guy that ruined Dawn of War 3 and Relic's reputation then did a runner... Alex Garden is back as CEO of Relic now, lets hope he can steer that ship around. Blackbird who are working of WH3 now is some of the other Relic founders. Gearbox publishing since they hold the rights to HW

[@mBrajan]

maybe somebody fast forwarded only to hear Rob say ''final solution'' out of context lol

[@uLu_MuLu]

One of the best games ever created. I can not wait until Homeworld 3 is released... Rob Cunningham explains the charm of the Homeworld series just perfect: cinematography, the ambition of a dedicated team of developers, scale and state-of-the-art audio-visuals...

[@tooobe12345]

I have that nostalgia of it propably remembering it better than it actually was. And I didn't even play it that much at all, but it's still etched in my memory. I remember thinking it looked so impressive at the time...

[@KadabraSama]

You have the most interesting channel currently on KZbin probably, all of your videos are super interesting!

[@leeskirs8855]

The creativity and execution of the Homeworld series is easily one of the best games ever made.

[@hycron1234]

This game speaks to my soul in ways no other game can. The music, the storytelling, it all draws you into it. I'm so excited, I honestly can't wait for Homeworld 3. 🙂

[@sptony2718]

Best space strategy game series ever, just for the fact that you actually had all dimensions of space and not just a flat plane. Way ahead of its time.

[@adambukowski189]

The best, thank you for making this. You have blown my heart wide open, learning the inner struggles of my high school fandom all these years later...amazing. Turns out Relic were humans the whole time.

[@Henskelion]

As someone who plays a ton of RTS games, Homeworld really stands out to me as one of the only 3D RTS games that really utilized its 3D engine well, not just for the mechanics but for the visuals as well. While lots of other early 3D RTS games have aged horrendously in terms of visuals (Ground Control, the Earth series, Emperor: Battle for Dune, and yes, I'm gonna say even Warcraft 3 and C&C Generals look painfully dated now), Homeworld really stands out to me as still looking great even today. There's something that's still sublime over 20 years later about seeing your fleet silhouetted against a gorgeous nebula, or hearing the battle chatter of your fighters as they make bombing runs against capital ships. There really isn't anything like it.

[@NarrowDipShit]

always love the chance to hear the ever enthustiastic and inspiring Rob speak!

[@midaspega6707]

great video, thanks for bringing back so much happy memory, and a great chance to get to know the team. Bravo Ars Technica!

[@Reavenant]

The first game I've ever installed on my first PC. Perfect RTS in every degree even 21 years later.

[@johnnyxp64]

seriously when i saw that in a friend's house back in the 90s when we where actually mostly playing CnC and Starcraft, it was really crazy for me to orientate in this and understand it! i tried it like arround 2000s again and again i dropped it, and now i have the remaster editions and i plan to play them and finish them before HW3 comes out. i hope i can make it this time :P

[@cboehm24]

I loved the SOUND. The tinny radio chatter, the narration, the score...it was a beautiful game.

[@ChicoreeChidori]

One of the best games ever! I had so many fond memories when I played Homeworld 1. The story telling, design, gameplay was so great.

[@warpman]

Having modded the 1&2 I can definitely say that HW1 is the masterpiece With no just random ticking of damage or percentage chances Imagine a game that literally processes every shot as a physical object that high :O

[@mastermenthe]

I feel that HW2 saltiness

[@richardthomson7680]

Have tried so many alternative space combat rts's and they always, always fall short of this masterpiece. Still, absolutely loved Deserts of Kharak despite the radically different setting.

[@chunkblaster]

It's not quite as iconic but if you want another true 3d RTS you should check out Nexus: The Jupiter Incident

[@metastudent]

@@chunkblaster No one knows about that game and it was so good! The first missions are the closest thing to having a video game experience of The Expanse. It's on both steam and GOG.

[@dcpowered]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!! For making this interview for this timeless and legendary game! I can play Homeworld titles any day. It just amazes me every single time and the nostalgia is unparalleled.

[@timokomulainen]

One of the most beautiful games I've ever played. Thank you for your hard work, Rob and rest of the team.

[@adamphilp4545]

HISTORICAL AND TECHNICAL BRIEFING Honestly this game even had the best manual I'd ever seen - it is still on my bookshelf.

[@ryanzillmer8511]

For me it's between this or Starsiege. You could tell how much devs loved their games back then through the sheer size and quality of those manuals.

[@DemoEvolvedGaming]

The remaster of this game needs to be required playing for every game designer in training.

[@takatamiyagawa5688]

Why not just the original?

[@MareSerenitis]

@@takatamiyagawa5688 because they need to know what not to do.

[@DemoEvolvedGaming]

Takata Miyagawa the remaster is as good as you remember HW being. Which is actually better than it was

[@takatamiyagawa5688]

​@@DemoEvolvedGaming I played the original around 2011 or so, when my non-gaming laptop could play it easily, and the graphics looked quite dated. As far as I know, the remaster's cutscenes look a lot better, but I thought the higher resolution didn't match the animation, which remains mostly unchanged. Then I've heard something about it running on a different engine which lacks sphere formation and has different UI graphics, correct me if I'm wrong.

[@DemoEvolvedGaming]

@@takatamiyagawa5688 Changes have been made. For the better all round.

[@MichaelKathke]

Great interview - thanks! I remember I was soaked into the gameplay like never before and never again in any RTS game.

[@moxigen]

the feelings this game created were outstanding! you really felt as if the fate an entire civilization rests on your shoulder. the bitter vibe, fear of become extinct, getting hunted by an overpowerd enemy AND the gratification after you kicked their butts outaspace!

[@Antillles]

My favorite game with Metroid Prime. I lost count on how many times I have finish them. I hope they keep this "sketch" attitude with HW3.

[@Beregorn88]

"you make FPS, why did you bought it?" "Because you evidently want to make a new homeworld game, it will obviously be a success, if only for the nostalgia effect, and we want some of that sweet, sweet money..."

[@arkymedes7778]

The real answer

[@stellviahohenheim]

So that's why desserts of kharak sucks

[@AgsmaJustAgsma]

Impossible Creatures and Dawn of War 1 are the games that made me fell in love with the RTS genre. Relic's men are legends.

[@AngPur]

Those two games share a basic engine

[@cnewtonc]

I played this Game when it was first release way back in the late 90s. THIS GAME was a major GAME CHANGER.

[@johnnyxp64]

likely we "had no lifes, everybody's girlfriend left them".... step 1 to have a great game! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤑

[@pokoro97]

I can attest to that as a game developer. Wedding was call off 😂

[@_BirdOfGoodOmen]

I want to give this a like but it's at 69 likes so I cant :(

[@johnnyxp64]

@@_BirdOfGoodOmen thanks

[@mikeledger2614]

How the living F did I never know about this game...? RTS is one of my favorite genres. I played all the Warcrafts, Starcraft, command and conquer, even Red alerts! Lord of the rings and god knows what else. This is totally my jam! Thanks to war stories I’m buying these games right now. Can’t wait for the next home world AND WAR STORY! Best series...

[@MarkoLomovic]

Oh man you are in for a treat.

[@TCBYEAHCUZ]

Dude make sure you grab the Remasters, they come with the OG games and the remasters bundled, and also grab deserts of Kharak which is their newest title, set as a prequel of the first game.

[@takatamiyagawa5688]

I vaguely recall reading somewhere that Starcraft overshadowed Homeworld by being faster-paced.

[@MarkoLomovic]

@@takatamiyagawa5688 Nah it overshadowed it because it was more competitive game and that gave additional breath into the game in form of esports. HW was built on its story so multiplayer was lacking and wasn't balanced properly. HW did better but still it was similar dull experiance it only got better with mods. It was shame because it would have been super easy to make it competetive it just needed balance and depth to it.

[@takatamiyagawa5688]

@@MarkoLomovic -and all that too. Point being, one super-popular RTS has the potential to cannibalize attention from others in the genre taking a different tilt.

[@SpaceTurd69]

Homeworld was one of my favourite RTSs of all time. i'd get really invested in the story on the single player campaign. the score, visuals.. everything really came together perfectly.

[@PsyWARAquariums]

this is one of my top games of all time. the sound design and music was so awesome!

[@herbyh6370]

where can i set 5 thumbs up? i think it added to the top notch artdesign to a perfect entity - would love to hear something about the sound and music design

[@totalbro]

I remember playing this demo to death. Never got old.

[@FurobaOA]

HW3? This was announced yet? :o

[@nicolasinvernizzi6140]

there is even a teaser

[@axiomatic]

This game was so new and different. The visuals, music, control scheme, story. Wonderful. I love this game to an extent that is rare for me. THANK YOU RELIC.

[@jamesabernethy7896]

I watched this video when it came out and it came up for me again. Brilliant video, short but so enlightening with a real personal edge. Homeworld is one of my favourite game universes. Cataclysm was my introduction to the series and it still has a special place in my heart. I fell in love with the artwork, the storytelling and the gameplay. It doesn't get the recognition it deserves.

[@TheRealPrunebutt]

Randy Pitchford manages to make me despise him more and more everytime I hear about him.

[@rusu8721]

HOMEWORLD 3!!! WHAT!!!!, ok take my $$$ already! lol

[@TCBYEAHCUZ]

Yup it was announced last year.

[@markus27183]

Homeworld 3 will be in 5D

[@dennisr1683]

Wow - thanks for sharing the story behind one of the best games ever. Such a perfect jem in every respect. Even the User's Manual was a work of art!

[@Honethite]

This game was groundbreaking in 1999 and it's still groundbreaking in 2020. A timeless classic and masterpiece.

[@greob]

This is awesome, can't wait for HW3. Still sad these games never got released for Linux.

[@igorokinamujika2073]

I did manage to run Homeworld 1 on Ubuntu, so I guess Cataclysm might also work, not sure about Homeworld 2. Remaster and Deserts of Kharak don't work at all.

[@josephlunderville3195]

My friend, although there is not an official native port (there was an unofficial Homeworld SDL port of HW1 which you might still be able to find) -- HW:RM does run well in WINE. Steam on Linux will even do all the heavy lifting for you! appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=application&iId=16784

[@pilcrow182]

@@igorokinamujika2073 Homeworld 2 ran perfectly in Wine the last time I tried it, though it's been a while. In fact, the game refused to recognize my video card in Windows, but I tried it in Mepis Linux (a now-defuct distro based on Debian's 'stable' branch) and the system was more than powerful enough to run with the settings cranked to max...

[@igorokinamujika2073]

@@josephlunderville3195 Well I guess they improved the emulation then. I did try to run Homeworld Remastered with playonLinux and proton on Ubuntu Mate two or three years ago and it didn't work.

[@ComradeCorvus]

Homeworld, Homeworld 2, Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, and now, sometime in the future, Homeworld 3. Its been an amazing experience, cant wait to continue on!

[@PhilipNorton42]

Thank you for making this video. Loved the transitions as well!

[@SteinerArts]

Thank you very much for this upload!

[@TrueThanny]

I remember _Homeworld 2_ being so much more graphically advanced than the original that it surprised me to be reminded of how soon afterward it came out. I got _Homeworld: Remastered_ but never got into it, because it wasn't an actual re-mastering of the original game. The fighters were all different, formations didn't work correctly, and capturing was no longer the single most important mechanic (I captured every single Ion Cannon Frigate in Bridge of Sighs, save the invisible one - you have to retire a bunch before completing the mission because the game crashes with too large a fleet). The story of the original is still the best one. The _Cataclysm_ third-party sequel was kind of ridiculous, though the gameplay mechanics were significantly improved (unit selection on the map, and, most importantly, time warp). The _Homeworld 2_ story didn't impress me much, and seemed overly revisionist of the first one. Now I'm curious how _Homeworld 3_ is going to play out. And wondering if I should go look for the prequel ground game.

[@rh_BOSS]

Back then it felt like every two years or so you'd get another generational leap in graphics. There was a downside though. If you were gaming on a two year old PC, you had to use lowest graphical settings.

[@executor31]

Wait what hw 3 is in production ?

[@nicolasinvernizzi6140]

there is even a teaser

[@ronduptor]

Just discovered your channel. The love you put in that intro and animations got me subbed in less than 30sec. I know I'm in for a treat. Thanks !

[@ronduptor]

I was right, great video. Thanks for the insight :)

[@iamsecrets]

This series is one of the best things on KZbin. Keep it up