3D Real-Time Strategy Game

In the future, when humans have fulfilled their manifest destiny into space and have consumed all the resources that it had to offer, a rich asteroid named Helios is found on the outskirts of the galaxy. You are the first ship to reach it, but once you set up your mining base, you discover that you aren't alone: according to seismic readings, someone's already here. It will be weeks before anyone comes to help you, so you're on your own. Get ready to defend your base and drive off the intruders.

This game is the first of its kind; other 3D RTS games are unwieldly, but Helios has a new kind of control scheme that makes 3D navigation very easy. It's programmed in C++ and OpenGL, and is roughly 15,000 lines of code.

To start the game, one needs an opponent. The first player must open the ports 1337 to 1347, and give his opponent his IP address, hit Host, type in the number 1, and press enter. The opponent must hit Join, type in the IP address, and press enter. The game will then start.

In the beginning, a player has three options: search for resources, search for the enemy, or build up an army. One resource is automatically located for you. To dig to it, select your digger (the only unit you have in the beginning), hit 'd' for "dig mode", and right click-and-drag on the asteroid until your digger has a direction that goes through the resources. Scroll with your mouse's scroll wheel until the yellow marker is at or beyond the resource, and the digger will blast a new tunnel and dig until he gets there.

Searching for more resources is trial-and-error. Dig tunnels in random directions until you find something. Don't be surprised if you hit hard rocks; those are almost as common as the resources.

Your enemy is somewhere on the other side of the asteroid. Dig a tunnel to the other side and you may find him. If you don't find him on the first try, keep digging around there and you will.

To build an army, select your base, hit the Units button, and select the unit you want to build. You need enough resources. The resource requirements are described under the unit as you hover over its button. Your current resource count is in the top left.

Some units are good against other units. An experienced player will start to realize the pattern and build his army accordingly.

Download Helios!