Hardwar
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| Hardwar | |
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| Developer(s) | The Software Refinery |
| Publisher(s) | Gremlin Interactive Interplay |
| Release date(s) | 1998 |
| Genre | futuristic flight simulation |
| Mode(s) | SP, MP over serial, TCP/IP or Directplay |
| Rating(s) | ELSPA: 11 and above |
| Platform(s) | Win/DirectX 5 |
Hardwar (sometimes stylized HardW[a]r) is a 1998 science fiction simulation computer game developed by the Software Refinery and published by Interplay and Gremlin Interactive. The logos of the game have been drawn by The Designers Republic, which also worked for the game Wipeout. The music has been created by groups under the Label Warp Records.
The player takes the role of a moth flyer in the space colony Misplaced Optimism.
Hardwar places the player on Saturn's moon Titan, where a colony from Earth had been left to its own devices. Amid the orange haze and above the liquid methane lakes, the protagonist is a freelance moth pilot. You choose the degree of lawlessness his activities will trespass. He can trade honestly, wary of pirates. He could hunt outlaws himself, collecting bounties from the various police stations. Many AI moths flit about with valuable cargo for him to steal should he decide to. Of course there are illegal cargoes which the police would confiscate and outlaws would steal in a heartbeat. Or he could be a lowly scavenger like so many AI moths, picking at the dropped cargoes of panicked traders.
This is against the backdrop of a (for a sci-fi space flight sim) rich plot involving the warring power groups on Titan and eventual escape from it. You can buy many hangars around Titan, making storage and repairs much simpler. Or you could use a public hangar, such as one of the various businesses around the city. You can sell goods out of your hangar, and based on market forces such as supply and demand, as well as distance to the supply, you can set your own prices. Based on how good of a deal you make, AI moths will line up in droves to purchase your goods, or fly on by for a better deal elsewhere. You can even set up refining machines in your hangars, to turn scrap metal into ship parts, to turn water and chemicals into alcohol, or any number of other products.
The atmosphere of the game is furtive, as your solar-powered "moth" craft alights on an energy well to recharge, where you must quickly plan the next leg of your route. Even when on the side of the law, you must be wary of enemies you have made along the way ... and the ultralight moth spacecraft are definitely not meant for long voyages while being assaulted by missiles and various other special weapons.
Hardwar_d3d_screenshot.jpg
Individuals can set up home servers so that client players can play together in a single environment.
Since 2002, when "The software Refinery" went into voluntary liquidation, Hardwar is no longer officially supported by its creators. During two years the game was no longer improved except for independent player-developers. However since November 2004 one of the member of the original team reappeared and started correcting some of original bugs. The only customer service you'll see is in an online forum dedicated to the game.
Some consider Hardwar to be abandonware, but it is still sold in bargain-bins at some small software stores.
It is interesting to note that the Software Refinery was located in the grim north England city of Leeds.
External links
- A community Hardwar site (http://zedo.hardwar.org.uk/)
- The main forum about the game (http://zedo.suddenlaunch3.com/index.cgi#general_cat)
- Another Hardwar site (http://Dhost.info/Hardwar/)
- A wiki sever about the game (http://www.titan-encyclopedia.net/wikini/)