ActionCube or ExcitementSphere?

This week you get a brief reprieve from my exploits in the world of Rappelz. The reason? A Cube mod (who thought that we'd ever see another one of those?) that's recently come out: ActionCube.

As the name suggests, ActionCube is inspired by ActionQuake (as are most of the various Action* mods floating around). More realistic environments and weaponry meet the fast gameplay Cube is known for. ActionCube takes a more team-oriented approach to the world of Cube, something I've been waiting to see for quite a while.

The release I'm playing is the most recent - before that the Linux package apparently had some problems. The problem with this is that either the master server is still showing the older version, or compiling ActionCube themselves. Every time I've tried to get online, the servers in the server browser simply say "[unknown]" under the "players" tab.

Luckily for me, ActionCube has bots. Not like the monsters in Cube which just run towards you while shooting either - I'm talking actual bots. At the moment, the only single player game type is straight out deathmatch, but that's enough to get used to the weapons and maps before taking it online.

The five maps included are all pretty well designed, and they definitely play very well in the deathmatch mode. How well-balanced they are is something I can't yet comment on since I haven't had a chance to try out the game's team modes. I'll have to get back to you on this aspect (as well as a whole lot more) of the game.

It's easy to wonder why we're seeing a mod for Cube so late in the proverbial game. It seems that Sauerbraten would have been a better choice, although there could be some engine maturity issues I'm not taking in to account. Either way, ActionCube still looks pretty good - there's still life in the Cube engine yet.

So far, I'm enjoying ActionCube, and I'm most definitely looking forward to the chance to actually play it online. I'll report back here either later today in the form of an update, or next week in the form of a whole (or at least half) post. For now, the best way to find out more is to play it for yourself. Keep in mind, this does not need the original Cube. Just download and enjoy.