New release: 500 Years Act 1

Do you ever get an email, then completely forget that it exists before you have a chance to do anything with it? That evidently happened with the subject of today’s post. Poor Will Games wrote to me back in May to announce the release of their real-time space exploration RPG 500 Years Act 1 on PC; and now, roughly 500 years later, I am posting about it.

The premise:

The Earth was dying and humanity boarded ships to colonize the stars. These ships were named after the wonders of the ancient world: The Giza, The Alexandria, The Rhodes and finally, The Artemis.

The Artemis landed and set up a colony on an Earth-like moon. Then the Ants, an insectoid species, came and enslaved the colony. All hope was lost.

Years later you were born in the Artemis colony and joined the resistance against the Ants.

One day the Ants suddenly left your colony for unknown reasons. The Proctor of your colony tasked you with finding the ancient Artemis colony ship. Among the wreckage you found the captain’s yacht; and it still works! You and your crew take to the stars to find the other humans, if they are still out there. 500 years after the destruction of Earth…

If the plot seems a smidge reminiscent of Homeworld, the game’s trailer gives the strong impression that this game is in fact much more influenced by Starflight:

Per the developers, the 500 Years Act 1’s features include:

• Story driven space adventure
• Explore solar systems
• Meet alien races
• Arcade style combat
• Equip your ship based upon the type of enemy
• Fight huge bosses

500 Years Act 1 has apparently been available for $0.99 on Android and iOS since March, with the Windows port available for a mere $2.99.