Drox Operative

I can't describe this game. All I can say is that it is really good. Once it clicks, you can't stop playing it. Don't mind my low hours. A lot of my hours were offline.

The game can only deal with the default settings for Window 10's Ease of Access features. Change anything, and either the buttons you see on the screen no longer match the location where you have to cklick, or you just see the top left part of the game' UI.

This is a bug that has existed for years. Sorry, I cannot reset the Windows settings every time I play this game, and set the back afterwards.

By the way, this is fixed in Drox Operative 2.

Others have said it really well: it's like you're playing Diablo-in-space while working for factions that are playing Master of Orion. The graphics aren't beautiful but the core gameplay is amazing.

Soldak Games is a company that seems to operate on the assumption that Diablo would have been the greatest game of all time if only it had some sort of political component added to it. Having sampled a number of their products, I can tell you they've only gotten it right with Drox Operative.

They're a small company so the production values aren't great, but if you can look past that here's a pinata popper with a space theme that you might want to give a chance. The real draw here is you choose your own path to victory. You're like Commander Shepard zipping around the galaxy while a number of sci-fi races seek to explore, expand, exploit and exterminate all around you. Your job is to decide which horse (or horses) you want to see win, and then do everything in your power - fair and unfair - to make it happen. Choosing none of the above is also an option; you can just become the scourge of the galaxy in that case.

Now if we can just keep Soldak from making Zombasite 2.

Guess it is better than the other Drox games just from the improved gameplay. But, twenty bucks? Gzeez.. There is a demo there if you want to try it out.
Works great on an old ubuntu linux with minimum specs, and radeon mesa graphic drivers.

The consensus seems to be that Drox Operative is the best game that this dev has ever made. I don't agree with that - I think Zombasite is far superior to this... an all-time classic. If you've never played a game from them before and can only afford one, I'd advise you to get Zombasite. The playstyles have a lot of similarity, but Zombasite has more depth.

That said, Drox Operative is a lot of fun. You could say it's a 4x game where you are strictly a mercenary and don't have any real stake in who wins - only that at the end of it all, you're on decent terms with the side that DOES win. You carry over the same character from game to game if you want, and there is all kinds of customizabilty regarding permadeath, level of difficulty, etc. I really like the music... that wooo wooooooooo mysterious sounding stuff that plays when you're navigating through space.

Soldak games really has a unique approach in the way their games play, and I love that different way of thinking. Zombasite, this... whatever... if you haven't played one of their games yet, you need to treat yourself.

Man I love this game.

If you've played Space Rangers you know exactly what you're getting into; only this one feels faster with better controls, better graphics, and without any guesswork on silly choose your own text adventures.

It's a bit like a "Space Diablo" with various other npc factions vying for power a la a game of Galactic Civilizations.

It places an emphasis on faster paced hotkey combat and little to no emphasis on "buy this item low at this planet and sell for higher at this planet over here".

It doesn't have a grand campaign and games are closer to one off matches like Civilization. You can toggle your game parameters here just like you can there.

I heartily recommend this if this sounds like your cup of tea.

PROS:
1) Wide variety of weapons systems to equip your ship with. The range and effects of these systems are so diverse that it can completely change the feel of the whole game based on which weapon combos you choose.
2) Fills the niche of Star Control I & II while combining that with the addictive gameplay of the Diablo series (but in SPACE!)
3) You are in a 4X Space Conquest game (with many different empires striving for galactic dominion), but you are NOT one of them. You are a mercenary that can affect the fate of the galaxy by choosing how to help/interfere with the warring races. Unique perspective on the classic 4X conquest games.
4) Many of the races have unique benefits that can be obtained from trading with them. My current favorite of the races is the 'Fringe', pure energy beings that can (for a costly fee) reduce the POWER LOAD of your equipment. This can often determine who I want to survive in the game.

CONS:
1) Item storage is super klunky. Organizing your inventory can be quite tedious, plus it's done in real time with enemy ships often showing up and attacking your ship while your monitor is cluttered with disorganized cargo bays. Biggest single draw back of the game is item storage.
2) Once you get hooked, this game can gobble up large swaths of your time!

A sci-fi ARPG where you play an agent of the Drox Guild seeking to spread the influence of the guild throughout the universe. You're dropped into a sector full of different species, and have to make them all fear you, become a legend by destroying the most powerful monsters in that region of space, become an economic powerhouse, or ally with all the species in the sector (and destroy the species that won't).

The developer, Soldak, is a small shop that keeps iterating on the same idea - an ARPG where the quests and adventures are the natural byproduct of a living and changing world that reacts to what you do in it. They all have a lot of heart and in my opinion Drox Operative is the best of them.

Drox Operative is Soldak Entertainment's space ARPG in which you play the eponymous Drox Operative, a sort of mercenary. You are plopped into a procedurally generated sector where you must achieve any one of a list of victory conditions. Whether you succeed or fail (by producing a loss condition) the sector closes and you start the process again.

The problems start with the foundation. The game is almost entirely created from code recycled from Soldak's older Diablo clones. Added to that old code is a shallow diplomacy system that any player of Civilization will recognize. Some of the phrasing used in diplomacy screens is identical to what can be found in Civilization 4 or 5. I don't think it's wrong to copy ideas, but there's not enough original creativity in the diplomacy system for my taste.

Good

• Stable with few bugs, none of which break the game
  
  
• Multiple paths to victory (clearly duplicated from Civilization but still interesting)
  
  
• Multiplayer works well
  
  
• I like the cosmetic variety of ships, though for the most part, they don't play much differently.
  

Neutral

• Dated graphics, even for the release date
  
  
• The game is action-oriented. There's no story, and only a vague backstory.
  

Bad

• What my friends call an "RNGesus" loot system where loot drops are like lottery tickets, and most are losers.
  
  
• There is no difference whatsoever between victory and defeat in a sector, other than victory provides you with one or more boxes of random loot, Being random, the loot is mostly worthless.
  
  
• Code duplicated from Diablo clones means out-of-place mechanics like loot that "drops" onto an invisible surface and must be picked up manually each time.
  
  
• Inventory management is a central "feature". Much of the game involves sorting through a torrent of nearly identical equipment and crew members, then failing to sell the excess because the NPC factions don't have the credits to buy them. The game starts by starving you of inventory space, multiplying the annoyance.
  
  
• NPC factions are one-dimensional warmongers with the negotiation skills of Civ's Atilla the Hun. It is common to see NPC factions wipe each other out while still exploring the first system in the sector trying to make contact with one.
  
  
• While multiple routes to victory are possible, only military victory is reasonable in most cases. For example, if you want a diplomatic victory, you must achieve a military alliance with all extant factions. This is a feat in itself, since usually any aid you provide to one faction angers at least one of the others. On top of that, though, you must get the AI factions to ally with one another. The only mechanic provided for this is to visit planets of each faction and navigate through a "rumor" menu dozens and dozens of times until you improve relations, a very tedious enterprise that is costly, and must be funded by missions (which anger other factions) or hunting monsters for loot (which the factions can't buy because they run out of money).
  
  
• The monsters have a pathetic AI, and to compensate, there are endlessly spawning legions of them, leading to dull, repetitive combat with stupid but numerous and durable enemies. This happens regardless of how well civilized the system. I have seen systems lost to monsters after achieving victory, all because I took some time to organize my inventory.
  
  
[*]Yet another game with a point distribution system that has no "respec" mechanic but requires perfect planning, allowing you to play dozens of hours in a ship before realizing that your build is invalid at higher levels.

A very fun Diablo-esque space RPG.

You create your ship, then progress through the dynamically created levels gaining levels and items as you go. Once you meet one of the winning/losing criteria of the system, then you create a new system to explore.

When creating a new system you can set the base level of the enemies in it, as such you can to an extent set your own difficulty level. Additionally you can set the size of the system, number of races etc as you can in many other games.

If you're looking for a simple, but addictive, space RPG this is it.

Ever played a space strategy game where you have to colonize planets, trade and maintain a diplomatic relationship with other races and take care of your own people while doing so? Ever wondered what it would be like to be that random event that caused citizens to rebel, technology to be sold to your enemy, a race that you would like to be a friend but just won't listen because some element in the game says 'Hell no!'?

Well in this game you can; This is a top-down space shooter, but around the player several computer players are playing out a space strategy game. You can befriend them, you can fight them, you can trade with them, you can support them in their war or colonization efforts, you are a Drox Operative. And the other races know that to have a Drox Operative on your side is the path to victory.

The graphics are great and the player is allowed a reasonable range of customization to make it his/her own. Musical score and sounds a pretty good, as is the general feel of the game. I did have some problems with the keys though, and understanding what the game was about in the first place, but after 15 mins of just diving in head first I found it surprisingly easy to understand. As for the keys, would like a weapon group to be used for weapons; The only weapon that fires when pressing the mouse is weapon no. 1, although in all fairness I haven't been looking for it very hard, its probably in there somewhere.

You can only have 1 ship (per Operative / Save slot ) and it is a persistant ship (and crew), meaning it carries over from one game into the other. A bit confusing is a game being called a 'Sector', which from what I understand is a galaxy, which happens to consist of...sectors...ya... Anywho, you can fully customize your ship to be a fighter, bomber, trader, colony vessel, or any combination you may think of. It grows in class as you grow in experience (and award points to a particular skill) opening more slots in your ship to install equipment in.

All in all an original idea realised; A gem in any original gamers collection.

Only 121 reviews at the time I write this; this is rather sad because this game is a gem!

It's got loot, upgradable spaceships, random quests, loot, you can win by being a bastard, loot, and well, I suck at reviews but this is FUN !

Soldak has really done a great job,again.I do own all their games,and recieve Soldak newsletter.But please do not think of me as a fan boy reviewer.This is a really great game done well by a company that has continued to come out with better and better games as they go.Wow I am a fan boy,lol.The more you dive into this game the more you want.It is not until you figure out the win conditions and how all the other races work.That is where the game really shines.You want to work with the strongest races and form an alliance-great.You want to work with the weakest race and help them against all-awesome.You want to just go around and fight everyone-fantastic.Its all up to you and your starship on how you want your gameplay.You are a Drox operative leveling up the deadliest ship around.I would really say to get Invasion of the Ancients for the full experience.It is worth it.Alot more gameplay with it then without it.So many different components and crew for your ship.So many different enemys to fight.Such a big evolving Galaxy.

Ever wondered what would it be like to play a typical 4X Space Strategy, but not as one of racial leaders, but as an independent mercenary? Drox Operative lets you do just that!

Drox Operative is an action RPG with a good dose of space exploration. But where other space exploration games take place in static or semi-static universe, a notable feature of Drox Operative is that NPC factions expand and develop like races in 4X Space Strategy would: they establish new colonies, build ships and space stations, research new technologies and of course fight both neutral enemies and each other. This creates unparalleled feeling that you are adventuring in a living world, which constantly moves on regardless of your actions!

In regard of RPG stats, Drox Operative does a good job of simulating that your “character” is a spaceship: character’s attributes are replaced by your crew’s expertise in various fields. Though the result is fairly similar in regard of distributing “crew points”, immersion-wise the system accomplishes its job.

The equipment system differs from that of most RPG in that most of equipment slots (all except for 3 specialized slots based on your ship’s design, that is) freely allow to install any equipment of appropriate tonnage. Want to add an extra engine instead of your heavy laser turret? No problem! Have a medium ballistic weapon instead of aforementioned laser turret, which unlike the later you can install in place of your radar? Ditto! This makes your ship very customizable and allows you to adjust it according to your playing style (and re-outfit it whenever you feel like it).

And the final unique feature of Drox Operative is crewmates. They technically function as equipment (occupying either the special crew slot, or the light slots), but unique in that they level up as well, improving the bonuses they provide over time.

To sum it up, Drox Operative is a great game, and I fully recommend it to anyone who likes action RPGs, space exploration, or both!

My friend. Let me tell you about space. Space is out to kill you. Space has rewards in it. Space will turn on you in a moment's notice acting on the guise that it is your friend.

Friend have I ever told you about interracial intergalactic relations? Space simulates sci-fiction stereotypes with 86% accuracy. You better get used to them as they represent the entire charm of this game other than our star pupil, diabloesque loot system. It does not care what you think. It will brag to all your friends even though it acts like a real load. I hope you're organized friend because space is not.

Do not take zero gravity lightly. Random events send you hurling into farther reaches of space or even more in space then you currently are. A pseudo-space that is not space.

You can't just win or lose space. Space is not some battle to be won or a prize to be earned. Space is a multi-faceted space chimera that chokes on such concepts such as linear gameplay and sandbox freedom. Space will move on without you unless you pause to take a look at it's glory. The glorious space.

Stay in space my friends.

I've been insane for this game since I tried it and realized what was going on: At first it just looks like Diablo in space; a solid space-spaced ARPG with enough stat-building and ship-customizing (with the random components from blown up ships, or scenario rewards) to keep you blasting for a bit. Fans of games like EV Nova might enjoy this game just for that.

But there's more. Instead of being story-driven, the game randomly generates new quests and events as you play. An elite space monster shows up, starts gathering a fleet, and if you don't react, he might take over a star system. Then the monster starts sowing chaos on nearby colonies; they might contract a plague, get computer virus, etc. These events can also escalate if unchecked. I've seen empires lose planets to open rebellion. I've HELPED rebels escalate, and contributed to the creation of offshoot races!

Also the various species - and your guild, the Drox - all have dynamic relationships. Help a race, they like you more. Attack them, they like you less. Help their allies, and they like you. Attack their allies, and you might earn more enemies than you intended. You can carefully nursemaid a sector-spanning alliance of friendly races for a diplomatic win... or watch the network of alliances fail like a house of cards if you bungle your relationship with one of the races. That might be a good time to switch tactics and go for another type of win.

The various systems interact in what looks like a well-tuned, balanced way - no surprise because the game has been out for some time. The interactions give this game a nice emergent-gameplay edge that keeps things interesting, and there's nothing more hilarious than being a few planets away from a military victory and having the Drox Guild tell you that you MUST, due to Circumstances Beyond Your Control, ally with the race you've just been eradicating colony by colony from this area of known space.

Highly recommend for fun ARPG-in-space with a sandboxy twist.

Edit: There is an expansion out, which is not on Steam at the time of this writing. You can purchase the expansion from Soldak and apply it to the Steam version of the game to gain access to additional features. He's also said that he's working on getting it into steam. He's been providing Steam codes for anybody who purchases directly, and we can expect this to continue for the expansion.

If Star Control, Civilization, and Diablo had a baby, it would be named Drox Operative. It's a surprisingly fun yet incredibly deep game. You can lose and win the game a number of different ways and play it accordingly. Want to play by making everyone fear you? You can do that. Want to win the hearts and minds of the alien species? You can do that. Want to explore and blast bad guys? You can do that. There's a ton of gameply customizability options to make the game easier or harder or slower or faster. The graphics are a bit dated, but there's nothing that pulls me out of being immersed in the soap opera like politics that I was neck deep in. Tons of races and ships to get started and star systems to explore with random encounters and loot all over the place. While I was waiting for a Skyrim mod to download, I saw this on sale and I'm glad I picked it up because I had forgotten about my mod about 7 hours later when it was time to go to bed.

Ok, Soldak we get it, you've got my attention. You've shown me how unique an ASRPG can be. And it's better with friends I might add!

Being apart of a space illuminati wasn't in my expectations of exploring space, but man, this -- this is better. Control the fate and destiny of entire races? Or destroy them even?

Choices. That's the keyword for Drox Operative. And damn guys.. Soldak executes this really well.

Bravo.

I've been playing this game for a few years now, but it has only just become available on Steam.

Don't let the rather unattractive visuals fool you (admittedly the screenshots look just terrible): this is the best action RPG out there. Period.

Drox Operative is actually and ARPG set inside a 4X game being played out by AI's. You can influence events in a myriad of ways. You create a ship, generate a galaxy which will have some number of races playing in it, and you can win by allying yourself with the victors, or if you are particularly bloodthirsty you can just rape everything in sight until you accumulate the points for a "Fear" victory. Afterwards you can retain your ship in a newly generated galaxy. It is so satisfying to play an RPG in a "living" universe rather than mindlessly grinding through the same old dungeon with randomly spawning enemies until you reach some boss.

One of the great innovations is that the modules with which you fit your ship do not go into specific slots, but instead there are "hi, mid, low" slots (much like in EVE). So, if you want 4 lasers, you can do it. If you want 5 reactors to give you very rapid cap recharge, you can do it. You want 5 engines so your ship zips around the map? You can do it. Are you a Romulan who fantasizes about redundant cloaking devices? Well, you get the idea.

There certainly seem to be no other RPG's out there like Drox, so if you like space and you like RPG's it's a must-buy, but there is some room for improvement: In my opinion the visual appeal of the game is non-existant, and staring at it for hours gets rather drab, but rest assured the great gameplay will keep you doing just that. Though there is large array of loot you will find, I certainly feel that they could add many more modules which do a much wider variety of different things.

Anyway, for $10 or $20, you certainly shouldn't regret this buy.

This game is the perfect example of the fact that you don't need over-the-top graphics and flashy swords to make a good action rpg. Easy to pick up, loads of fun, and quite the steal.