One of the finest games to have ever been made, RAGE really did make one heck of a strategy game here. Back in 2000 I picked up the original boxed copy for a mere £10 when it was brand new, the reason I bought it was because in PC Review they said it was a modern day Carrier Command (my favourite game of all time on the PC - 1988), since Carrier Command I have always wanted another game similar to it and RAGE provided a similar experience in a different mould.

Carrier Command was about you taking a Carrier that can create Mantas (planes) and Walrus' (amphibious tanks), you were to travel from island to island and capture them for resources in order to then track down the enemy carrier and destroy it, you need to be aware though as the enemy carrier can also do the exact same thing as you can. Hostile Waters is very similar in the regard that you travel from island to island in order to prepare for destroying the enemy carrier however unlike Carrier Command you don't have any freedom going in between islands, instead each island is a mission.

In both Carrier Command and Hostile Waters you have to go on the islands and recover resources, this is where the games similarities move apart, Carrier Command has supplies sent straight to you depending on what you require at any given moment, short of missiles? Order them from a nearby island and it will be shipped straight to you, in Hostile Waters you instead only receive resources by harvesting them from destroyed objects.

Where Carrier Command is clearly focused on the sea, Hostile Waters makes the island missions superb fun, each island can have bases or something else entirely, having the right preparation in order to carry out your mission is essential and the AI becomes pivotal. Thankfully the AI is brilliantly done, if they're in trouble then they don't just stay there, they'll do what they can to take down the enemy, out maneouvre them and even retreat. The battle chatter makes the missions even better as the AI have conversations between themselves, it makes the feel very real.

Using the mission map to plot out AI behaviour is a breeze to do and it makes you more of a commander than a pilot so you tend to let the AI do what they like to get things done. If you want to take control of their vehicle then that's possible too.

Some of the latter missions are dearthly and really requires you to plan ahead as you will be turned to sushi, having said that though it's not impossible but once you've completed the game you will have perhaps the biggest smile on your face.

Buy the game, play the game, live the game. If I could give a score out of 10 it would be 11!

If you haven't played Carrier Command at all then I highly recommend that too.

One of the finest games to have ever been made, RAGE really did make one heck of a strategy game here. Back in 2000 I picked up the original boxed copy for a mere £10 when it was brand new, the reason I bought it was because in PC Review they said it was a modern day Carrier Command (my favourite game of all time on the PC - 1988), since Carrier Command I have always wanted another game similar to it and RAGE provided a similar experience in a different mould. Carrier Command was about you taking a Carrier that can create Mantas (planes) and Walrus' (amphibious tanks), you were to travel from island to island and capture them for resources in order to then track down the enemy carrier and destroy it, you need to be aware though as the enemy carrier can also do the exact same thing as you can. Hostile Waters is very similar in the regard that you travel from island to island in order to prepare for destroying the enemy carrier however unlike Carrier Command you don't have any freedom going in between islands, instead each island is a mission. In both Carrier Command and Hostile Waters you have to go on the islands and recover resources, this is where the games similarities move apart, Carrier Command has supplies sent straight to you depending on what you require at any given moment, short of missiles? Order them from a nearby island and it will be shipped straight to you, in Hostile Waters you instead only receive resources by harvesting them from destroyed objects. Where Carrier Command is clearly focused on the sea, Hostile Waters makes the island missions superb fun, each island can have bases or something else entirely, having the right preparation in order to carry out your mission is essential and the AI becomes pivotal. Thankfully the AI is brilliantly done, if they're in trouble then they don't just stay there, they'll do what they can to take down the enemy, out maneouvre them and even retreat. The battle chatter makes the missions even better as the AI have conversations between themselves, it makes the feel very real. Using the mission map to plot out AI behaviour is a breeze to do and it makes you more of a commander than a pilot so you tend to let the AI do what they like to get things done. If you want to take control of their vehicle then that's possible too. Some of the latter missions are dearthly and really requires you to plan ahead as you will be turned to sushi, having said that though it's not impossible but once you've completed the game you will have perhaps the biggest smile on your face. Buy the game, play the game, live the game. If I could give a score out of 10 it would be 11! If you haven't played Carrier Command at all then I highly recommend that too.