Post-Apocalyptic RPG Nuclear Union Unveiled

Category: Gaming
Posted: June 22, 2012 02:54PM
Author: ClayMeow

Publisher 1C Company issued a press release today and unveiled a debut trailer for an upcoming RPG titled Nuclear Union, being developed by Best Way, best known for World War II RTS Men of War. In 1C's own words, "Nuclear Union is post-apocalyptic role-playing game with an open progression structure set in the alternative reality." Nuclear Union takes place in an alternate history where the Cuban Missle Crisis resulted in nuclear war in 1962, wiping out half the Earth's population and leaving almost the entire planet surface unfit for living. Prepared for such an outcome, the Soviet Union "underwent a full evacuation of the citizens, industrial facilities and companies of the utmost importance to a pre-built network of specially equipped bunkers."

The game takes place 50 years later, in 2012, and you play as a Soviet officer pilot who participated in the nuclear bombing of the USA, using a third-person view. Most of the game will be played above ground in the Moscow region, but you will also be able to visit the underground capital of the Nuclear Union, Pobedograd. As you progress in the game, you will unlock new areas and you are able to move freely around any already-visited locations. 1C is referring to this as an "open progression structure" because there is a global goal, but it's up to the player what steps they'll take to achieve it (this sounds similar to the structure of Dragon Age: Origins). You'll meet companions along the way, but like the Mass Effect series, you'll only be able to travel with two party members at a time, and you can only issue them commands, you cannot control them directly. Combat occurs in real-time, but you can pause the action at any time to issue commands or line up a shot. As you can imagine, you'll be facing off against all sorts of mutants. Lastly, Nuclear Union is a PC-exclusive and most of you will be happy to know that 1C plans on distributing it through Steam, alongside retail boxed versions. Here is the debut trailer:

With other PC-exclusive RPGs Cyberpunk and Sacrilegium announced as well, the PC RPG landscape is shaping up to be a mighty good one in the near future. The first eleven images below are screenshots, while the last ten are concept art sketches. All images were taken from the official website.