PLANET STRONGHOLD: COLONIAL DEFENSE Out Now

Anyone who only watches Steam for new releases might have missed out on the launch of Planet Stronghold: Colonial Defense by Winter Wolves. This title marks their first foray into the sci-fi visual novel / collectible card game hybrid market and is set before the events of the original Planet Stronghold game. The game was released on January 25th, 2016 on the official website and is available for Windows, MAC and Linux.

The game allows players to take control of either Alex or Diana Nelson, two siblings who are stuck in the same colony. Players more interested in the visual novel/dating sim aspect of the game can play the game in “Visual Novel” mode while strategy fans will appreciate the added challenge from the card-collectible gameplay. According to the developer this aspect of the game is easy to learn, but hard to master and enhances the replayability of the title thanks to upgradable cards.

Planet Stronghold: Colonial Defense features eight characters to befriend, and in typical Winter Wolves fashion, if you play your cards right you can romance them as well. Players can choose to play as a male or female character and the romance elements are not only restricted to characters of the opposite sex. In total the card game features more than 120 unique cards to collect while the story features more than 200,000 words of dialogue. Players are also able to make choices that lead to different endings.

The beautiful painted artwork style of the game is definitely a step up from the original and knowledge of the first game is not required to enjoy this one. The game is available right now from the Winter Wolves website at a price of $19.99, but players who want to test the waters first can download a free demo. A separate version of the game that includes the full original soundtrack in MP3 format, extra artwork and wallpapers is also available from the official site.