Eco Creatures: Save the Forest

Most of the world's environmental issues would be solved if displaced squirrels could fight back. Eco-Creatures: Save the Forest is insanely charming by default of being a strategy game about vengeful woodland animals throwing themselves at their mechanical tormentors, but clumsy controls bog it down.

Greenpeace With Teeth

Dorian, a forest resident who looks like a cross between a pineapple and Domo-kun, is charged with protecting the woods when the kingdom next door decides to go on a deforesting spree. Dorian enlists the help of squirrels, flying squirrels and beavers (called Ecolis, Ecomon and Ecoby) to turn the tide. He builds up his troops, issues commands and formulates strategies to protect his home base.

Whereas most real-time strategy games are based around a medieval or science fiction theme, Eco-Creatures: Save the Forest immediately stands out for its colorful world and the antics of its fuzzy soldiers. The game's graphics are simple but distinctive with cell-shaded characters and big-eyed woodland creatures who change appearance and abilities according to how they're raised. The animals' cute looks betray their ferocity. Once they've been raised a few levels, the little guys will rip apart whatever smoke-spewing mech Dorian points them towards.

Slow War

Alas, said "pointing" is easier said than done; the controls for Eco-Creatures: Save the Forest border on terrible. The upper screen on the DS serves as a map, but it does you little good. Dorian and his crew can only attack what they can see, and there's no means of scrolling the screen ahead. As a result, enemies often have to get right into Dorian's face before he can issue the command to attack. He's revived when he dies, but his Ecomon troops scatter when that happens, and good luck rallying them again. There's a touch icon that supposedly selects all the creatures Dorian wishes to dispatch orders upon, but again, he can only command what he sees-not a whole lot.

Eco-Creatures: Save the Forest is quite basic for an RTS game, but the simplicity works well for it. The animals battle, grow trees for the purpose of spawning more of their kind, and shift personalities and fighting styles according to games they play with Dorian in between missions. If not for the wretched controls, it would be a perfect first-time RTS game for the younger crowd. As it stands though, it's too frustrating for both veterans and beginners.

PROS: Unique presentation. An interesting take on a genre populated by swords, guns and tanks.
CONS: Controls are sluggish, making it hard to issue vital commands efficiently.

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