''Battlestar Galactica Deadlock'' is a

turn-based strategy A turn-based strategy (TBS) game is a Strategy video game, strategy game (usually some type of wargaming, wargame, especially a wargaming#Unit or map scale, strategic-level wargame) where players take Time-keeping systems in games, turns when pla ...

video game developed by Black Lab Games and published by

Slitherine Software Slitherine Software UK Limited is a British video game developer and publisher founded on 25 June 2000. It is responsible for the production of a range of over 200 strategy and war video games for PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS2, PS3, PS4, Wii, DS, ...

for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

on August 31, 2017. It is based on the science fiction franchise ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...

''.

Gameplay

''Battlestar Galactica Deadlock'' is a 3D turn-based strategy game. It uses a simultaneous turn structure (WEGO) where opponents confirm commands and are then executed at the same time. ''Deadlock'' is based in the first Cylon war. There is

player versus player Player versus player (PvP) is a type of multiplayer interactive conflict within a game between human players. This is often compared to player versus environment (PvE), in which the game itself controls its players' opponents. The terms are mos ...

multiplayer or two player

co-op A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

against the

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...

(AI).

Development

''Battlestar Galactica Deadlock'' was developed by Black Lab Games, a studio based in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Australia. Following the release of their previous game, '' Star Hammer: The Vanguard Prophecy'', publisher

Slitherine Slitherine Software UK Limited is a British video game developer and publisher founded on 25 June 2000. It is responsible for the production of a range of over 200 strategy and war video games for PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS2, PS3, PS4, Wii, DS, ...

asked them if they had any

intellectual properties Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

(IPs) they were interested in working on, and director Paul Turbett listed multiple IPs, including ''Battlestar Galactica'', leading to them being allowed to work with this IP. Before the story or gameplay were designed, Turbett created "guiding principles" for how to make an authentic ''Battlestar Galactica'' experience, The core team was five people, with additional contributors helping out, such as the soundtrack's composer, Ash Gibson Greig. The voice acting was done by Slitherine, which sourced and recorded the voice talent in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Release

''Battlestar Galactica Deadlock'' was announced on May 16, 2017, for PC,

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

, and

Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...

. The release date was set for summer 2017. On August 31, 2017, the PC version was released. On the same day, the console versions were delayed to late 2017. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions were released on December 8, 2017. A

Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...

version was announced on September 25, 2019, and released on October 8, 2019. Several

downloadable content Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enablin ...

(DLC) packs have been released.

Reception

''Battlestar Galactica Deadlock'' received "generally favorable" reviews according to

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

. Caley Roark of ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'' summarized: "Battlestar Galactica: Deadlock pleasantly checks a lot of boxes: Sci-fi tactics and strategy; good controls; proper Battlestar Galactica game with attention to detail. That it does so with enjoyable and challenging gameplay makes it easy to overlook the less-than-stellar graphics and interface issues in the strategy layer. So say we all." Matt Purslow of ''

PCGamesN ''PCGamesN'' is a British online video game magazine focusing on PC gaming and hardware. It has a full-time team of over a dozen writers and is the oldest owned-and-operated site within publishing group Network N. History Parent company Netw ...

'' summarized: "The tutorial is finicky and some of the mechanical presentation misses the mark, but its a novelty to play a tie-in game that’s not a dreadful mobile game. Deadlock may be small, but it really does capture the feeling of being on the back foot, which is what Battlestar Galactica is all about." Peter Parrish of '' PC Invasion'' summarized: "Compelling tactical fleet combat and a middling strategic campaign layer combine with some carefully applied Galactica aesthetics. That extra attention to detail earns Deadlock a little more than a hard six." Matt S. of Digitally Downloaded summarized: "Battlestar Galactica: Deadlock serves a particular niche; it’s for people who are both strategy game fans and Battlestar Galactica fans. I don’t know how many of us are out there, but I hope there’s enough that the entire development team gets rewarded for the excellent work that they’ve done. Yes it’s a budget game and a really authentic Battlestar Galactic experience really should also have solo flight and ground missions, but as a complement to the overall franchise, I couldn’t ask for more. This game is brilliant."

References

External links