A long while ago, a developer created a game called Savage: Battle for Newerth which helped to pioneer the concept of an RTS mixed with an action game. A while afterwards, they decided to make the game free upon releasing the sequel, Savage 2. Now Savage 2 is free for all who wish to partake of its splendors, and it is definitely worth a play. There's no other game quite like it, with the possible exception of the original.

First, we've got to get the basics out of the way. Savage 2 takes place in a medieval, almost-steampunk fantasy world with things like magic and steam-powered engines. The art style and graphics definitely reflect this, and they are well done, with some truly amazing model and texture work at play in the game. The sound is equally as impressive, with very satisfying effects and music all at work. Nothing pulls you from the gameplay, and that is good, because you want to be in the thick of things!

When first starting, you probably won't play the commander (who is much like an RTS player). Rather, you will play an average unit with myriad abilities at your disposal. There are two sides, Humans and Beasts, and each has similar units to the other side, only focused more on their particular themes. The Humans tend to be more straightforward and strong with a ranged focus, especially in early-game, and the Beasts tend to use more subterfuge and mobility with a melee focus. There are exceptions, of course, but this is the general gist of gameplay. Keep in mind that as you play, you gain XP, which is then used to upgrade your character in general ways, such as increasing health by a certain percentage.

• The basic, and arguably most useful unit, is the peon. Humans of this class are called Builders, and Beasts of this class are called Conjurers. They may not be the most effective in a fight, but they have three very important functions that the other classes don't have: they can assist in the construction of structures, create temporary supply depots to refuel teammate ammo or mana, and lay down temporary guard turrets. For a good defensive support class, they are king.
• The basic ranged/stealth unit is the Scout for humans and Shapeshifter for Beasts. As you can imagine, it has a wide range of different abilities that all enhance its ability to deal with enemies at a range as opposed to up close. They also have abilities to deal massive damage to structures as well as disguise or cloak to slip into an enemy base.
• The unit you will most likely use for the majority of your gameplay is the basic melee unit. For the Humans these are the Savages, and for Beasts they are Hunters. The big difference here is in support-ability focus. Savages have more ranged support abilities, where Hunters are more about tearing through enemies up close and personal.
• The heavy brutes of the normal units are the Legionnaires for Humans and Predators for Beasts. They both deal massive damage, have gobs of health, and are in general the best thing to see on a battlefield filled with swarming enemies, as they absorb damage as well as dish it out. Continuing the Humans vs Beasts change, the Legionnaire has a good selection of hard-hitting ranged weapons, and the Predator has a good selection of melee attacks.
• The caster for both sides are the combat support classes. They are essential for a team to succeed in any real capacity, and often end up leading. The Humans have a Chaplain, which is very heal focused, and the Beasts have a Shaman, which is more focused around disrupting the enemy. Both sides effectively assist teammates and hinder enemies, though, so don't be put off!
• Both sides have a basic siege unit and a heavy siege unit. For the Humans, they are the Steambuchet and Battering Ram, respectively. For the Beasts, they are the Tempest and Behemoth. These are the strongest units available to each side, but are slow, lack true long-range capabilities, and are huge targets for every enemy. They are also exorbitantly expensive.
• Available to both sides are the Hellbourne. These are demons conjured when holding a particular resource, and are some of the best units in the game. Needless to say, they tear through the faction-specific units, but are extremely hard to get.

All this, however, is only for the grunts on the ground. What about the commander? Well, the commander manages the team resources, which are used to build structures as well as buy better units and upgrades. They place structures and promote the grunts on the ground in order to further the strategic objective. Finally, they issue orders to the other players, which can then be followed for an XP bonus or ignored if the player disagrees with the commander's judgement.

Savage 2 is a solid game with good controls, an excellent mixture of RTS and action genres, and engaging multiplayer content. The only downside? There's not many players online at the moment. However, you can usually find a reasonably full game at any particular time. You can download the game for Mac, Linux, or PC from the official site or right here on Big Download!

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