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Escape Velocity Nova (a.k.a. EV Nova or EVN) is a video game by Ambrosia Software, in collaboration with ATMOS. It is the third game in the Escape Velocity series of space trading & combat games.

History and development[edit]

Escape Velocity is a space action/rpg game designed to destroy tedium with laser fire. Flashback To 1996: Escape Velocity Re-Released For OS X. You can now join the rebellion on Mac OS X.

Nova began as a plug-in for Escape Velocity Override in July 1998.^[1] Two years later, ATMOS was brought in to convert the plug-in to a full game which was available for beta-testing on July 15, 2001.^[1] It was fully released on March 18, 2002.^[1] A 2008 update for Mac was built as a universal binary with native support for Intel processors.^[2] The final update was in 2011, and the game no longer works on modern versions of macOS. As of 2020, with Ambrosia Software defunct, it is no longer possible to purchase new licenses or renew already-purchased licenses for new installations.

Gameplay[edit]

Nova takes place around star systems in the Milky Way, many of which have planets or space stations that the player can land on. Each star system is either controlled by a faction and has an evaluation of the player's crimes or contributions to that star system and its faction, or is uninhabited and controlled by no one. The player's ship usually travels between star systems by 'hyperjumping' by fixed (and to the user, instantaneous) paths to surrounding systems. The player can also use rare wormholes which transport the player's ship to a fairly random star system, or can use a 'hypergate' system to move between certain systems after the Sigma Shipyard mission string has been completed.

In space, which in the game is limited to two dimensions, the player controls their spaceship to land on planets, jump into another star system, or engage in combat and board ships. The player can also communicate with other ships, obtaining information about supply and demand of commodities on different planets, and can also get missions in this way.

On inhabited planets, the player can refuel their ship, find and accept missions, trade commodities, buy ships or ship upgrades, and hire escorts. Each planet, 'spaceport bar,' and ship or ship upgrade has associated images and descriptions.

Main goals[edit]

The player starts as a freelance space pilot in a shuttlecraft, out to make a penny in the vast and unforgiving galaxy. There are many ways to play Nova; for example, a starting player seeking funds can become a trader or courier, delivering cargo between worlds; become a pirate or bounty hunter, attacking and disabling ships to steal their money, cargo, or the ships themselves; become involved in one of the main storylines; or even conquer the galaxy by subjugating worlds.

Missions, storylines and plot[edit]

The game has six major storylines that the player can participate in, one for each of the major factions: Federation, Rebellion, Auroran, Polaris, Vell-os, and Pirate.

These storylines are the bulk of the game. Each storyline is a long and involved set of plot-filled missions which are like 'playing' a short story written in second person. Each story-line forces pilots to align themselves with a particular faction, restricting a player's freedom but giving him access to more powerful ships and technology. A single story-line can take anywhere from an hour to several days to play to completion, depending on the player's level of experience and preferred pace. There also exist a few shorter minor stories and missions, which are difficult to find but have great rewards, such as the ability to use the old hypergate system.

Some major and minor storylines branch into others so that, for example, a player in the midst of the Federation story-line can, along the way, choose to join the Rebellion instead. Nova has only a small fraction of the freelance missions that were common in the previous games in the Escape Velocity series.

In the standard game, only a single major storyline can be played per pilot, as opposed to previous games in the Escape Velocity series where one could play most all missions as one pilot while gathering ever more powerful ships and weapons.

There are two minor storylines however, both of which help the player into the major storylines. These include the Bounty Hunter and Wild Geese storylines. The Bounty Hunter storyline can lead to either the Federation, Rebellion, or Auroran storylines. The Wild Geese storyline can lead to either the Auroran or Pirate storyline.

Ships and technology[edit]

Starting with a simple shuttlecraft, the player obtains new ships, weapons, and other technology, such as cloaking devices, beam weapons, and fighter bays, by purchase or as the result of completing certain missions. Throughout the course of the game, the player can choose to pilot bigger and better ships — ultimately leading to powerful capital ships with alien technology — that can also carry more cargo, and can also obtain controllable escort ships.

Extensibility (plug-ins)[edit]

Like the other games in the Escape Velocity series, Nova allows registered users to create their own plug-ins which can be used to slightly or drastically change stories and technology, or even completely replace the universe. There is a large community at the official Ambrosia forums where players can trade tips, get help, and swap favorite plugins and pilots.

Of particular note are two official plug-ins available to registered users which replace Nova's scenario with those of the first two games, allowing the original Escape Velocity and its sequel Escape Velocity Override to be played natively on both Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows.^[3][4]

Setting and plot[edit]

The game takes place in the Milky Way in 1177 NC and follows several human civilizations that have broken away from the Colonial Council and developed independently of each other. There are three main governments: Federation, Auroran, and Polaris, and several smaller factions. Back-story and other role-playing information can be gathered from several 'preambles' that come as documentation with the game.

Federation[edit]

At the start of the game, the Federation is the latest in a line of Earth based governments, succeeding the Colonial Council. The first explorers from Earth to go faster than the speed of light used devices known as hypergates, developed by Omata Kane. Humans settled other habitable planets and quickly formed an organization known as the Colonial Council. The council made first contact with the Vell-os, a group of telepathic humans who had left Earth centuries before, and benefited from their advanced technology. Eventually a breakaway group of humans left the Colonial Council and settled planets beyond the star Polaris, taking that name for their people. When the council recontacted the Polaris, it became clear that they would not tolerate any interference from the council. When the council sent a diplomatic delegation, the Polaris viewed it and its small military escort as a precursor to invasion and destroyed it, prompting the council to declare war on the Polaris. The Vell-os opposed this war, and destroyed the council's invasion fleet before it reached Polaris space. A fifty year long war then broke out between the council and the Vell-os. The Vell-os, being peaceful in nature, eventually surrendered to avoid further bloodshed and were enslaved by mainstream humanity. Until they decided to sue for peace the Vell-os were easily holding their own against the more numerous Council forces.

After the war ended, many of the colonies to the south seceded from the council and formed a loose confederation known as the Auroran Empire. Once again the council was thrust into war, this time to regain the lost colonies. Although they did not defeat all of the groups which made up the Aurorans, one group known as Armetis eventually turned to terrorism. One former council member who was disenchanted with the Colonial Council gave Armetis the codes to the hypergate system. Armetis destroyed Earth's hypergate, which sent shock waves throughout the entire hypergate system, crippling it and isolating many of the former Council worlds.

It took two hundred years before Earth based ships were capable of exceeding the speed of light. They recontacted many of the former worlds, which formed an alliance with Earth due to their fear of the expanding Auroran Empire. Earth forces attempted to invade the Aurorans, with little success. As a result, they decided to pool their resources and form the Federation.

The Federation created an investigative body known as the Bureau of Internal Investigation. The Bureau, as it is known, was created to investigate and remove subversive influence in the Federation, but also pursues the goal of reunifying humanity under the Federation. Based in the Wolf 359 system, the Bureau is so pervasive that some Federation citizens charge that it runs the government. Many of the Federation's leading citizens have started a rebellion against the Bureau.

Rebellion[edit]

The Rebellion is in the middle of a war against the Federation, specifically the Bureau. The Rebellion claims that the Bureau has committed heinous crimes, and controls the Federation itself and that the Bureau should be removed from power. The Rebellion hates killing the puppets of the Bureau but knows that there is no way of fighting the Bureau without destroying Federation ships. The Rebellion is vital in all of the major storylines, and the outcomes of all of them affect the Rebellion, and their war against the Bureau in one way or another.

The Rebellion is more of an ideological faction than a political one; as such it only has control of two systems, Evlei and Koria, to the Galactic north of the Federation. Merrol in the Aldebaran system is the only Federal planet that is in open rebellion, but it is under permanent blockade by the Bureau.

By and large, the Rebellion is made up of older pilots and a great deal of their funding comes from the Association of Free Traders. Although they have managed to acquire some Polaron technology and steal a few of the less powerful Federation warships, their sparse numbers prevent them from fighting anything other than minor battles. As a result, the majority of the war between the Rebellion and the Bureau is fought as a 'spy-war'.

Auroran[edit]

The Auroran Empire is one of the main political blocs in the game. They are the most populous of the blocs, but, since they remain largely uninterested in technology, one of the least technologically advanced.

The Auroran population is approximately 100 trillion, according to ATMOS - most planets have at least one arcology that can house tens of millions of people, and the 'homeworlds' of the six different Auroran factions each average a population of around 175 billion. As a result, many Auroran worlds suffer from severe pollution and overcrowding problems, and the colonization of new systems to relieve the burden of overpopulation is a major factor in their political agenda.

The Auroran Empire consists of five 'Families' or 'Houses' (Moash, Heraan, Tekel, Dani and Vella). Each of the five families fight with each other constantly. Additionally, there are systems governed by the 'Auroran Empire'. These systems do not belong to any family, but are instead governed by the central Auroran government. Also, one system is formally governed by the 'Dechtakars', warriors who are loyal to the Auroran Empire as a whole rather than to a specific house, although their presence is spread throughout the Empire. Their warriors love to tattoo themselves and engage in 'honorable' combat, and their ships have very heavy armor. The Auroran weapons are very heavy but they deal a lot of damage. The player can help the Aurorans by either passing through the Bounty Hunter storyline, or having a high combat rating and going into any bar within Federation or non Heraan-family Auroran space.

As the player progresses along the Auroran and Polaris storylines, he encounters the Thurokiir, the Obsidian Heart or Spiritual Master of House Heraan, Techerakh the Bloody Hammer. If following the Auroran storyline, Techerakh renames your character KarHallarn, or the Wolf. Both titles, one as Thurokiir, and one as a fleet master (KarHallarn of the Pack) symbolize the Aurorans' deep respect for clan-warfare and battle honor. Similar to East Asian countries of earth from the Dark Ages to mid-1960s, the Aurorans build their society around 'face' and 'shame.' To flee from battle or surrender to the enemy is an atrocity against one's empire, house, and self. Thus the Aurorans provide one of the most complex factions in Nova, due to the intricacies of their warrior society.

Polaris[edit]

The Polaris are a race of technologically, and in some cases telepathically, advanced humans who broke away from the Colonial Council in 480 NC. The first expedition that ventured in the direction of the North Star was arranged by Kerrell Polaris, who died three days before it was started. Over the next century, the Polaris encountered the Wraith, a space dwelling race of creatures that can utilize hyperspace. Nearly all encounters the Polaris had with the Wraith ended in bloodshed, which is what initially fostered the Polaris' isolationist ideology.

The isolationism of the Polaris, in turn, caused problems when the Colonial Council attempted to re-establish contact with them by sending in a diplomatic fleet. The Polaris misinterpreted this as an act of war, and destroyed the fleet. Outraged, the Colonial Council sent out an invasion fleet, which was stopped by the Vell-os — a cousin race of humanity with advanced telepathic abilities, who have always supported the Polaris. This sparked the Vell-os/Colonial Council war, which did not affect the Polaris.

After the destruction of the council hypergate system, the Polaris hypergates were still operational, allowing the Polaris to advance technologically. Just over 500 years later, the Federation (successor to the Colonial Council) sent a military task force into Polaris space, which the Polaris destroyed quickly.

The Polaris have six separate castes, set up so that the skills of an individual can be best utilized by the caste he or she becomes a member of.

Vell-os[edit]

The Vell-os are a telepathic race. They were led out to space, united by their telepathic powers by the Indian prince Vell-os in around A.D. 980. The Vell-os do not pilot true ships; the objects they use are simply psychic projections made by the Vell-os inside. They classify humans and Vell-os who have telepathic abilities into seven ranks, or 'T's. The lowest rank possible is T6 (all normal humans are at this level with no actual telepathic ability), and starting with actual telepathic powers at T5, continues downward until T0, the highest rank a telepath can ever achieve. No Vell-os in recorded history has reached the rank of T0.

The Vell-os were originally part of the Colonial Council (which preceded the Federation) but seceded when they protested the Colonial fleet trying to invade the Polaris. Following a devastating war with the Colonial Council, they were enslaved by the Colonial Council and proceeded to raze every inhabited Vell-os world via intense orbital bombardment, leaving dead planets with dangerously high radiation that will endure for millennia. The leaders of the Vell-os ruling council, the Krypt-tokh, escaped enslavement by fusing their bodies with their nanite-producing organs, becoming immense, immortal, telepathic space-roaming beings which ply the ruins of Vell-os space. The Krypt await the liberation of the Vell-os race as foretold in the so-called 'Korell Prophecy.'

There are three classes of Vell-os 'ship'; Darts, Arrows and Javelins, in order of power. Vell-os 'ships' are not ships in the common sense. The psionic power of the Vell-os pilot forms the shell of the vessel. The ship is also powered by the pilot's mind, and all defenses come from the pilot. The ship is literally an extension of the pilot within. While the ship does not have very powerful armor, the shields and weapons are some of the most powerful in the game.

Pirates[edit]

Pirates represent the criminal side of the universe. There are many different branches of the common Pirates that mercilessly plunder and destroy ships. In the game, they can disable and steal the player's goods and money and leave the player stranded in open space.

The Marauders are small raiders and pirates who plunder in a small scale, and are usually nothing to worry about to well armed merchants. Their ships are usually normal civilian ships, slightly upgraded, although sometimes a Starbridge or Valkyrie joins in the fleet. The Marauders are independent raiders who have no real leader or government, and therefore make very easy foes, though they should not be underestimated. The Marauders are weaker than the 'normal' Pirates, though they attack within Federation space. They are also universally despised, even by other Pirate factions, so they will be attacked by any warship or interceptor of any faction in a system.

The Association of Free Traders is a proud but dwindling organization. They see themselves guardians of Federation space, and their main enemy is the Guild of Free Traders. They have created their own class of ships, which are civilian ships that have been thoroughly upgraded and tweaked, and fitted with a vast array of weaponry and Pirate technology. The once-proud association met its decline in power after a very strong Bureau fleet, with the help of the Guild of Free Traders, organized an attack on the association. The Bureau invited the association leader, Morgan, to a peace-treaty, which turned out to be an ambush, helped by the Guild of Free Traders. Morgan, his crew and his wife met their death there, and the leadership of the association has been replaced by Olaf Greyshoulders. The association has ever since been an enemy of the Bureau of Internal Investigation, though they are not in open war with the Federation. Joining them reveals Morgan to have been the protagonist's father.

The Guild of Free Traders are the most worrisome and dangerous group of Pirates. They have their own government, and their current leader is McGowan. They are far more organized, and frequently smuggle illegal drugs and other goods. They have many secret bases scattered in Federation space, and commonly do strikes and raids among traders and merchants. They do not use civilian ships, and instead they use Association ships that are heavily upgraded. The Guild of Free Traders, though enemies of the Federation, have ties with the Bureau of Internal Investigation.

The other Pirate branch consists of the Auroran Houseless warriors. They are equivalent to the common Pirates in the Federation, and have similar strength and methods. Their fleet consists of Auroran civilian ships, gun ships and fighters. They normally attack in the center of Auroran space, and have their own base hidden inside an asteroid field.

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abc'EV Nova Frequently Asked Questions'. Ambrosia Software, Inc. Retrieved 2013-06-03.
2. ^'Ambrosia's EV Nova makes the jump to Universal Binary'. Macworld. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
3. ^'OS X release of Escape Velocity, EV: Override'. Macintosh News Network. 2008-08-11. Archived from the original on 2008-09-27. Retrieved 2008-07-05.
4. ^'Evn essentials'. Ambrosia Software, Inc. 2004-08-12. Archived from the original on 2003-08-22. Retrieved 2008-07-05.

External links[edit]

• EV Nova on IMDb

Escape Velocity is a single-playerrole-playingspace trading and combatvideo game series first introduced in 1996 by Ambrosia Software for the Apple Macintosh. Two other similar games based on the original, EV Override and EV Nova, followed in 1998 and 2002 respectively, the latter of which is also available on Microsoft Windows. In addition there is a trading card game available based on the storyline of the EV Nova universe.

The series was created as a joint effort between several people and groups. Matt Burch programmed all three games in their entirety except for the registration system and various libraries. He also devised and created the scenario for the first game. Ambrosia Software, headed by Andrew Welch, managed marketing, registration, and distribution, as well as providing several external libraries used by the games. Early test versions of the game went by the name 'Merc' (short for 'mercenary'). Peter Cartwright wrote the scenario for EV Override and the Australian company ATMOS created the scenario of EV Nova; both originated as plug-ins for the preceding games before being picked up by Ambrosia as sequels. The fighter pilot voices in the original game were provided by Patrick Delahanty. A plug-in of additional phrases was also created and later included as part of EV Override.

While there have been no announcements regarding the future of the series since the 2002 release of Escape Velocity Nova, the extensible plug-in system allows users to continue developing new third-party content for the game.

Licensing and technical features[edit]

The first two Escape Velocity games are only available in their original forms for the Apple Macintosh and are Classic-only. EV Nova is a Carbon application and runs natively on both the original Mac OS and Mac OS X, and has been ported to Windows. Version 1.1.0 of EV Nova, released in December 2008, is a Universal Binary, and runs natively on Intel-based Macs. Adapted versions of the scenarios of the first two games that run natively in EV Nova are available for free.

This series follows the general licensing rule for Ambrosia Software. All three games are shareware. Ambrosia's shareware system allows most distribution of unregistered games. Copies of the first two Escape Velocity games will work without limitation for 30 days. Afterwards, the player is simply reminded at startup that they have not registered, and told how many times they have run the game, as well as for how many hours it has been run. There is also the character called 'Cap'n Hector' (named after Ambrosia's mascot and office parrot) who reminds the player to register. During the trial this is done by flying by the player's ship and sending a message. After the trial period has expired, the character starts attacking the player, but in EV Override, Cap'n Hector also steals the player's credits. Players can not damage Cap'n Hector directly, though in the original game it was possible for splash damage to disable or destroy her ship.

An unregistered copy of EV Nova is more limited. In addition to the attacks by Cap'n Hector, certain ships and technologies cannot be obtained after the thirty-day trial ends, and even before then, the game's story lines stop about two thirds of the way through, and plug-ins are not supported. Once the game has been registered, Cap'n Hector and all of the other restrictions disappear from the game.

The entire series features an open-ended plug-in architecture, allowing new scenarios to be written by users. This technology is based on the Macintosh resource fork format, making it possible to develop plug-ins without using any purpose-designed editors (though several editors exist and are popular since they make the task much easier). Since Windows does not support resource forks and it is therefore impossible to preserve them when transferring files to Windows-based computers, an alternate format and a conversion system were devised for the Windows version of the game.

Gameplay[edit]

Much of the game takes place in space, with the player flying a ship from a third-person overhead perspective. The player has the option of engaging in both combat and trade. Players are able to fly through hundreds of star systems, which are connected to each other by hyperlinks. Ships travel between star systems along the hyperlinks by engaging their hyperdrive, a form of faster-than-light travel. In Nova, wormholes or hypergates may also be utilized for instantaneous travel. Most systems contain stellar objects such as planets and space stations. Players can land on these objects, where they may be given the option to trade, gain missions, and purchase new spaceships or add-on outfits for their current spaceship. The plot is advanced through missions available from facilities on planets as well as NPCs flying through space. Players can choose which missions to follow and which governments to form a good relationship with or to be entirely neutral. They can choose to be a trader or a mercenary or an asteroid miner among a number of things or a combination of several.

The three games are alike in gameplay only; the universe and plot are completely separate and unrelated between the releases (though EV Nova contains the Kestrel from EV with a description of being from another universe). Each release's engine contains improvements on the previous version, although by far the most significant improvements were made in the third release.

A turbo boost can be acquired which, when activated, plays an audio clip from the introduction to the British television program Thunderbirds.

Occasionally the player will encounter Sinistar, including his voice files.

Plot[edit]

The plot of the original Escape Velocity involves disputes between the Confederation government and a Rebellion against it. As noted earlier, the player may choose sides (or not) based on who they believe is right, who they believe is stronger, who they believe it is more profitable to support, or any other criteria. The player begins with a shuttlecraft resembling those from Star Trek.

Governments[edit]

The Confederation is one of two main governments in the original game. According to the game, as humanity expanded into the Milky Way Galaxy, the new colonies operated independently of each other. However, an invasion by an unknown alien race forced the colonies to unify under Earth's leadership. This became known as the Confederation. The Confederation and the aliens fought a bloody war, with millions of humans being killed. Eventually the Confederation prevailed. At the start of the game, the Confederation and the Rebellion are locked in a bloody stalemate. The Confederation uses four ships in its military, namely the Confederate Patrol Ship, the Confederate Gunboat, the Confederate Frigate and the Confederate Cruiser.

The Rebellion is the other main government in Escape Velocity. According to the game, after winning the war with the aliens, the Confederation did not relinquish its naval power and began exploiting the resources of the outer worlds. Those worlds eventually seceded, provoking a civil war. The Rebellion is in turn criticized for its aggressive nature, support of quasi-criminal organizations, and attacks on civilian shipping and liners. The Rebellion uses four ships in their campaign against the Confederation, namely the Manta, the Rebel Destroyer, the Rebel Cruiser and the Escort Carrier, the last of which is seen only when the player is working for the Confederation.

The Cydonians of New Cydonia and Letheans of Lethe Prime occupy two systems in the galactic southeast of the galaxy and are also locked in a war over water rights at the start of the game; more specific information regarding the conflict is never provided. Both sides utilize the Defender, the Argosy, and the Corvette when fighting in space. The Cydonians also use the Lightning, whereas the Letheans supplement these ships with the Rapier.

The game also includes several trading corporations, including Starbound Shipping, Consolidated Express, and United Galactic Express. Starbound Shipping and United Galactic Express are both in direct (and sometimes violent) competition with Consolidated Express, and are therefore de facto allies. Astex Mining Corporation is a mining company that works exclusively for the Confederation, and as a result is often targeted by the Rebellion and its sympathizers.

The Artemis Group are a family run organization devoted to eliminating pirates as well as ensure the galactic order remains balanced. They attempt to prevent either the Confederation or Rebellion from winning the civil war.

The starting planet, Levo, which is in a system by the same name, has a militia patrolling it to defend it from Pirates, though Pirates never appear in the system except when following the player because of valuable cargo in their possession.

There are a number of Pirates in the game, who immediately attempt to destroy any non-Pirate ship they spot, with the exception of the player once they have achieved a high combat rating. The Pirates do not plunder their targets due to limitations in the game; the player, however, is allowed to board ships, and may from there steal money, cargo, fuel, or ammunition, or attempt to capture the ship for use as their own or as an escort. Another key detail, Pirates may board your ship if they disable you. In EV Nova, Pirates do board and plunder ships, including the player.

Reception[edit]

MacUser named Escape Velocity the best shareware game of 1996.^[1]

Legacy[edit]

Escape Velocity has two sequels: Override (1998) and Nova (2002).

Endless Sky is an open-source video game released in Q4 2015, which journalist Adam Smith writing for Rock, Paper, Shotgun called 'the closest thing to an Escape Velocity game since the release of Nova in 2002.'^[2][3]

References[edit]

1. ^Staff (October 1996). 'Hands On; MacUser Presents the 1996 Shareware Awards'. MacUser. Archived from the original on February 20, 2001. Retrieved August 11, 2019.
2. ^Smith, Adam (November 2, 2015). 'Escape Velocity Successor Endless Sky Available Now'. Rock, Paper, Shotgun.
3. ^Smith, Adam (August 27, 2015). 'Endless Sky Is Free, Inspired By Escape Velocity'. Rock, Paper, Shotgun.

External links[edit]

• Escape Velocity on MobyGames