Ok, that was pretty awesome. But, it would be really nice to have some carry over - some bonus in the next game, because of my winning the first. Like a bandana of infinite ammo or something.
I think I've got it figured out... the speed shrine is a trap! It's there to tempt you into triggering glitches and bug that prevent you completing the level. Still not sure what the watch tower does though.
Something seriously off with the enemies research. I have 15 engine and I still can't get to them, yet they've been hammering me since barely five minutes in! Do they just not have a range limit?
The upgrades system is a good idea, but the benefits don't scale - extra factories give you a little boost at the start, but once you've survived the first ten minutes or so, it doesn't really make any difference. Would be nice if achievements offered some sort of contstant boost - e.g. instead of starting with some weapons research done, make weapons research cost 5% less. that way it provides a benefit for the whole game.
Xephan posted that lower rank ships are destroyed first... this is NOT TRUE! If anything, the reverse - with 200 probes and 1 battleship, I saw the battleship die before any of the probes.
This seems at first like a great game, but there just isn't enough to do. The campaign isn't even close to finish, so all I can do is grind out skirmish/multiplayer games to very, very slowly, accumulate cards. I'll raise it from 3 to 5 stars once the campaigns are finished - each hero gets their own, right? BTW, the limited number of cards is perfect; so much more strategy when your choices are restricted.
 "The Wizard"){kind=icon}
 "Super Mega Ultra Battle Robot 2.0"){kind=icon}
 "Robots Initiate Work Sequence"){kind=icon}
 "Starship Commander"){kind=icon}
 "Mars Colonies Demo"){kind=icon}
 "Racing Comrade!"){kind=icon}
 "Guild Dungeons 2"){kind=icon}
 "War of Omens"){kind=icon}
 "Astrox"){kind=icon}
 "Loot Heroes"){kind=icon}
 "Forbidden Arms"){kind=icon}
 "Frontier"){kind=icon}
Good idea! Noted for the sequel :)