Epoch 2: the robot shooter action continues

Australia's Uppercut Games has released the sequel to its hit debut title, third-person shooter Epoch.

Uppercut Games' Epoch, released two years ago, seemed to come out of nowhere: a third-person shooter, based on the Unreal Engine, starring a robot in a post-apocalyptic wasteland following a directive to get to the country's princess — the person he was charged to protect.

Epoch 2 picks up the story where Epoch left off. Having reached Princess Amelia, Epoch must collect the resources to revive her from cryosleep — all while the battle between the warring Omegatroniks and Alphatekk robot factions rages.

What made Epoch so great in the first game was a combat system designed specifically for touchscreens, and the gameplay in Epoch 2 is every bit as slick. The gameplay is based around cover, with automatic targeting and firing so that you don't have to stress about aiming and shooting while dodging enemy fire.

If this makes the game sound easy, it's no pushover. When you have several enemy bots firing on you at once from different directions, you'll need all your concentration and dexterity to dodge, cover and reload without being killed. Swiping up and down on the screen lets you pop out to shoot, take cover or perform acrobatic leaps out of the firing zone, and swiping from side to side lets you roll into a new position.

You can also throw weapons, such as grenades, to give your firepower a bit of a boost. New weapons have been added, as well as new pieces you can find on the battlefield to upgrade Epoch. The combat itself also has some new moves, such as the Smackdown, which allows you to leap in and deliver a finishing move to a damaged enemy, and the Fast Reload system, which allows you to, well, reload your gun quickly, saving precious seconds under fire.

New moving stages, such as barges and trains, provide a dynamic platform for the action, and new bosses with new abilities provide interesting challenges. It's a lot bigger and a lot longer: Uppercut Games said that the story campaign is three to four times as long as the original Epoch; and, like the original game, the graphics are utterly superb.

Epoch 2 is available now from the iTunes App Store for AU$6.49. We expect, like Epoch, it will be available for Android on Google Play in the coming months; in the meantime, you can install update 1.5 for a new arena map.