Solar 2 Jay Watts Solar 2 is an open-world, sandbox game set in an infinite abstract universe. Play constructively: grow your system, nurt… $2.99 Buy Now Watch Media DetailsSolar 2 is an open-world, sandbox game set in an infinite abstract universe. Play constructively: grow your system, nurture life on your planets and attack enemy life in huge space battles. Play destructively: crash into other objects and cause chaos, use your orbiting objects like wrecking balls, steal planets from other systems. Information Seller:Jay Watts Genre:Action, Simulation Release:Feb 09, 2013 Updated:Aug 07, 2022 Version:1.25 Size:120.4 MB TouchArcade Rating:Unrated User Rating: (2) Your Rating:unrated Compatibility:HD Universal syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #2 syntheticvoid, Feb 10, 2013 Last edited: Feb 10, 2013 **deleted** september Well-Known Member Sep 14, 2012 2,673 0 0 #3 september, Feb 10, 2013 Oo, any thoughts on the iPad port? syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #4 syntheticvoid, Feb 10, 2013 I did have a few crashing issues at first, but then realized that I only had 39 MB of free space. Deleted some stuff, now have 9 GB free, and the game runs great. Now... I am a HUGE score-chasing fanatic. But the lack of GameCenter or any kind of scoring system at all here does not bother me one little bit. It's a BEAUTIFUL game. Controls work well, though its tap and hold to move, tap your planet to absorb asteroids and then tap, hold and drag planets to absorb them when you're a star, so your hand will get in the way. But that's my ONLY complaint with this. There are missions, but you don't have to go after them, and you can cancel them whenever/if you want so you can just mess around/find another mission. I've only played for about 30 minutes so far, but this is up there for me. I'm definitely enjoying it. A lot. Gabrien Well-Known Member Nov 24, 2009 5,148 0 36 #5 Gabrien, Feb 10, 2013 Interesting. Have you played it, SV? syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #6 syntheticvoid, Feb 10, 2013 Last edited: Feb 10, 2013 Yupperz... and it really is just... a blast. It's very well made - the music isn't really my taste, but you can change the music and effects volumes separately. You start off as an asteroid - bump into other asteroids to grow into a planet - get close to asteroids and pull them into your orbit and then absorb them to grow into a life bearing planet that can produce ships and offensive capabilities as well as a shield - keep absorbing asteroids to grow into a star and then you grab planets and can either absorb them to grow into a bigger star and then eventually a black hole or grow them by having them catch and absorb asteroids so that they become life bearing planets that can attack other planets with the ships and weapon systems (it's really not that focused on action unless you want it to be - you can go slow, or just try and plow through the universe). As far as I can tell, there's 4 different missions for each 'life cycle' that you can activate by following markers and passing through a circled area. Then if you don't like it, or don't think you can do it, or want to try another one or just give up on the mission, you can hit 'abort' at the top of the screen at any time. There's also in-game achievements. 24 of them. No GameCenter, but really, when a game isn't focused on scores (unless you wanna count your Mass as a score) I'm not one who really minds the lack of GC, even if there are achievements. Really makes no difference to me if I have achievements in-game or get useless points for them... so... =oP Anywho... Again, your hand does get in the way because of the control scheme, and there's no options for virtual buttons, though I do think that having the screen clear is much, much better for a game like this. I'm not sure about the FPS. It does run smooth, but I really doubt it's 60 frames per second. I haven't encountered any lag or frameskips on my iPad 2, and it does run smooth, I'm guessing at a solid 30 FPS. But I've never really been good at nailing FPS down. Sorry bout that. ***edit*** Sorry... just found out that in the menu you can switch to 'Challenge Mode' - You pick a challenge and earn points. So there is score based gameplay for those of you who want it - but again, there is no GameCenter so no leaderboards. Also, once you reach 20% story mission completion you can adjust some Physics options; Gravity, Life Build Time, Ships Speed, Collision Damage, Player Speed, Life Extra Turrets and Life Extra Ships Not too sure how much of an effect it has on the gameplay because I'm only at 3% completion. =oP Oh yeah, and there are stats in the pause menu. There's stats for...'; Play Time Distance Traveled Asteroids Destroyed Planets Destroyed Stars Destroyed Ships Destroyed by Your Life Most Asteroids Around Your Planet Largest Multi-Star system Fastest Speed Cycle Time I'm definitely glad I dropped the $4 on it. Even if it drops down to $0.99 or FREE tomorrow, I'd be glad that I supported the dev. This game is great. =oD I'm thinking about dropping the $10 on the Steam version too. strivemind Well-Known Member Aug 11, 2010 2,784 2 38 Designer Ottawa, Canada http://www.strivemind.com/ #7 strivemind, Feb 10, 2013 How does it compare to Tiny Solar? Looks like the same game. syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #8 syntheticvoid, Feb 10, 2013 Last edited: Feb 11, 2013 **edit** Holy crap. Yes, it's EXACTLY Tiny Solar... With a graphics + UI upgrade. Right when the intro explosion went off, I couldn't believe it. Strange... I wonder if Tiny Solar is a clone or if its done by the same DEV... Gonna have to look into it later on... *** Just looking at when Tiny Solar was released (Jan 7, 2013?) and the DEV name, I'm guessing its a total rip off of Solar, which hit Steam + XBLA back in 2011. This is the official port of the Steam/XBLA title... I'm gonna go ahead and write the DEV later on and see if he can shed some light on it... I'll post anything whenever I know. Jordanrracer Well-Known Member Feb 16, 2009 1,630 3 0 Currently -Nothing- New York #9 Jordanrracer, Feb 10, 2013 I really hope this is released for iPhone.. It's such a great game. ojtitus Well-Known Member Jul 7, 2010 3,228 5 38 Male Canton, Ohio #10 ojtitus, Feb 10, 2013 Last edited: Feb 10, 2013 I really enjoyed this game on the 360, the only thing I didn't like was with all indie games on XBLA, you have to be connected to the internet to play indie games and that leaves me feeling like I don't really own the game. So I was very happy to see the full version you don't have to be online to enjoy and for even cheaper than I paid on XBLA. Great find SV, I'll be playing this game all day while I'm at work. Edit: Using a stylus helps a little bit with keeping your hand out of your view. MidianGTX Well-Known Member Jun 16, 2009 3,738 10 38 #11 MidianGTX, Feb 10, 2013 Would this actually be an upgrade to Tiny Solar then? Is it 100% identical or is this a better port? ojtitus Well-Known Member Jul 7, 2010 3,228 5 38 Male Canton, Ohio #12 ojtitus, Feb 10, 2013 Solar 2 appears to be a direct port of the XBLA game that was released at least a year before Tiny Solar. If that answers any of your questions. I don't have any experience playing Tiny Solar but I have played a lot of Solar 2 over the past year on XBLA and now happily on my ipad mini. Sorry I couldn't help with any of your actual gameplay questions. syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #13 syntheticvoid, Feb 10, 2013 Last edited: Feb 10, 2013 Gameplay is 100% identical... There's even some of the same animations and assets used in Tiny Solar that are found in Solar 2. Also, if it helps at all, Tiny Solar has an additional IAP while Solar 2 does not have any. *** Just opened up Tiny Solar again... And there's no extra score based challenges. It looks like just a ripoff of the main gameplay mode. If that helps. I also just wrote the developer and asked about Tiny Solar. If I get a response, I'll be sure and share any info I get. syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #14 syntheticvoid, Feb 11, 2013 K. Got a response from the developer. Here's what he said; metalcasket Moderator Staff Member Patreon Silver Patreon Gold Patreon Bronze May 24, 2010 11,065 1,343 113 Deepest Circle, Hel #15 metalcasket, Feb 11, 2013 Oh man, that sucks. :/ May have to throw $4 at Jay Watts just to show my support. krautboy Well-Known Member Apr 20, 2011 476 0 16 #16 krautboy, Feb 11, 2013 I bought Solar 2 just before your post after trying the lite version of Tiny Solar. A pretty weird situation it seems. Without Tiny Solar he wouldn't have made a port to the Ipad? Anyway,i'm having a blast with it. It feels like a love child of Space Miner and Kometen in a strange twisted way. It's ultra relaxing and really hard at the same time. A question for you SV,as you seem to have played this a bit: As soon as you get a living planet it seems to build some space ships wich follow me around. They tend to blow up asteroids,wich is quite annoying as i need them to grow. Is this intended this way? Or maybe a way to prevent this? Also,you got any clue as to why some asteroids go in orbit right away and others not? Thanks in advance if you could shine some light on this. Great game so far. syntheticvoid Well-Known Member Jun 20, 2010 14,504 124 63 Musician & factory worker. a[V-O-I-D] http://apparentsymmetry.bandcamp.com #17 syntheticvoid, Feb 11, 2013 I've been trying to find a way to deal with the ships as well... Right now, both traveling in short but quick bursts, leaving the ships a little far behind or going right beside another living planet with ships that can distract my own, and then going into an asteroid clump is what I've been doing. Otherwise, they do seem to take out quite a few asteroids. I'm pretty sure this is intentional, as they're meant to protect you, and asteroids do damage your planet if you don't catch them. As for catching asteroids... At first I thought it might be dependent on the coloring or size of the asteroids that makes them easier to catch, but now I'm thinking its more about their angles in relation to the planet. If they move next to the planet without going in a direct colliding path with the planet, they seem to go into orbit easier. If they're not at the right angel, it's a bit harder to get them into orbit. This is just a guess, as I'm still learning myself, but it seems to be working a bit better when thinking of it like that. If you figure it out, I'd love to hear what you think... =o) Good luck! krautboy Well-Known Member Apr 20, 2011 476 0 16 #18 krautboy, Feb 11, 2013 I will! Thanks. ojtitus Well-Known Member Jul 7, 2010 3,228 5 38 Male Canton, Ohio #19 ojtitus, Feb 11, 2013 One of the easiest ways to catch asteroids is by drawing them towards you with the gravity of you system then quickly move to the side and letting them pass by you then approach the asteroids from behind. It may take a little practice but it does cut down a lot on asteroids hitting your planets and just wanted to mention that inhabited planets(the ones with shields) don't get damaged by asteroids hitting them, it just causes all the your ships to attack any close by asteroids. The game does get more difficult once you get neuton stars, black holes, or binary and bigger star systems. This game appears simple but it's actually pretty complex. krautboy Well-Known Member Apr 20, 2011 476 0 16 #20 krautboy, Feb 11, 2013 Thanks,that works quite well. You gotta "pull" them into orbit. Sneak up on them and then quickly go the other way. Awesome. (You must log in or sign up to post here.) Show Ignored Content Page 1 of 2 1 2 Next > Share This Page Tweet Your name or email address: Password: Forgot your password? Stay logged in
I did have a few crashing issues at first, but then realized that I only had 39 MB of free space. Deleted some stuff, now have 9 GB free, and the game runs great. Now... I am a HUGE score-chasing fanatic. But the lack of GameCenter or any kind of scoring system at all here does not bother me one little bit. It's a BEAUTIFUL game. Controls work well, though its tap and hold to move, tap your planet to absorb asteroids and then tap, hold and drag planets to absorb them when you're a star, so your hand will get in the way. But that's my ONLY complaint with this. There are missions, but you don't have to go after them, and you can cancel them whenever/if you want so you can just mess around/find another mission. I've only played for about 30 minutes so far, but this is up there for me. I'm definitely enjoying it. A lot.
Yupperz... and it really is just... a blast. It's very well made - the music isn't really my taste, but you can change the music and effects volumes separately. You start off as an asteroid - bump into other asteroids to grow into a planet - get close to asteroids and pull them into your orbit and then absorb them to grow into a life bearing planet that can produce ships and offensive capabilities as well as a shield - keep absorbing asteroids to grow into a star and then you grab planets and can either absorb them to grow into a bigger star and then eventually a black hole or grow them by having them catch and absorb asteroids so that they become life bearing planets that can attack other planets with the ships and weapon systems (it's really not that focused on action unless you want it to be - you can go slow, or just try and plow through the universe). As far as I can tell, there's 4 different missions for each 'life cycle' that you can activate by following markers and passing through a circled area. Then if you don't like it, or don't think you can do it, or want to try another one or just give up on the mission, you can hit 'abort' at the top of the screen at any time. There's also in-game achievements. 24 of them. No GameCenter, but really, when a game isn't focused on scores (unless you wanna count your Mass as a score) I'm not one who really minds the lack of GC, even if there are achievements. Really makes no difference to me if I have achievements in-game or get useless points for them... so... =oP Anywho... Again, your hand does get in the way because of the control scheme, and there's no options for virtual buttons, though I do think that having the screen clear is much, much better for a game like this. I'm not sure about the FPS. It does run smooth, but I really doubt it's 60 frames per second. I haven't encountered any lag or frameskips on my iPad 2, and it does run smooth, I'm guessing at a solid 30 FPS. But I've never really been good at nailing FPS down. Sorry bout that. ***edit*** Sorry... just found out that in the menu you can switch to 'Challenge Mode' - You pick a challenge and earn points. So there is score based gameplay for those of you who want it - but again, there is no GameCenter so no leaderboards. Also, once you reach 20% story mission completion you can adjust some Physics options; Gravity, Life Build Time, Ships Speed, Collision Damage, Player Speed, Life Extra Turrets and Life Extra Ships Not too sure how much of an effect it has on the gameplay because I'm only at 3% completion. =oP Oh yeah, and there are stats in the pause menu. There's stats for...'; Play Time Distance Traveled Asteroids Destroyed Planets Destroyed Stars Destroyed Ships Destroyed by Your Life Most Asteroids Around Your Planet Largest Multi-Star system Fastest Speed Cycle Time I'm definitely glad I dropped the $4 on it. Even if it drops down to $0.99 or FREE tomorrow, I'd be glad that I supported the dev. This game is great. =oD I'm thinking about dropping the $10 on the Steam version too.
**edit** Holy crap. Yes, it's EXACTLY Tiny Solar... With a graphics + UI upgrade. Right when the intro explosion went off, I couldn't believe it. Strange... I wonder if Tiny Solar is a clone or if its done by the same DEV... Gonna have to look into it later on... *** Just looking at when Tiny Solar was released (Jan 7, 2013?) and the DEV name, I'm guessing its a total rip off of Solar, which hit Steam + XBLA back in 2011. This is the official port of the Steam/XBLA title... I'm gonna go ahead and write the DEV later on and see if he can shed some light on it... I'll post anything whenever I know.
I really enjoyed this game on the 360, the only thing I didn't like was with all indie games on XBLA, you have to be connected to the internet to play indie games and that leaves me feeling like I don't really own the game. So I was very happy to see the full version you don't have to be online to enjoy and for even cheaper than I paid on XBLA. Great find SV, I'll be playing this game all day while I'm at work. Edit: Using a stylus helps a little bit with keeping your hand out of your view.
Solar 2 appears to be a direct port of the XBLA game that was released at least a year before Tiny Solar. If that answers any of your questions. I don't have any experience playing Tiny Solar but I have played a lot of Solar 2 over the past year on XBLA and now happily on my ipad mini. Sorry I couldn't help with any of your actual gameplay questions.
Gameplay is 100% identical... There's even some of the same animations and assets used in Tiny Solar that are found in Solar 2. Also, if it helps at all, Tiny Solar has an additional IAP while Solar 2 does not have any. *** Just opened up Tiny Solar again... And there's no extra score based challenges. It looks like just a ripoff of the main gameplay mode. If that helps. I also just wrote the developer and asked about Tiny Solar. If I get a response, I'll be sure and share any info I get.
I bought Solar 2 just before your post after trying the lite version of Tiny Solar. A pretty weird situation it seems. Without Tiny Solar he wouldn't have made a port to the Ipad? Anyway,i'm having a blast with it. It feels like a love child of Space Miner and Kometen in a strange twisted way. It's ultra relaxing and really hard at the same time. A question for you SV,as you seem to have played this a bit: As soon as you get a living planet it seems to build some space ships wich follow me around. They tend to blow up asteroids,wich is quite annoying as i need them to grow. Is this intended this way? Or maybe a way to prevent this? Also,you got any clue as to why some asteroids go in orbit right away and others not? Thanks in advance if you could shine some light on this. Great game so far.
I've been trying to find a way to deal with the ships as well... Right now, both traveling in short but quick bursts, leaving the ships a little far behind or going right beside another living planet with ships that can distract my own, and then going into an asteroid clump is what I've been doing. Otherwise, they do seem to take out quite a few asteroids. I'm pretty sure this is intentional, as they're meant to protect you, and asteroids do damage your planet if you don't catch them. As for catching asteroids... At first I thought it might be dependent on the coloring or size of the asteroids that makes them easier to catch, but now I'm thinking its more about their angles in relation to the planet. If they move next to the planet without going in a direct colliding path with the planet, they seem to go into orbit easier. If they're not at the right angel, it's a bit harder to get them into orbit. This is just a guess, as I'm still learning myself, but it seems to be working a bit better when thinking of it like that. If you figure it out, I'd love to hear what you think... =o) Good luck!
One of the easiest ways to catch asteroids is by drawing them towards you with the gravity of you system then quickly move to the side and letting them pass by you then approach the asteroids from behind. It may take a little practice but it does cut down a lot on asteroids hitting your planets and just wanted to mention that inhabited planets(the ones with shields) don't get damaged by asteroids hitting them, it just causes all the your ships to attack any close by asteroids. The game does get more difficult once you get neuton stars, black holes, or binary and bigger star systems. This game appears simple but it's actually pretty complex.
Thanks,that works quite well. You gotta "pull" them into orbit. Sneak up on them and then quickly go the other way. Awesome.
