KKnD Xtreme is one of your basic real-time strategy games with a twist - that being the insanely unique and interesting units the player can use to his or her advantage. The storyline of KKnD is that a nuclear war has taken place on the surface of Earth. Many were able to flee underground and develop a civilization that flourishes. On the surface however, those who were not fortunate enough to die become mutants, however they are able to build up technology and utilize their surroundings in order to create a powerful, if not chaotic, civilization of their own.
Players choose to control either one of these respective sides in KKnD Xtreme. The sound effects, unique unit types, and cut scenes are actually pretty funny: a one-eyed human mutant riding an armor fitted, mini-fun firing mastodon for example will always bring a smile to your face. What I found especially refreshing from this game when it first came out, other than its clever interpretation of the RTS genre, was that the units on each sides are not just re-textured and re-named clones with different the same abilities.
In KKnD Xtreme the developers did an excellent job of matching up the chaotic nature of the surface dwellers and the slick and sheen look of the underground allies to the abilities of their respective units. The surface
mutants, for example, ride on mutated animals and use shotguns, blade throwers and fire to their advantage, whereas the units from the underground militia will have your typical machine guns and armored tanks.
The game-play is fast and extremely challenging, and I have enjoyed over the years going back to this title in my spare time. I think people looking to enjoy the older games should definitely take a look at this title for its sense of humor, creative use of common RTS features, as well as the (now outdated) artwork and the heavy metal soundtrack.
Multiplayer capability for this game was something that should be enjoyable for any fan of beating up on the good guy or ridding the world of evil, so as to fit anyone's personality in what side they choose to play as. The terrain is unlike other RTS games from this time in that they are hills and valleys, and these become important from a strategy standpoint when defending or trying to take over another base.
