Using time as a mechanic

Created by PHD of Computer Science, Christopher J. Hazard. Achron is a single/multi-player RTS game that plays a lot like other games in its genre where you collect resources and can create structures and units to manoeuvre around a map to defeat opponents. However Achron allows the player to manipulate time by using a timeline on the interface. This time line allows the player to see when they deal damage and when they are under attack by an opponent.

The blue horizontal line represents where the player is in time. The blue graph lines show the damage a player has dealt in time and the red shows when the player is under attack. By looking at the time line the player can see the intensity of an upcoming attack and make preparations. The game will also calculate when a player makes a choice so for example if a player decides to manoeuvre some units to the north on the map new graph lines will appear which is a prediction of enemy units in that area and the outcome of the battle which will happen. By clicking on a desired point in time on the timeline, spending chronenergy (represented by the large vertical blue bar at the top of the HUD), the player can transport themselves to that part of time. This can be used to travel to the future to see where an enemy might attack from to gain an advantage or lay an ambush or to travel back in time to undo a bad decision or build necessary units or structures for an upcoming battle.

With the ability to see the past, present and future all at once and to be able change any of the choices made in of these time intervals Anchron creates an interesting innovation for the RTS genre.