L
Licksalotapuss
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Note: This article is in the process of being published at www.pcgameworld.com
For over 10 years now, I have been playing FPS games. It started with Wolf3D and has taken me through all the greats, the latest being Tribes:Vengeance. One of the skills that a long term gamer develops through time is the ability to recognize a true gem, be it an obvious title, or a diamond in the rough. There are tons of variants to the FPS genre, but they all have a common base.
The last few years have taken me from arena shooters like Q2, Q3A, Tribes2 and UT, to tactical shooters like Ghost Recon, to MMOFPS like PlanetSide. The last two years have been saturated in professional level competition in Unreal Tournament 2003 and its latest bridge-gap: Unreal Tournament 2004. UT2k3 and UT2k4 took a stab to bring the populous from the iD title Q3A's community, and did so on a fairly sizeable level. The key for this was all marketing, with a nod to good research oriented focus groups and demographics. The result: larger than life characters with serious improvements to the engine, graphics and game play, while bringing in the subtle nuances of the original hit title, Unreal Tournament.
The issue that underlies the seemingly insatiable public outcry of 'This new title sucks, the original was much better,' is simply frustration mixed with uncertainty; People for the most part hate change. Through the years, games like Quake, Unreal Tournament, Tribes and Rainbow 6 all sprouted a grass roots community that saturated itself into the game. The original titles back then didn't pound out constant updates didn't offer yearly sequels and formed a solid fan base core through their unique learning curves. When a sequel arrives, there is a 're-learning' process. Now the players, who already know the original title completely, must make minute (or drastic in some cases) changes to their sacred game tactics. Darwin rears his head: ADAPTATION OR EXTERMINATION. This, paired with the massive player fan base will always offer some kind of 'I refuse to play XXXX sequel, the original was better' public outcry for salvation. Since all games go through this (and some games deserve it, as blunders are made), time will weed out the closed minded, and (provided that a game is well made and not released premature) actually strengthen its loyal fan core.
Tribes:Vengeance is the latest in the Tribes series, which anyone who has been gaming in the last 5 minutes will know. It wasn't that long ago that the Tribes2 title rolled out, and the 'oh the humanity,' end-of-the-known-world candlelight vigils broke out as the bell tolled the death of the Tribes title... or so it seemed. After some crying, group counseling, and closet MP sessions, the majority of those harbingers of death somehow found themselves in the full swing of Tribes2, in all its glory and bugs.
With any game, it's always exciting to discover the secrets of the game engine, and learn the maps inside out. Keep in mind, however, that bigger is not always better. Tribes2 offered a virtual orgy of new vehicles, play styles, equipment and map flow. Fast forward back to Tribes:Vengeance and you'll find the new-school vs. old school debate flowing once again. This time, however, try to look past the age old issues that are raised: (vehicles, weapons, movement, speed and physics) and try to see this hidden asset: Tribes:Vengeance is (and already has) stolen a HUGE population right out of the Unreal community. How is this relevant? Well, for one thing, it's a sizeable slice of the pie. Out of the 500-1000 people in the hardcore competition side of the game, I'd say about 35% of them are now playing T:V every night. I'd also say, that working at a gaming website brings you closer to the other genre and FPS title fans, and that there is a rift going about at the moment that can only be described as ingenious.
iD software put out a cookie cutter, linear and nostalgic instahit(tm) with their Doom3 title. While the engine and graphics are the most beautiful I've ever witnessed in a FPS title, the game play lacks replay-ability and the multiplayer is bland and substandard at a makeshift best. This was a marketing success that was aimed at the short term gain. Those fans that purchased the game a few months ago now have nowhere to go. T:V to the rescue.
UT2k4 arrived last year, and players flocked to it, and saturated the game with UT and UT2k3 talent. Now that the competition has ebbed, competition is scarce (UT2k3 should have never been released, instead UT2k4 would have been better marketing wise to drop in 2004 instead of the half-done 2003 version: a marketing blunder) and once again, players have nowhere to go. T:V to the rescue.
Soldner was released, promising a bridge between Ghost Recon, Delta Force and CounterStrike game types, yet fell well short of its anticipated projections. Gamers in these genres are now yearning for more; T:V to the rescue.
T:V took the best of Tribes2, and then cross referenced this research with the features people loved from Unreal, Quake, R6, DF and others. The result: Tribes style game play, the speed of UT2004, the simplicity of vehicle use, map flow and teamwork. No more massive maps with useless parts. No more extra overhead and baggage. Spawn in, suit up, grab some equipment, head out and kick some ass (or with us newer guys: get our asses kicked). The vehicles are well skinned, simple and efficient: Mobile spawn w/defense, heavily armor with protection and transport, aerial assault and pursuit, aerial artillery with transportation and team insertion, and turrets of all shapes and sizes. Sure, it's not the massive bomber, or the speeder, or the massive mobile spawn of T2, but with the game pace considerably faster, there just isn't time for all the moot details that would otherwise clutter up the map for the rare chance they are used. The respawn time for vehicles also plays a key element into the 'abuse it and lose it' factor, forcing players to repair ships if they wish to keep them as team assets longer than 15 seconds when they Rambo the enemy base with a fighter and come face to face with 4 sentry turrets and a some nice Anti-Air.
The single player campaign is more than just a storyline, albeit one of the better FPS based dramatic themes. Yes, it's predictable (I had it all sorted out after the 3rd cut scene) but offers a hidden asset: complete weapon, map and movement learning, complete with (if you finish the SP campaign) practice, and virtually every combination of odd man confrontations you can shake a buckler at. As always, invest some time learning the ropes before jumping headlong into the MP game, and you won't be so frustrated when it comes time for the big dance. With any luck, at least you'll die looking like a noob with a clue.
Tribes:Vengeance has yet to gain the momentum associated with the snowballing of a new sequel. Yet, from a marketing standpoint, the title so far has been a marketing success: Player conversion, engine improvements, game flow improvements and above all, the fun factor. They have released the game in the wake of the Doom3 Disappointment, and the waning of UT2004. Players are now funneled directly into the Tribes:Vengeance title with a SP mode that helps them learn the ropes far better than the previous two Tribes titles. The only foreseeable uncertainty in the eyes of the Tribes title line is the release of Half-Life2, which already is shrouded in both speculation and praise. Until then, expect to see the Tribes:Vengeance line populate like rabbits, and prepare yourself for another hit title from the Tribes series.
Jeff 'raZe' Maginniss - PCGameWorld
