WinBack
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| WinBack | |
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| Developer(s) | Koei |
| Publisher(s) | Koei |
| Release date(s) | 1999, 2001 |
| Genre(s) | Third-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen (T) |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo 64, PlayStation 2 |
Winback is a video game developed by Koei for the Nintendo 64 in 1999 and PlayStation 2 in 2001. It is popular for its unique style of gameplay and somewhat notorious for its difficulty.[citation needed]
A sequel, WinBack 2: Project Poseidon, produced by Cavia Inc. for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox game consoles, was released on April 25, 2006.
The story follows one Jean-Luc Cougar, a secret agent infiltrating a laser satellite's command center. Gameplay revolves around taking cover behind corners and then ducking out to shoot. The player cannot move while shooting; instead, the control stick is used to aim, a task made easier by the fact that every weapon is equipped with a laser sight. Metal Gear Solid seems to have influenced much of the story and aesthetic, though in terms of gameplay, the two are decidedly unlike each other.
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[edit] Story
In the Beginning, an armed group takes control of a space based laser weapon. This is used to attack a military installation housing the controls to the weapon, called the GULF system. The leader of the terrorists calls himself Colonel Kenneth Coleman and he is the leader of The Crying Lions. The Secretary of Defense contacts the Special Covert Action Team (SCAT) with their orders: Enter the GULF complex and reclaim it. At this point, you take control of Jean-Luc Cougar in a helicopter that is soon shot down. The team is scattered and you must find them and destroy the satilite's control center. You must also race against the clock and the ever increasing body count of your own friends, as they are being killed off one by one. Along the way you will face a number of laser traps, puzzles, machine gun nests, ambushes and mazes. You will face sub bosses culminating in a semi anti-climactic final boss. The ending varies, depending on how much time it took to make it through the game In a separate game mode, you can fight the sub bosses to unlock them as multiplayer characters.
[edit] Multiplayer
The game featured a standard multiplayer mode where players had access to all of the game's abilities and weapons. At the beginning of the game, all the members of Jean-Luc's team are available as selectable characters. Each one featured their own special weapon. As the player progressed through the game, they could unlock the bosses they had defeated in multiplayer mode (Except the last boss, who was playable at the beginning of the game). Each boss had a weapon with infinite ammo.
[edit] Characters
[edit] S.C.A.T. Members
JEAN-LUC COUGAR: Jean-Luc is a former member of a city SWAT team, 27 years old and single. His ability to remain levelheaded in even the most harrowing situations gained him a spot as the leader of the Advance Strike Team of S.C.A.T. He is highly respected by the younger teammates, and finds it easier to express his fighting spirit in actions rather than words. His handgun is the last reminder he has of his older brother Alan, a member of the Navy Special Forces who was lost in battle and is presumed dead.
LISA ROBERTS: The only female member in S.C.A.T. Her grandmother was Japanese, and Lisa claims to possess a strong fighting spirit. After acing her courses on criminal psychology at the university, she went to join the National Bureau of Investigation. She is also an excellent long-range sharp shooter, and was once offered to test her skills in the Olympics. She was offered a position in S.C.A.T. after Dan saw her in action during a training session at the NBI academy.
DANIEL STEWART: S.C.A.T.'s first and only commander. His experience and leadership help hold together the various personalities that make up S.C.A.T. He is also a former member of the Navy Special Forces and a trusted friend of Jean-Luc's brother Alan.
LAW BRUFORD: 6'6" 250lbs of pure fighting machine. He was transferred to S.C.A.T. from the Marine Corps on the recommendation of his commanding officer. He is unmatched in hand to hand combat, and was Jean-Luc's toughest competition for Leader of the Advance Strike Team.
JAKE HUDSON: A former Special Forces grunt, Jake joined S.C.A.T. at the same time as Jean-Luc. He is somewhat of a prankster and loves to pick on Lisa whenever he gets a chance. He is as brave as they come and his shooting ability is questioned by none.
MICHAEL HAWKINS: A demotions expert and former member of the National Drug Enforcement Agency's bomb squad. His skills in defusing bombs and destroying obstructions make him a key player in the fight against terrorism.
THOMAS SMITH: He is in charge of all communications for the backup support team. A former member of the computer crime division in the National Bureau of Investigation, he is well versed in all facets of computers and other high tech electronics.
STEVEN LEGAL: As Second-in-Command of S.C.A.T. he received most of his training in the British Special Air Service and MI6. His information gathering and keen analytical skills make him the top choice for any scouting mission.
KEITH BIRDY: No team would be complete without a support member trained in medicine. As the rookie of the team, Keith joined S.C.A.T. with the highest recommendations from the President. The GULF mission is his first with the group.
[edit] The Crying Lions
Made up of remenants of the former Saroczian Special Forces, the unit adopted this moniker when they invaded the GULF complex in 2001. They were highly trained and well equipped, but had limited combat expierence, for the exception of their leading officers. According to the official report, all the members were killed during the GULF incident, though many mercenaries throughout the world dispute by claiming to have once been a member of the Crying Lions.
Bad Luck Lila: The first boss the player fights in the lobby level. Lila is the most junior officer of the group. A kurd by birth, she was barley a teenager when Saddam Hussein waged war with her people in 1981. She quickly became a fierce fighter and had a reputation for using only heavy machine guns. After the war, she used her skills to become a renowned mercenary. It was at this time she came into contact with a man named Kenneth Coleman, who later invited her to become an instructor for the Saroczian Special Forces. She later became part of the force that attacked the GULF complex and it was there, along with all the other members, she was killed.
Leon: The second boss the player fights. Originally from the Ural mountains in Russia, he was a famous hunter of wolves in the region. However, when another hunter was murdered by him for trying to stalk his game, he left Russia in shame and went into the business of contract killing and assassinations for expert ability to hunt his prey. Later in his career he was contacted by Kenneth Coleman to train snipers for his Special Forces unit. Like all of Colemans men, he was killed when the SCAT unit retook the gulf complex.
Ryan: The third boss the player fights. He is a senior member of The Crying Lions and an expert in demolitions. Born into a wealthy Dutch family sometime in late 1940s, Ryan quickly earned a reputation as a troublemaker and a natural in bombmaking. He left school at the age of 15 and began working for a Dutch smuggling gang. He became the gangs explosive expert, using his improvised hand grenades and car bombs to wage war against other rivals. He then began working for various terrorist groups throughout Europe. After the fall of the Soviet Union, his mercenary calling ended, but was picked up by Kenneth Coleman and became an explosives expert in Colemans group. He too was killed in the GULF incident, destroying the main freight elevator into the complex.
Sergeant Thunder: The fourth boss the player fights. His real name is unknown, but his record shows he was born in Lyons, France in the 1930s. When he was 18, he killed a man in a bar fight and to escape the police, he joined the French Foreign Legion, serving in Indochina, earning a commendation at Dien Bien Phu. He later revolted against Charles de Gaulle, along with the some of the French soldiers in Algeria. Along with others from his unit, he joined the OAS. After they were hunted down and destroyed, he became a mercenary for hire, fighting in countless wars throughout the 1960s,70s and 80s. Like all the officers, he was recruited into the Crying Lions and was killed as well.
Duke: The fifth boss the player fights. Formerly a professional body buidler and member of the SEAL teams in Vietnam, becoming famous for weilding a Minigun with ease. Coming home to a country that did not appreciate his sacrifices, he traveled to Africa and fought in the countless regional conflicts there. Disappointed by the fall of communism as there would be no more wars to fight, he was recruited in the Saroczian military. He later was killed in a gun battle with the SCAT unit when they retook the GULF complex.
Gunt: The sixth boss the player fights. Gunt was a former heavy weapons specialist with the Polish GROM unit but was dishonorably discharged for being drunk on duty. He then became a hired gun for various gangs throughout Europe. After reading about the U.S. invasion of Saroczia, he offered his services to Coleman and became one of the members that assaulted and later killed, in the GULF complex.
Banderas: The seventh boss the player fights. Formerly a top sergeant of the Spanish Foreign Legion, he served time in a French Prison for smuggling several crates of Uzis to a known terrorist group in France. After engineering a violent escape, he went to work for various terrorist groups in the Middle East. He was later gunned down by the SCAT unit while holding them back at the entrance to the GULF complex.
Jin: The 8th boss the player fights. Jin was originally a team leader for the South African Recce Commandos, and earning his team name Predator for his unit ability to blend in with the surrounding. After Apartheid ended, he worked primarily as a professional assassin, becoming world renowned. He was later asked to train the Saroczian Special Forces in counter insurgency and silent takedown. Like all of the terrorist leaders, he was killed by the SCAT unit in a fierce fire fight.
Deathmask: The ninth boss the player fights. Born Heinrich Wagner, he was a famous pistol duelist from Heidelberg, Austria. After countless duels and collectiing numerous scars from it, he was forced to wear a hideous deaths head mask. He found work with various criminal syndicates, calling him in when they needed his professional expertise. He worked alongside the assassin Jin in training The Crying Lions. Afer killing a member of the SCAT, he was finally taken down in an honorable duel to the death.
Cecile Newcastle: The tenth boss the player fights. Brought up in Yorkshire, England, Cecile joined the British Army when he was 18. He fought in the Falklands War and later joined the Special Air Service. He led several teams to hunt and destroy the SCUD missile launchers of Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War in 1991. He later left the 'Regiment' and became a feared gunman for the IRA. He was later invited to become the second in command of The Crying Lions. At the end of the game he is killed by the surviving members of the SCAT unit.
The Traitor: The final boss of the game. The Traitor is actually the SCAT leader, Daniel Stewart and the one repsonsible for The Crying Lions infiltration of the GULF base. He is also responsible for killing the leader Kenneth Coleman, as Stewart felt his goals were not his interest. However he is finally killed by the remaining member of the SCAT unit.
"Kenneth Coleman": The leader of the Crying Lions. Born in Rhodesia, he became a mercenary after serving in the Selous Scouts and the C Squadron 22 (Rhodesian) SAS. Fighting in many conflicts across the globe, Coleman was contracted to form the Saroczian Special Forces just before the US invasion. He was killed by Daniel Stewart, the leader of the SCAT unit.
[edit] Trivia
- Though the hide and shoot gameplay is derivative of Time Crisis, WinBack was the first game to combine this with full control over your character. This proved to be influential enough to be integrated into Kill.Switch, and more notably, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. The latter also used the game's laser sight mechanic, something used to greater effect still in Resident Evil 4. Currently, the recently released Gears of War uses a similar reliance on cover as Kill. Switch and WinBack.
- As an homage to the game, one of the dog tags that can be obtained in Metal Gear Solid 2 is of Jean Luc Cougar's.
- A character in the game, Steven Legal, is a reference to action star Steven Seagal
