First Strike (mod)
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| First Strike (Total Conversion) | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | First Strike team |
| Publisher(s) | LucasFiles |
| Engine | Battlefield 2142 |
| Platform(s) | PC |
| Release date | September 28 |
| Genre(s) | First-Person Shooter Total Conversion |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | Unrated (BF2142's rating is ESRB: Teen (T); PEGI: 16+) |
| Media | Internet Download |
| System requirements | Approx. BF 2142's Requirements: Windows XP or Mac OS X operating system, 1.7 GHz processor, 128Mb DirectX compliant video card with Pixel shader 2.0 and above (AGP and PCIe only), 512 MB RAM, DirectX 9.0c or higher, broadband internet connection |
| Input methods | Keyboard and mouse, joystick and headset optional |
First Strike, released September 28th 2007[1], is an unofficial Star Wars-based total conversion mod for the first-person shooter computer game Battlefield 2142. The team sports a handful of members from the Galactic Conquest mod for the FPS Battlefield 1942, but is not to be considered a sequel. The mod was awarded the 3rd most anticipated Mod of the year award in January 2007.[citation needed][who?]
Contents |
[edit] Gameplay
First Strike is a first-person shooter game in which the player controls the movement and fighting of a soldier on a virtual battlefield, with a first-person view. This soldier can to some degree be customized by the player, who chooses which type of infantry unit they want their soldier to be, and what weapons and equipment that he is to carry. The soldier is inserted ('spawned') onto the battlefield via a player-selected 'spawn point', and will then, as guided by the player, make use of weapons, tools, vehicles, and weapon emplacements to fight the enemy team until killed, at which point the player may insert a new soldier, again at a chosen 'spawn point'. In most game type, every death causes the loss of a 'ticket', and the team loses when all their tickets have been expended. In addition, each team nearly always has a certain number of other objectives to carry out on the battlefield, ranging from killing enemies to capturing or holding important locations, to escorting vehicles to a certain spot on the map.
[edit] Victory conditions
Battlefield 2142 featured various game types, of which some will not carry over into First Strike. For example, the developers have stated that they will not keep the Titan game mode, in which the goal is to use cruise missiles and boarding parties to bring down the enemy's 'Titan' - a powerful aircraft hovering over the battlefield. The developers will, however, implement several other modes, most of which will resemble those of Galactic Conquest and Battlefield 2142's Conquest mode, as they will revolve around capturing certain control points. In addition, there will also be missions destroying objectives, or protecting mission-critical craft.
[edit] Team hierarchy and coordination
As in unmodded Battlefield 2142, each team will be led by a Commander (note: In FS the commander will have limited to no options), who in turn will be in communication with Squad Leaders, who in turn will be in command of up to six infantry units each. Commanders may also be able to direct assistance such as TIE Bomber attack runs(note: this was included in a video made in BF2, but sadly it wont work in the bf2142 engine.), and also give orders to Squad Leaders, who will in turn be able to either agree to follow them or turn them down. Squad Leaders may have a scanning ability and are able to have troops under their command use them as 'spawn points'.
As First Strike is team-based, players need to successfully co-ordinate the use of various infantry types, as well as the vehicles and stationary weapons available to them. To allow players to accomplish this, the game features a text-message system as well as support for the use of headsets to communicate verbally with other players. In addition, there is a system for sending short generic messages such as 'Thank You', 'Sorry' and 'I need suppoort' by hitting a keyboard key and choosing a message from the 'commo-rose' menu that appears.
[edit] Setting
The modification takes place in the Star Wars universe, and is to depict events from before Episode IV to after Episode VI. The first release aims to include every battle from the movies, with content of subsequent releases drawing inspiration from the Expanded Universe. The mod will feature ground and air battles, interiors such as the Endor bunker, and space battles such as the interception of transport ships fleeing Hoth. Space battles are a new feature not found in Battlefield 2142, and will feature zero-gravity physics.
[edit] Content
[edit] Playable factions
The two initial playable factions will be the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance, who will be pitted against each others in the engagements shown in the original movie trilogy. The two factions will have vehicles, ships and equipment from the movies and from the Expanded Universe. Later on, possible additions include the Mon Calamari and the Quarren, as well as Clone Wars Era factions like the C.I.S. and the Republic and 'neutral' factions such as smugglers and pirates.
[edit] Weapons, tools, and droids
There is a number of items planned for infantry units in the game. All weapons from the movies will make an appearance, including the Empire's E-11 rifle and the E-Web repeating blaster. In addition, a number of weapons from the EU have been added. The final arsenal will include rocket launchers, grenades, mines, and close combat weapons such as vibro-knives. Several tools have also been planned for the mod, such as the defibrillator, deployable deflector shield, homing beacon, and Datapad. Bacta canisters will be used for healing. Targeting computers may be available to pilots.
There will also be a number of droids in the game. Two types of probes will be implemented, the MKIV and the Viper, as will the Rebel medical droid and remote.
[edit] Maps
The developers have stated that they're focusing on maps based on the movies, and that EU battles will then follow.
Maps currently available in version 1.1 of First Strike:
- Endor Strike Team
- Escape From Hoth (Space)
- Encounter at Mos Entha
- Tatooine Mos Espa
- Battle of Taloraan (Space)
[edit] Space combat
Space combat is a confirmed feature of First Strike, and several space ships have been made for the mod, ranging from starfighters such as X-Wings through bigger vessels such as Lambda Class shuttles and Gallofree Medium Freighters, to capital ships such as the Star Destroyer. On May 24, 2007, a news update featured a short trailer showcasing a space-based map which appears to depict the interception of Alliance ships fleeing Hoth.[citation needed]
In addition to the released space maps, a depiction of the battle over the first Death Star is also in the works. There's also been discussion on the boards regarding the plausibility of a map depicting the tunnel networks inside the second Death Star, as well as a map that combines space and ground combat, although nothing is confirmed at this time.
[edit] Game-play mechanics
[edit] Degree of realism
The developers have stated that they thought Galactic Conquest too arcade-like, and will aim for more realism and accuracy with First Strike. This will possibly affect vehicle selection as well as game-play. For example, while Jabba's Sail Barge was included in Galactic Conquest, it may not appear in First Strike as neither the Empire nor the Rebellion ever used it in movies or EU.
[edit] Vehicles
As it is based on a Battlefield series game, First Strike will feature a multitude of vehicles. All Rebel and Imperial starfighters from the movies will be included in the modification, as well as a few from the Expanded Universe, such as the E-Wing and TIE Avenger. There will also be a couple of shuttles and transport craft such as the Lambda Class Shuttle. In addition, larger ships such as the Corvette, Nebulon-B Frigate, GR-75 Medium Transport, the Lancer Frigate, and the Imperator Class Star Destroyer will be in. Due to lag issues, it is uncertain how many of these ships will be mobile (as of July 2007).
There will also be a number of ground units in the game from the movies and EU, including the Combat Landspeeder, the AT-AT, the Speeder Bike, and the T-1B Hover Tank. In addition, stationary weapons such as the Heavy Turbo Laser Tower will be implemented. from tanks to fighters to space craft. These vehicles are, in some cases, piloted by a single player, though others, such as the AT-ST, will most likely require crews of several players to work effectively. True to the style of the Battlefield series, the control system of the vehicles will very likely be rather simplistic.
[edit] Withering Fire
Withering Fire, first discussed in a series of news update named after it, the first posted on May 4, 2007, is an FS game-play mechanic in which any weapon can in theory destroy any target. For example, players will be able to destroy a tank with a rifle, but will, according to the developers, need thrice as long as an infantry unit with a rocket launcher to do so. The name is derived from the fact that continuous fire from light weapons will 'wither away' the hit points of armored vehicles over time. According to the developers, Withering Fire was implemented so that each class will always be at least remotely useful to the team.
Community reception was at first negative, although this changed after the developers explained the mechanics of Withering Fire more thoroughly. Consensus now appears to be overwhelmingly positive.
[edit] Classes
The news update Withering Fire, Part 2 discusses the game's classes and Battlefield 2142 engine problems. The developers' solution was to give each class a selection of weapons, each of which essentially makes it a different class. For example, the Light Weapons class has a choice of three weapons - one for long-range combat, one for medium-range combat, and one for close-range combat. The advantages of this system, according to the developers, were that it'd make sure every weapon would be used, due to their diversity, that it gave the illusion of more kits than were actually included, and that there'd be less of a need for map-specific kits.
There are four other classes in the game: The Heavy Weapons class has a choice between a rocket launcher, a grenade launcher, and a heavy repeating rifle. It has also been stated that equipment other than weapons will fit infantry units' roles as either anti-infantry or anti-vehicle units. The Medic is a biological warfare expert akin to his counterpart in Galactic Conquest, able to both heal and kill with biological agents. The Logistics class is tasked with supporting the team with ammunition, explosives and repairs. The Officer class, available only to Squad Leaders, has 'a UAV ability' and carries a heavy blaster that can be deployed and then acts as a stationary weapon. He also serves a spawn point for the soldiers under his command. Finally, updates have also featured Rebel and Imperial pilots.
While the developers uploaded a render of a lightsaber in the early days of production, they have now decided to omit Force powers, lightsabers, and Jedi from the mod, because these did not take part in battles in the era of Episodes IV-VI, on which the mod is based. Future releases set in the era of Episodes I to III may feature Jedi and Sith, and their respective powers and weapons.
[edit] Support
After releasing a playable but incomplete version of the game in September, the First Strike Team plans to continue to support and update the mod and it's community. This includes releasing patches and new content to update the game. They plan on releasing many new maps and items, as well as other things, that may include, but are not limited to: New Factions, More Weapons, Maps, Player Skins, Vehicles and Ships, and more throughout the mod's lifetime. Patches are scheduled to offer more maps, more exciting gameplay and moviesque style battles. Updates will be seen over the next few months including Maps such as Hoth, Death Star Trench Run and Bespin.
[edit] Publicity
The mod was featured on Dutch Power Unlimited on February 21, 2006, and on Planet Battlefield's PodCast.[citation needed] It also received a full page in PC Gamer magazine's May issue,[citation needed] and on August 6, 2007,[citation needed] it was featured on the German GIGA gaming show.[citation needed] The mod also won the Mod Database award as the third most anticipated mods of 2006.[who?][citation needed]
[edit] Criticism
Galactic Conquest was criticized severely for removing infantry's parachutes, and for not implementing Jedi, Force powers, or lightsabers. This criticism may carry over to First Strike. Though FirstStrike was born from a separate team some Galactic Conquest Developers have joined FirstStrike so in the main it will need to be judged by its own achievements. The mod is also relatively frequently criticized for the time the developers have taken to release it which is in no part because no Modding tools have been released by EA | DICE and is considered an extraordinary accomplishment by the team to have gotten this far. The developers state in reply that they prefer to release a good mod rather than a rushed mod, and that they're certain players will play the mod even if other titles and modifications are released first. Finally, fans worry that the space maps will not run smoothly if too many large vessels are implemented. This has been without foundation as the mod has released and gained much praise on the Official Websites forums for ingenious gameplay and in the main lag free space combat. All mods have teething troubles and with a hotfix out one week after officially releasing on the 28th September it shows the duty of care by the Development team.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Official Website at fsmod.com
- First Strike at moddb.com
- Wikia has a wiki on this subject: Firststrikemod
