Covert Ops: Nuclear Dawn
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| Chase the Express | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Sugar and Rockets |
| Publisher(s) | Sony |
| Distributor(s) | Sony |
| Platform(s) | Sony PlayStation |
| Release date | January 27, 2000 (JP) May 31, 2000 (US) September 8, 2000 (EU) |
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: M |
| Media | 2x CD |
Chase the Express, otherwise known as Covert Ops: Nuclear Dawn, is a video game created by Sugar and Rockets for the PlayStation, and released in 2000.
[edit] Plot
The game's story is quite similar to the movie Under Siege 2. You play as NATO Lieutenant Jack Morton, the sole survivor of a terrorist strike on the Blue Harvest (an armored train). Travelling around the various carriages of the train, you must defeat the terrorist intruders and find the French ambassador, and you must also prevent the terrorists from using a portable nuclear weapon. From the shape of this weapon as shown in the introductory cinematic, it does not appear to be a suitcase nuke, but rather a nuclear warhead that has been dismounted from a missile, much like the dismounted missile primary in the film The Peacemaker.
In eastern Europe, a terrorist group known as the "Knights of the Apocalypse" successfully breach security and board the NATO armored train, Blue Harvest. Periodic in-game captions identify the site of the assault on the train as somewhere on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. Amongst those on board is the French Ambassador to Russia, Pierre Simon, described by in-game texts as a 53-year-old former member of the Gaulist Party, his 45-year-old wife Catherine, and his 11-year-old daughter, Jane. Boris Zugoski, former KGB agent and leader of the terrorists, demands 20 billion US dollars and safe passage into France in exchange for the lives of the Simon family. The presence of a nuclear bomb on board the train also presents a great risk. A rescue team is dispatched to the location of the captured train with the hope that the hostages can be extracted.
Lieutenant Jack Morton, a U.S. Air Force helicopter pilot, is a member of a multi-national NATO escort assigned to the Blue Harvest, and becomes the only NATO survivor who can mount an effective resistance. Other friendly troops aboard the train are too badly wounded to be able to fight, have become trapped, or in most cases, are already dead from the terrorist's initial assault. The assault consists of an ambush by four missile-armed helicopters that suddenly destroy the friendly air assets escorting the Blue Harvest out of Russia. The first stage of the assault is immediately followed by the detonation of at least one remote-controlled bomb planted on the train, and then by a boarding action with a well-equipped assault team of several dozen men carried by the four attacking helicopters -- which descend low enough that the assault team merely jumps, without using ropes. Lt. Morton, however, also manages to jump from his helicopter as it is being destroyed. Hanging from the side of the train, he conceals himself until the initial attack is over, then he sneaks inside the train without being seen. Upon radioing headquarters, he is briefed on the situation and is given his orders: to locate and protect the Ambassador and his family until help arrives.
[edit] Gameplay
You play the role of Lieutenant Jack Morton in this Sony version of Chase the Express as it is known in Europe and Japan.
At its core the game is a third-person shooter, but with elements that diverge from this. Such as puzzle solving, key searching, stealth and, at several points, driving the train itself. The game is divided in "levels" which take place on each carriage of the train, one such carriage may require you to find key A that opens door B, while another could lead into a "boss" battle before you have to disarm a bomb.
Game saves are completed in the trains toilets, where you'll also find an item box ala Resident Evil to store weapons and key items as the playable character has limited inventory space.
[edit] Cast
| Actor/Actress | Role |
|---|---|
| Avi Landau | Jack Morton |
| Colleen Lanki | Christina Wayborn |
| Dean Harrington | Boris Zugoski |
| Mike Worman | Pierce |
| Jeff Manning | Phillip Mason |
| David Schaufele | Billy MacGuire |
| William Ross | Aderson |
| Robert Tinkler | Pilot\Additional Voices |
| ???????????? | Additional Voices |
