Stealth game
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Stealth games are video games that, unlike traditional action games, revolve around patience, lurking, and avoiding detection (or getting rid of an enemy silently and quickly without calling attention) in order to complete missions. The genre of stealth games dates from 1981, but few games fall entirely within the genre. However, especially since the popularization of the Metal Gear series with Metal Gear Solid in 1998, many recent action games have borrowed elements from stealth games.
[edit] History
The earliest game to be primarily stealth based was Sega's "005", an arcade game released in December 1981. "005" was based on the spy theme popularized by the fictional character James Bond and his secret agent code 007. The game consisted of many stages, the main one involving stealing a briefcase and exiting a warehouse while avoiding the armed guards. The main character is armed only with a gas canister, which can be used to temporarily disable guards, and must avoid the guard's flashlight beams while navigating a maze to the exit.
It should be noted that other games, such as "Castle Wolfenstein" released earlier in 1981, also featured some stealth elements, although these were not the focus of the game. Stealth elements were only rarely used again until Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear, released in 1987 by Konami for the MSX2, and shortly thereafter for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Metal Gear was followed by two independently-produced sequels that were both released in 1990: Snake's Revenge in North America and Europe for the NES; and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake in Japan for the MSX2 (the latter being recognized as the canonical sequel, being produced by original creator Kojima). While the early Metal Gear games were moderately successful, the concept did not develop beyond those few games for almost a decade.
During the development of Wolfenstein 3D, developer id Software experimented with several stealth features, such as sneaking behind the guards or dressing in an enemy uniform, but none of these features made it into the final game. The genre didn't expand much further until the release of Goldeneye 007 on the Nintendo 64 in 1997, which involved various areas where either a brute force or stealth approach could be used, with stealth often being safer. Other times stealth was essential for survival- particularly in escape situations. Next came Tenchu: Stealth Assassins (February), closely followed by Metal Gear Solid (September), both released on the PlayStation, and Thief: The Dark Project (November) on the PC, all released in 1998. System Shock 2 also encouraged the player to use stealth through use of respawning enemies, severely limited ammunition and weapons that wear down with repeated firing.
Stealth games did not gain mass popularity until the release of Metal Gear Solid. Since then, it was followed by a sequel Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and a prequel Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, along with many more games in this genre, most notably the Splinter Cell, Manhunt and Hitman series. Other games incorporated a stealth approach as an option to players, notably Deus Ex, Escape From Butcher Bay and Bungie's Oni. Many action games, such as Medal of Honor and Syphon Filter, include stealth-based levels. Some survival horror games (Siren being one example) implement aspects of this genre, as well as platform games such as Sly Cooper. The Legend of Zelda series often have one or two stealth missions.
[edit] Gameplay
The dynamics of stealth games are quite different from first-person shooters or other action games, although stealth killing someone or "to ninja someone" in a first person shooter game can give someone an adrenaline rush because of the odds against the player. Stealth games are typically designed to stack the odds against the player in situations involving multiple hostile enemies, and players who neglect to utilize a game's stealth mechanics in such situations are usually killed very quickly. Stealth games generally emphasize accuracy, planning, keen observation, and puzzle-solving skills, whereas other action games revolve more around quick reflexes. In stealth games, a player cannot simply walk into multiple enemies pathways, unlike most action games. Stealth based games require that the player eliminates targets silently and without detection.
Whereas the excitement in most action games is the adrenaline rush of combat, the enjoyment in a stealth game is usually (but not always) cerebral in nature. The ability to silently stalk an opponent or be within arm's reach of a potentially dangerous enemy and yet be completely unseen appeals to many gamers. These games also tend to have more emphasis on story, as part of a stealth game's impact comes from the ambiance that the game has, emphasizing urgency and the need to remain hidden. Likewise, stealth games also tend to contain more visual and sound cues than other games, again to heighten the experience. Fans of stealth games often find great excitement in the high-risk, high-tension gameplay and cinematic experience that is typical of the genre, whereas other gamers may find stealth games not enjoyable due to the lack of frantic action and occasional frustration at the high finesse that is often required.
Every stealth game has a main way of using stealth and the game is build around this feature. for example in Hitman series using disguises is the main way of avoiding attention, or in Splinter Cell and Manhunt series hiding in shadows or behind objects is the best way to so and in the game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater using camouflage is the best way to hide from enemies in the jungle.
[edit] External links
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