Spigot
03-08-2009, 06:04 AM
It's Watchmen Weekend and while they haven't quite perfected the Dr. Manhattan RPG, there is another game featuring blue-skinned protagonists that run around half-naked on deck for this weekend.
We take a break from racing, RPGs and things that combine those genres to get down and dirty on the frontier of an interstellar war. To paraphrase a certain mad scientist, when it comes to havoc, this game wreaks the most!
Rogue Trooper
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3596/3337886642_e5a2318420.jpg?v=0
Year: 2006
Platform: PS2, PC, Xbox
Rating: Explosive
# of players: 1-4
Rogue Trooper puts you in the shoes of Rogue, a genetically engineered super soldier fighting on Nu-Earth, a desolate planet that orbits a black hole in the depths of space. Did I mention that you're a giant BLUE super soldier and that your equipment is quite literally your squad? It sounds rather far-fetched and it is, but the sheer outlandishness of almost every aspect of the game is part of what makes it work so well. Whenever there's a chance to go over-the-top, Rogue Trooper will probably do it.
At its core, Rogue Trooper is a third-person run-and-gun action game with rudimentary stealth mechanics and a multitude of approaches to most scenarios.
One of the more interesting aspects of the game is that your crew of blue meanies has their personality uploaded into a bio-chip upon death. They can technically live forever, assuming someone gets to their body in time. This becomes both a plot point and a game mechanic over the course of the game as your squad gets whittled down from 4 comrades to just yourself.
One of the most creative sets of names in the history of gaming is laid out in Rogue Trooper as you eventually fuse Gunnar, Bagman and Helm into your equipment. I'll let you guess which piece each of your squadmates synchs with. Silly names aside, having a gun that can talk to you is actually quite handy. This is one of the few games that actually incorporates aim-assist into the storyline. Having a sentient backpack also lets you manufacture all sorts of ammo and grenades on the fly. Dora's backpack doesn't have anything on the one you tote around in Rogue Trooper!
The missions you go on as you try to find the person responsible for your squads annihilation are many and varied. In just the first few missions of the game, you'll see a variety of environments and get to use all sorts of heavy weaponry. Later missions also add in stealth and almost every part of the game has multiple approaches to success. Got a squad of soldiers that you can't handle on your own? Make a few turrets and lure them into a killing field and pick off the ones that are left.
On the graphical side of things, Rogue Trooper is quite a good looking game. I played the PS2 version upscaled on my PS3 and was very impressed by the visuals. Sound is also quite solid with suitably intense weapon noise and decent voice acting.
K6WdphAGBVg
Rogue Trooper is one of those games that I've had people insisting I do a Turning The Spigot on almost since the inception of this column. I finally tracked down a copy a few weeks back and put some time into it and I have to say that they were right. This is one gem of an overlooked game.
You can find Rogue Trooper in better bargain bins everywhere for $5-$15.
We take a break from racing, RPGs and things that combine those genres to get down and dirty on the frontier of an interstellar war. To paraphrase a certain mad scientist, when it comes to havoc, this game wreaks the most!
Rogue Trooper
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3596/3337886642_e5a2318420.jpg?v=0
Year: 2006
Platform: PS2, PC, Xbox
Rating: Explosive
# of players: 1-4
Rogue Trooper puts you in the shoes of Rogue, a genetically engineered super soldier fighting on Nu-Earth, a desolate planet that orbits a black hole in the depths of space. Did I mention that you're a giant BLUE super soldier and that your equipment is quite literally your squad? It sounds rather far-fetched and it is, but the sheer outlandishness of almost every aspect of the game is part of what makes it work so well. Whenever there's a chance to go over-the-top, Rogue Trooper will probably do it.
At its core, Rogue Trooper is a third-person run-and-gun action game with rudimentary stealth mechanics and a multitude of approaches to most scenarios.
One of the more interesting aspects of the game is that your crew of blue meanies has their personality uploaded into a bio-chip upon death. They can technically live forever, assuming someone gets to their body in time. This becomes both a plot point and a game mechanic over the course of the game as your squad gets whittled down from 4 comrades to just yourself.
One of the most creative sets of names in the history of gaming is laid out in Rogue Trooper as you eventually fuse Gunnar, Bagman and Helm into your equipment. I'll let you guess which piece each of your squadmates synchs with. Silly names aside, having a gun that can talk to you is actually quite handy. This is one of the few games that actually incorporates aim-assist into the storyline. Having a sentient backpack also lets you manufacture all sorts of ammo and grenades on the fly. Dora's backpack doesn't have anything on the one you tote around in Rogue Trooper!
The missions you go on as you try to find the person responsible for your squads annihilation are many and varied. In just the first few missions of the game, you'll see a variety of environments and get to use all sorts of heavy weaponry. Later missions also add in stealth and almost every part of the game has multiple approaches to success. Got a squad of soldiers that you can't handle on your own? Make a few turrets and lure them into a killing field and pick off the ones that are left.
On the graphical side of things, Rogue Trooper is quite a good looking game. I played the PS2 version upscaled on my PS3 and was very impressed by the visuals. Sound is also quite solid with suitably intense weapon noise and decent voice acting.
K6WdphAGBVg
Rogue Trooper is one of those games that I've had people insisting I do a Turning The Spigot on almost since the inception of this column. I finally tracked down a copy a few weeks back and put some time into it and I have to say that they were right. This is one gem of an overlooked game.
You can find Rogue Trooper in better bargain bins everywhere for $5-$15.