SWAT 4 Expansion Announced

SWAT 4 Expansion Pack Announced is the press release officially announcing the SWAT 4 expansion first hinted at in August (story) for which more details just emerged the other day (story). The first SWAT 4: The Stetchkov Syndicate screenshots are online, and here's a bit on the add-on, due in Q1 2006:
Entitled 'The Stetchkov Syndicate', the expansion pack brings a host of new levels, weapons and enhancements to the highly rated SWAT 4.

Crime is on the rise. More guns and drugs are appearing on the streets and the city is in crisis. SWAT is called in to take on a series of disturbances that eventually lead them to the root of the problem, an eastern European crime family that has taken up residence in the city. A final showdown will place legendary SWAT tactics against the most dangerous and ruthless criminals yet, the Stetchkov syndicate.

New features for SWAT 4 - The Stetchkov Syndicate include:

    • 7 new single and multiplayer player levels
    • Voice over IP - Built in voice communication between teammates.
    • 10 Player Coop - Up to 2 teams of 5.
    • New multiplayer mode - Smash & Grab
    • New weapons and equipment for both SWAT members and suspects
    • Stat tracking and ladders and rankings for multiplayer
    • Held commands - Orders can be held in single player until the leader gives the GO command.
    • Unique Leader in Coop - Option to have only one person issue commands and lead the team.
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25.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 23, 2005, 00:11
25.
Re: No subject Sep 23, 2005, 00:11
Sep 23, 2005, 00:11
 
A very good question. But I think the connection is that Swat4 is an Irrational game, and many still blame them for the Tribes: Vengeance no patch debacle. I guess they feel Swat4 should be boycotted as punishment, or something.

true. Its a bit overkill for everyone to blame Irrational, they were just doing their job, which was primarily to make a Tribes game that had a decent single player game and to ease the game down for new players.

The anger, however, stems from Vivendi's direction of reducing the game down and not focusing on the most popular aspect of the game by "its fanbase" which is the mulitplayer game. Its obvious how incomplete the MP and server piece were when the game was released, plus the fact that they changed the game quite a lot and removed core features. Folks just stew over Swat 4 because it was built on the mofified Unreal engine built for Tribes vengeance.

I'm sure its good for game like SWAT 4, but it wasnt really the best choice for a Tribes game. Plus, Irrational is a well respected dev team, they make good games, but I dont think they were really the best choice to make a Tribes game. The hard truth is that Vivendi will just hold the franchise, and the only devs worthy to make another Tribes game are the old Dynamix folks at Garage Games or a dev team thats actually familiar with the nuances of Tribes gameplay.

I do agree though, the SWAT 4 bashing by Tribes fans is a bit much. Let the SWAT 4 folks enjoy their game, they've been ignored a long time as well. The fact is that someone "in the know" will make another Tribes game. The franchise has a large devout fanbase that marketing folks cant guage because most of them are hardcore MP gaming enthusiasts. That market hasnt even been cracked yet because the game industry is in the hyper goo stage of mass console sales and pretty games.

One thing Tribes fans should ask themselves is why the core old Dynamix group at Garage Games seems oblivious to care about the gem they created? Seriously, even though they mention it and cracked some jokes about TV, do you ever see or hear them actively discuss or do anything about getting their game back etc. I dont think you'd see John Carmack or the folks at Valve just not care about the franchise and games they created. I hate to say it, but part of Tribes failure can be blamed on the very devs that created it.

This comment was edited on Sep 23, 00:17.
24.
 
Re: ...
Sep 22, 2005, 23:17
24.
Re: ... Sep 22, 2005, 23:17
Sep 22, 2005, 23:17
 
[...] with the director telling them that he stuck true to the original ethos.

And then kicked them in the nuts.
I eat pasta!
23.
 
...
Sep 22, 2005, 23:05
23.
... Sep 22, 2005, 23:05
Sep 22, 2005, 23:05
 
That's a very nice way of saying Tribes players are a bunch of whiny little bitches that honestly believe everyone else cares what they think.

You can understand the point of view of Tribes players when it comes to Vengeance. It would be like giving Lord of the Rings fans a film trilogy about a talking carrot and three dead magpies, exploring how they overcame being demolecularised into a nuclear fusion generator, with the director telling them that he stuck true to the original ethos.

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22.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 20:46
22.
Re: No subject Sep 22, 2005, 20:46
Sep 22, 2005, 20:46
 
Tribes players have very high standards and both Irrational and VUG knew this. They dropped the ball.

That's a very nice way of saying Tribes players are a bunch of whiny little bitches that honestly believe everyone else cares what they think. Kind of like movie stars, only they make less money.

21.
 
Re: ...
Sep 22, 2005, 19:30
21.
Re: ... Sep 22, 2005, 19:30
Sep 22, 2005, 19:30
 
I don't know about 'forced', but you can always wait and find out what people say if you're concerned.

I would imagine that you can still disable them by redirecting the advertising servers' domain names, as you could with the patch. It *is* a disappointing complication, but it's very easy to do (just edit a single text file).

20.
 
...
Sep 22, 2005, 18:28
20.
... Sep 22, 2005, 18:28
Sep 22, 2005, 18:28
 
Tribes: Vengeance was doomed from the start. I don't blame the publisher, I blame the developer - they approached it like a Hollywood director by taking out the defining features of the series (the huge maps; the huge variety of weapons/equipment/tactics; huge vehicles) in an effort to make it more friendly to the general public, which only resulted in some dumbed down consolised shit, devoid of character, that appealed to no-one. The stupid thing is that Tribes 2 was great gameplay, shit engine - Tribes V was shit gameplay, great engine... if it was a straight remake with a new engine or had the same character I would have happily bought it.

NEway, that is completely off topic. So, have they finally forced downloadabe ads with this addon? I know they were trying them out and it kicked up a right fuss.

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19.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 17:08
Prez
 
19.
Re: No subject Sep 22, 2005, 17:08
Sep 22, 2005, 17:08
 Prez
 
Same here. I could be wrong, but I believe the team that worked on the tribes SP portion was the same that did FF and Swat4. The much-maligned MP in Tribes, I think, was done by a different team at Irrational.

This comment was edited on Sep 22, 17:16.
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18.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 17:07
18.
Re: No subject Sep 22, 2005, 17:07
Sep 22, 2005, 17:07
 
Same developer same publisher same engine.

Tribes:V was first and being first it had the most bugs. The game was missing features out of the box, the dedicated server was BETA. The SDK was broken.

Tribes players have very high standards and both Irrational and VUG knew this. They dropped the ball.

However, SWAT4 is pretty cool and was fairly solid out of the box. You guys are lucky your game was made second.

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17.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 16:53
17.
Re: No subject Sep 22, 2005, 16:53
Sep 22, 2005, 16:53
 
But I think the connection is that Swat4 is an Irrational game, and many still blame them for the Tribes: Vengeance no patch debacle. I guess they feel Swat4 should be boycotted as punishment, or something.


I'll admit I never really had any inclination to play Tribes, but I take it both games were developed by Irrational? Then they must have been separate publishers? I don't know, SWAT 4 just seems very solid to me.

16.
 
Re: No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 16:19
Prez
 
16.
Re: No subject Sep 22, 2005, 16:19
Sep 22, 2005, 16:19
 Prez
 
tisk, SWAT 4 is not Tribes, so therfor, why is Tribes brought up time and time again in a SWAT thread?

A very good question. But I think the connection is that Swat4 is an Irrational game, and many still blame them for the Tribes: Vengeance no patch debacle. I guess they feel Swat4 should be boycotted as punishment, or something.

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
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15.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 16:15
Prez
 
15.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 16:15
Sep 22, 2005, 16:15
 Prez
 
You better watch it- you combine those two and we might just end up with the longest, flaming-est thread ever!

Well, we'd have to throw Valve/Steam in there too.

This comment was edited on Sep 22, 16:15.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
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14.
 
No subject
Sep 22, 2005, 16:14
14.
No subject Sep 22, 2005, 16:14
Sep 22, 2005, 16:14
 
tisk, SWAT 4 is not Tribes, so therfor, why is Tribes brought up time and time again in a SWAT thread?


Besides, I thought this expansion was already announced, or is this just the official as concrete announcement being made?

13.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 15:25
13.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 15:25
Sep 22, 2005, 15:25
 
Now, no one will EVER touch the tribes franchise.

Oh you never know. DS could buy the rights to it.

Tribes: Derek Smart's Vengence

12.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 15:16
Prez
 
12.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 15:16
Sep 22, 2005, 15:16
 Prez
 
by the way i liked tribes:V,not bad.why so many people hate it?

Oh man - now you've done it!

But seriously, I agree. All it really needed in my opinion was a few larger maps and some small tweaks. Alas, the "hardcore" tribes fans killed it through incessant flaming and horribly overdone negative buzz on the forums. The blood-in-the-water effect took hold, and nobody bought it. (besides me, I guess.)

Now, no one will EVER touch the tribes franchise.

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
Avatar 17185
11.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 14:36
11.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 14:36
Sep 22, 2005, 14:36
 
Swat 4 is, imo, REALLY good - the novelty of actually trying NOT to use your weapon was refreshing, and the tension created in the encounters where you tried to hold back before you were forced to open fire was great.

but....but i cant help it,i am a trigger happy man and all those shiny guns, i just want to shoot them.


by the way i liked tribes:V,not bad.why so many people hate it?

10.
 
SWAT4 expansion...
Sep 22, 2005, 14:33
Jim
10.
SWAT4 expansion... Sep 22, 2005, 14:33
Sep 22, 2005, 14:33
Jim
 
wasn't this announced yesterday? Or am I deja-vuiing it?

I could have sworn I remember reading something hereabout it.

Jim
9.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 13:57
Prez
 
9.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 13:57
Sep 22, 2005, 13:57
 Prez
 
I love Irrational Games. Freedom force and its sequel are two of my favorite games of all time, right up there with X-com, System Shock, and Master of Orion.

Swat 4 is, imo, REALLY good - the novelty of actually trying NOT to use your weapon was refreshing, and the tension created in the encounters where you tried to hold back before you were forced to open fire was great.

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
Avatar 17185
8.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 13:38
8.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 13:38
Sep 22, 2005, 13:38
 
Dude seriously, you don't want to go there or another huge argument about Irrational Games bashing will ensue.

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7.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 13:32
7.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 13:32
Sep 22, 2005, 13:32
 
Tribes Vengeance?? Why make an expansion for a game nobody is playing?

This comment was edited on Sep 22, 13:33.
6.
 
Re: You frisky devil!
Sep 22, 2005, 12:57
DDI
6.
Re: You frisky devil! Sep 22, 2005, 12:57
Sep 22, 2005, 12:57
DDI
 
Swat 4 is a better game than Tribes Vengeance could've ever been.

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