Syndicate (2012 video game)

[MrTerrorist]

Plot:
2069: No longer governed by politicians, the developed world is divided up into regions controlled by mega-corporations known as syndicates. These syndicates have revolutionized how the consumer interacts with the digital world. Since the consumer requires a device to access the world's data and control technology, they can do this in the blink of an eye via neural chip implant.

Civilians flocked to be "Chip'd" and enjoy all that their selected syndicate has to offer: housing, medical, banking, insurance, education, entertainment and jobs. One complete package. One complete lifestyle. In return, the syndicates gained unprecedented insights, and control, over the individual and their behavior. With little government oversight, business has become war. The syndicates will stop at nothing for ultimate market dominance.

At the first line of this war are the agents, the syndicate's bio-engineered and chip-augmented enforcers. They can breach anything in the wired dataverse, including their enemies, their weapons and the environment that surrounds them, making them the most efficient and deadly technological weapons in the world. Take on the role of Miles Kilo, EuroCorp's latest prototype agent, and embark on a brutal action adventure of corruption and revenge.

The first Syndicate game i played was Syndicate Wars on the PS. Too be honest, i was very bad in that game since i was a kid and had no idea what the game was with the only thing i knew was hypnotizing dozen of people only for them to get kill by the police or enemy. But on the upside, i did learn about Ghost in The Shell from the ads that were playing in the game.

With this reboot of series now as a FPS, there's been good buzz about it. Will this game be a hit with fans just like the original was?
If your interested of playing the original Syndicate game, Good Old Game is selling at their site. Click here.

[Kafriel]

I remember the original, was tough as all hell...especially that mission in the middle of the Atlantic! It was very fun though, you had tech research, a vast artillery and body upgrades at your disposal, and that's back in 1993. Kinda mixed feelings that they changed its style to a mainstream shooter game, but I have to admit it looks good.

[Firefly00]

As folks are likely aware, the co-op demo is in the wild. It's good fun, particularly with other players who at least know how to communicate, and gives you a good overview of how the mechanics work. Aside from the demo itself hard-freezing on occasion, there are a couple of annoyances within the game proper:

• unlike many other games (Red Faction: Guerrilla comes to mind) there is no requirement for all players to be ready before the host can start a match... much to your annoyance if you happen to be pondering where to sink those blueprint tokens...
• you hear downed characters (as distinct from their players) yelling about it every several seconds (as if the overlay info wasn't enough of a hint). This gets irritating, quick.

[Rahan]

I loved the first game !
I remember playing it a lot at my best friend's place, and when my parents bought our first PC (christmas 94), the game was in the first set of games he gave me (well, more like he copied the game on the floppy disks I gave him) with the likes of Doom 1&2, Dune 1&2, Lands of Lore, Civilization (only the fist was out back then) and Sim City 2000.

Syndicate Wars kinda sucked and was quickly forgotten.

I don't see the point of making a shooter and call it Syndicate though. Unless the game gets rave review, I probably won't bother with it. (although the nostalgia effect kicked hard when they used the old tune at the end of the trailer)

[Chase]

The demo was fun to me and thats saying something cuz i was playing with randoms which i usually hate.lol. It had a almost left for dead kind of fun co-op wise. We'll see in terms of the full game.

[SaintessHeart]

Looks like the game industry is finally revisiting the old genres instead of rehashing Call of Duty and HOMM.

Though remembering this game makes me feel.....old.

[grylsyjaeger]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Though remembering this game makes me feel.....old.

Not as much as remembering the original having the same WOW factor as the new one at the time.


Really like the multiple sights on one weapon and how brutal this game seems. Definitely going to be a cinematic campaign. Damn I'm excited.

[SaintessHeart]

Though I am a little letdown that it became an FPS. Though I wish the co-op mode would become something like a huge MMORPG where people get to join various syndicates and battle in a gigantic city.

[MrTerrorist]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Though I am a little letdown that it became an FPS. Though I wish the co-op mode would become something like a huge MMORPG where people get to join various syndicates and battle in a gigantic city.

Then try Planetside and it's sequel Planetside 2. It's at MMOFPS where three factions try to take control of a planet.

[Firefly00]

Originally Posted by fallschirmjager

Really like the multiple sights on one weapon and how brutal this game seems.

Regarding the latter point: yes, I've seen shotguns (especially the Mjolnir, which looks like a double-barreled squad machine gun chambered in 12ga) and the Bullhammer Mk.II (the high-powered 'six-shooter') cut people in half at the waist; and yes, the game tracks 'gibs' (which seems to include headshots) as well as 'kills by fire ' (aside from the incinerator, the Castellano's explosive slugs sometimes cause this). But if you missed all there hints, consider the following:

• your mentor/friend in the single-player campaign states at one point that 'civ casualties are a non-issue';and
• a certain DART 6 application forces people to fight for you (shades of the original's persuadertron), and another induces suicide

And here's a video of a single-player mission:

[SaintessHeart]

Ironic that Aspari is a "Chinese" corporation, and Eurocorp is breaching them. Shouldn't it be vice-versa?

[MrTerrorist]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Ironic that Aspari is a "Chinese" corporation, and Eurocorp is breaching them. Shouldn't it be vice-versa?

Not really since in the Syndicate universe, the governments have become weak and are controlled by the corporations. National pride is no longer important, what matters most is getting power and money.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by MrTerrorist

Not really since in the Syndicate universe, the governments have become weak and are controlled by the corporations. National pride is no longer important, what matters most is getting power and money.

I know that......but that political jab is going to make many countries bar this game.

[Firefly00]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

I know that......but that political jab is going to make many countries bar this game. :heh:

And the folks arguing for such action would, I think, open themselves up to uncomfortable questions by doing so. Consider by way of analogy the reaction of... Polonius, I think... to a certain scene in a play.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Firefly00

And the folks arguing for such action would, I think, open themselves up to uncomfortable questions by doing so. Consider by way of analogy the reaction of... Polonius, I think... to a certain scene in a play.

Political self-pwnage due to discussing whether a video game should be banned? I'd like that - they had it coming.

[MrTerrorist]

Launch trailer is out.

Watching this trailer gives me interesting questions.

Spoiler for WMG:

Will there be multiple endings where you can either help or stop EuroCorp ruling the world?

[DragoonKain3]

As someone whose 'childhood games' included Syndicate, I hope this goes the way of X-com... first announced as FPS, but then a game more faithful to the original is announced a bit after.

[Firefly00]

Interesting trailer; bonus points for the (unintentional?) RoboCop nods.

Originally Posted by DragoonKain3

As someone whose 'childhood games' included Syndicate, I hope this goes the way of X-com...

Since you bring it up, the engine being used for XCOM: Enemy Unknown (GameInformer's coverage is collected in one handy place here) could be just as useful for a similarly new-yet-faithful-to-the-original Syndicate...

[SaintessHeart]

The game IS a letdown. They ported over the console version to PC and the mouse sensitivity is so hard to adjust - you can't even pot headshots properly.

What a waste of money.

[blackstormattack]

nice trailer, to bad that the mouse control is so bad...