First Impressions: Rogue Trooper Redux
In 2006, Rogue Trooper was released and earned high praise from gamers, even earning a BAFTA nomination. At the time, the gameplay, featuring cover based mechanics and stealth-action gameplay, was an exciting feature. Plus, the game had a special place in fans of 2000 A.D because it was a faithful adaption of the fantastic Rogue Trooper comic. At E3, I had the opportunity to check out the remaster of Rogue Trooper, called Rogue Trooper Redux. Based on the demo that I played, Rogue Trooper is very promising.
Some of you may be more familiar with 2000 A.D’s franchise – Judge Dread. However, Rogue Trooper is a very cool comic character in it’s own right. Rogue Trooper tells the story of a the last Genetic Infantryman (GI). Gi’s are bred for war and made to survive against all kinds of toxins that can kill a normal human. Rogue is betrayed by his superiors at the Quartz Zone Massacre. In the game, you are a vengeful one-man squad. With you on your journey are the sentient biochips of three fallen comrades. These biochips are in your rifle, helmet and pack and help you immensely on your quest for vengeance.
The biochips are very important to the gameplay. Gunnar turns your rifle into a sentry gun and boosts accuracy under fire. Helm offers tactical advice and distracts enemies. Bagman can manufacture customized ammo, salvage parts, upgrade weapons and even lays minefields. These biochips are very useful, especially against the swarms of Nort soldiers who will stop at nothing to destroy you.
Rogue Trooper Redux is not just a facelift. Granted, the visuals look very nice compared to the 2006 version and I’m glad they upgraded the graphics. But the team has done more than visual upgrades. The controls have been updated to a more modern scheme. The cover system, an important part of the original game, has been revamped to make the game better. Plus, there are additional difficulty settings that will make the game more challenging for gamers.
The demo I played was the beginning tutorial. When the game is released sometime in 2017, it will feature 13 expansive missions and offer online co-op for 2-4 players. The co-op will put you in events that lead up to the main campaign. Plus, Redux will include a stronghold and progressive mode. Stronghold puts you against wave after wave of Nort soldiers. Progressive mode will require you to fight through specific checkpoints in an attempt to get to safety.
The demo ran pretty well. As I mentioned above, the game looks really clean, which is difficult to do when you are on a pretty bland planet. The graphics look great. The gameplay starts as a standard third person shooter, but the addition of the biochips really help make things interesting. The accuracy boost from Gunner’s chip is very helpful in your battle. The demo featured some fun moments where you have to take out a tank and shoot ships from the sky. I hope that the full game will feature variety like this throughout the levels. My only complaint is with the cover system and where the camera sits when you are in cover. Granted, the cover system works better than the original game. However, the camera sits a little too low and it is hard to see from cover. Of course, there is a blind fire option that is available so you can stay in cover. The demo I played was a pre-beta build, so there is some time to make some tweaks to the gameplay if the team wants to.
Overall, I was happy with my time with Rogue Trooper. It was nice being back in that world again and kicking Nort butt. We have a little bit of time before the game is released, and I am looking forward to playing more. We will bring you more info when it becomes available. In the meantime, check out some footage from Rogue Trooper Redux!
