NuPics: Red Orchestra- Heroes Of Stalingrad
Damnable over-long game names. YOU DENY US OUR PUNS, YOU BABBLING SWINE. Grr. Anyway (I lose track of how many posts I've written whose second sentences begin with 'anyway'. Anyway.) at the 1C event during which I cooed at Men of War: Vietnam the other week, I was also privy to a few more details on 2011's long-awaited sequel to mod-gone-pricetaggy FPS Red Orchestra. The series began life as a multiplayer title, but this one, sometimes referred to as RO2, will feature a solo mode.
While the game itself wasn't playable at the event, and the only video footage was a slideshow of screenshots, I do have in my possession a clutch of new screens and facts. To see them, you must dance widdershins around Ludlow Cathedral at 4am on the first night of the summer solstice. The ancient legends do tell of another way to access them, but you could never hope to work it out.
Bugger. Oh, here you go, then. The additional mystic ritual of clicking on these blighters will enlarge and uncrop them - worth it, certainly, as they're a pretty-lookin' bunch, regardless of their browniness and, I suspect, posiness.
And here's some word-based info-splat too. Apologies for the lack of commentary in this post, but I really haven't seen anything of the game outside of this lot myself. Quite impressed with the engine, though, and the surfeit of wide-open spaces would seem to suggest some frantic and large-scale fighting. I don't doubt that veteran multiplayer FPS players will be glad of something fairly hardcore but blessed with modern visuals.
Oh - also worth mentioning that devs Tripwire Interactive (who you'll also know from Killing Floor) are working with the leading lights of the RO modding community on this one. Hopefully that means a best of both worlds game - i.e. both fans and normals will be catered for. More details on that setup here. Finally, go press release!
Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad, the leading realism-based multiplayer WWII shooter on the PC, will take the award winning Red Orchestra franchise into the next generation of gaming. Cutting edge graphics and audio built using the Unreal Engine 3, inventive features and streamlined realism will deliver an unrivalled WWII experience.
Heroes of Stalingrad will focus on the Battle of Stalingrad and the surrounding operations, both German and Russian, from July 1942 to February 1943. The game allows the player to experience one of the most brutal battles in all of human history. Delivering unrivalled accuracy and attention to detail, along with gritty, vicious combat in multiplayer, co-op and solo modes the game will feature everything from quick, brutal firefights to more intricate and challenging simulation modes.
Key Features
• Grow in rank, earn medals, improve abilities, and become a Hero – all visible to the complete online gaming community and embedded within the game.
• Obtain the ultimate goal and become a Hero online. Players with hero status inspire troops around them and cause fear in their enemies.
• Experience the ultimate firefights that a cover system allows, from the immersion of a first person view.
• Command fire teams on the battlefield using an easy to use first person interface.
• WWII weaponry redefined: true to life ballistics, bullet penetration, breathing, adjustable sights, free aim, weapon bracing, photo-real graphics and more.
• Players can connect with their friends and battle the AI in multiple game types including the Stalingrad Campaign, Skirmish Mode, and more.
• Offline challenges such as the shooting range and assault courses let the player learn and hone their skills to perfection with all of the weapons, vehicles, and features in the game.
• Experience what it is like to be a soldier in one of the bloodiest conflicts in history and the importance of a soldier’s state of mind and how it can turn the tide of battle.
• Offline play against the AI featuring the Stalingrad Campaign, Skirmish mode, and more give the player an exciting and fun environment to learn the game before hopping online.