This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'core, action, sci-fi' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/month/core/action/sci-fi/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'core, action, sci-fi' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/css/logo.jpg This Month's Most Popular Games Tagged 'core, action, sci-fi' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/month/core/action/sci-fi/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> en-us Sin Episodes: Emergence SiN Episodes: Emergence launches the new era of episodic gaming. A first person shooter powered by Valve's award-winning Source technology, SiN Episodes offers unprecedented interactivity, an engrossing story, and a revolutionary dynamic difficulty system that provides a custom experience based on your skill level and play style.
]]> 25 Nov 2006 04:54:19 Marathon Marathon is a classic sci-fi shooter created for MacOS. It spawned two sequels - Marathon 2: Durandal and Marathon Infinity.

Bungie went on to create one of the most successful games of all time: Halo: Combat Evolved.

Developer: Bungie Software
Released: 1994
]]> 01 Dec 2006 12:15:30 Marathon 2: Durandal Marathon 2: Durandal is the second game in the classic sci-fi shooter trilogy. It continues the story started in Marathon and is followed by Marathon Infinity.

Bungie went on to create one of the most successful games of all time: Halo: Combat Evolved.

Developer: Bungie Software
Released: 1995 [Mac], 1996 [Windows]
]]> 02 Dec 2006 01:38:19 Marathon Infinity Final installment of the classic sci-fi shooter series. Follows Marathon and Marathon 2: Durandal.

Bungie went on to create one of the most successful games of all time: Halo: Combat Evolved.

Developer: Bungie Software
Released: 1996
]]> 03 Dec 2006 09:50:33 Pathogen Pathogen is an action-packed sci-fi horror game.
]]> 05 Dec 2006 07:46:39 Crusader: No Remorse
Videogame Advisor said,
Origin has created a masterpiece in the mission-based action game genre. This game is pure joy to play.

An isometric action game set in the near future. Play as a Silencer in the Resistance and try to take down the World Economic Consortium.

Take on 15 different missions that include helping your new friends escape from prison, blowing-up power generators, and finding top-secret intelligence. Thankfully, there are 13 different weapons to utilize. Will you be able to gain the confidence of the resistance? Can you stop the evil plans of the World Economic Consortium? Play CRUSADER: No Remorse and find the answers to these questions.

Additional Game Features:

  • Origin's scrolling isometric sets let you explore refineries, military bases, government offices, rebel bases, labs and interstellar backgrounds that explode at every blast. Almost anything you see can be destroyed.
  • Incredibly high-detailed SVGA frames of bit mapped animation for the Crusader, let you run, jump and crouch, roll, side-step and ambush.
  • Live action video gives you fully detailed mission objectives to maximise your shooting efficiency.
  • Ingenious puzzles force you to take control of enemy vechicles and gun turrets.
  • Single player action game powered by the Enhanced Ultima VIII engine, and enhanced with fmv cutscenes.

Developer: Origin Systems, Realtime Associates
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Released: Aug 31, 1995

System Requirements
MS-DOS 5.0 or higher, i486 DX2 66 MHz, 8 MB RAM, 65 MB hard disk space, Sound Blaster compatible sound card, VESA compatible SVGA video card
]]> 10 Dec 2006 01:45:36 Crusader: No Regret Isometric sci-fi action game, sequel to 1995's Crusader: No Remorse.
]]> 10 Dec 2006 01:56:59 Bioforge
Take the starring role in Origin's latest Interactive Movie"

Centuries in the future, a madman's interstellar plot is set in motion, and only you have the skills, the position and the armament to stop it. You are the Mondites' first success in creating the perfect warrior.

Stripped of memory and enhanced with both human and alien technology, you are a primary element of their master plan - unless you can rediscover who you are, uncover your enemies' plans and make your break for freedom. But you'd better be quick - time and opportunity are running out.

Game features:

  • Variable identity outcomes - your choices throughout the game determine your former identity from a list of experimental subjects.

  • Lifelike, fluid animation with 24 powerful combat maneuvers.

  • Interactive backgrounds - from ground-to-air weapons, to monitors and projectile-reflective surfaces.

  • 8-channel digital sound effects, cued by distance and camera location.

  • 3-D, texture-mapped synthetic actors whose images actually show the injuries suffered in combat.

  • Multiple camera angles and beautifully rendered alien environments.

  • 22 voice actors!

  • Believed to have the first single-skin, fully texture mapped, skeleton-based characters ever seen in gaming.

Origin Systems (An Electronic Arts Company) developed and published this single player adventure. It was released in the U.S. in April 1995. At the time the following system requirements were high end!

Requirements
MS-DOS: Intel486/50+ or 100% compatible PC system. Required: MS-DOS 5.0 or higher, 8MB RAM, 5MB Hard drive space (29MB recommended), 2x CD-ROM drive, MSCDEX version 2.2 or higher, Microsoft mouse , keyboard.
Graphics: 256-color VGA.
MUSIC: Ad Lib, Sound Blaster/SB Pro/SB 16/SB AWE, Wave Blaster, General Midi MPU-401 interface, or 100% compatible sound board.
DIGITIZED SPEECH and SOUND EFFECTS: Sound Blaster/SB Pro/SB 16/SB AWE or 100% compatible sound board.


Trivia: Spoiler warning! In spite of a highly detailed story that obviously was painstakingly crafted, the game ending is rather notorious for falling a bit short. The developers endeavored at one point to rewrite the ending, which then blossomed into a possible sequel, but at length the whole initiative was dropped.
]]> 14 Dec 2006 10:44:27 The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay was released in June, 2004 for Xbox, and in December, 2004 was released for Windows as the "Developer's Cut", with the improved shading effects and higher resolution expected with the pc release, as well as added content.

Inspired by the Vin Diesel movie, the story begins with you captured by mercenaries and locked down in the toughest and bleakest prison in the galaxy. Your obvious task is to make an unprecedented jail break, and will require intelligence, sharp wits, combat skill and sometimes stealth.

Additional Game Features:

  • First person shooter, but with some third person actions, and even some RPG aspects.

  • Over 30 levels, split into checkpoints.

  • High quality musical soundtrack befitting the movie tie-in.

  • Player eventually acquires "eye shine", a vision enhancement that becomes very useful in the often dark environments.

  • Tied to the movie not only be relating to the story and atmosphere, but including movie star vocal talents such as Vin Diesel, Cole Hauser as Johns, Kirsten Lahman as Shirah, Willis Burks II as Pope Joe, and Ron Perlman as Jagger Vance.

  • Among the first games to use "normal mapping".

  • Fight with melee weapons, special moves, pistols, rifles, shotguns, and more, although by default, guards weapons are DNA coded.

  • Single Player campaign only.

Developer:Starbreeze Studios
Publisher: Sierra/Vivendi Universal Games
Released: Xbox in June, 2004 followed by Windows release in December, 2004

Minimum System Requirements, PC Version
CPU 1800MHz, 256MB RAM

ESRB Rating: Mature (17+) for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
]]> 22 Dec 2006 09:51:54 Shadowgrounds Shadowgrounds brings fresh air to the action genre with its unique top-down perspective, explosive action sequences, innovative weapon upgrade system and moody soundtrack. Addictive gameplay and audiovisual fireworks set the scene for a near-future tale of epic heights.


Be prey to the vicious aliens - or prepare to strike back before it's too late!
]]> 23 Dec 2006 07:12:01 Project: Snowblind
Game Informer said,
The Future of War


Experience the dramatic intensity of the frontlines of a war through the eyes of the first of a new breed of super soldiers in this gritty and epic first-person action game.

In the not so distant Future, Lt. Nathan Frost is challenged to stop a renegade regime from eradicating the civilized world.

Hong Kong, 2065. 2nd Lt. Nathan Frost is just a regular grunt until he volunteers for a super-soldier transformation for an international army called the Liberty Coalition. A painful series of surgeries gives Frost extra-normal abilities via implanted enhancements, which place him on the frontlines of a war against a destructive regime. After a military coup leaves him stranded in hostile territory, cut off from command with only a handful of men, Frost must stop the militia's secret weapon that threatens to plunge the world into darkness.


Additional Game Features:

  • Originally intended for release as "Deus Ex: Clan Wars", the game has some similarity of style and like the Deus Ex series features bio-mods.

  • Single player campaign and Robust online multiplayer experience with 16 players and voice over IP support - classic and new multiplayer modes are offered, including exclusive modes for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox console platforms.

  • Augmentations such as invisibility, reflex boost and electrical storm give you an edge on the battlefield against your highly equipped and battle-ready foe.

  • Equip yourself with an arsenal of expiremental weaonry such as the Riot Wall and Attack Drones, and other high tech gadgetry.

  • Pick-up-&-play, intense battlefield action starts at minute 1, pulling the player through a cinematically immersive storyline.

  • Wide variety in mission pacing ranges from frenetic action of battlefield chaos to infiltration style missions.

  • Vehicles serve as functional obstacle solving tools and as weapons in both single and multiplayer gameplay.

Developer: Crystal Dynamics, Inc.
Publisher: Eidos, Inc.
Release: February 23, 2005


Minimum System Requirements
Pentium IV 1.5GHz (or AthlonXP equivalent), 256MB RAM, 100% DirectX 9 compatible 64MB Direct3D Card with Pixel Shader 1.1 support (GeForce 3/Radeon 8500+)*, 100% DirectX 9 compatible Sound Card, DVD-ROM driver, 3GB free HDD space // * GeForce 4MX not supported
]]> 23 Dec 2006 11:53:08 Tron 2.0 Twenty years have passed since Kevin Flynn defeated the MCP with the help of his Tron program. In doing so, he also destroyed the technology he'd used to digitize himself. He's long since left ENCOM in the hands of Alan Bradley, who is raising a family of his own.

Now ruthless global corporate powers want to send humans into the digital realm once more in order to control world finances, and only Alan knows the answer to perfecting their faulty code. Alan encrypted his secrets in time to prevent their theft, but now he's been kidnapped, and the search for the code is on.

You enter the fray as Jet Bradley, Alan's brilliant but rebellious son, who finds himself enlisted by Ma3a to fight the now viral corporate security officer within the digital realm and prevent global domination.

The Tron series of games are based upon the 1982 Walt Disney movie of the same name, beginning with a Tron arcade game and arcade sequel. Tron 2.0 is the first game of the series to be produced for the PC, and subsequently was released for Mac. A related title, "Tron 2: Killer App" was later released for the Xbox, but with significantly altered content.

Additional Game Features:

  • Single player campaign entirely in the digital realm (excepting some cutscenes) immersing you into story-driven, first-person action.

  • As Jet Bradley you will combat digital opponents using guns, rods, grenades, missiles, and the iconic TRON disc, gaining abilities and new weapons as you overcome various challenges to go deeper into the system.

  • Defrag and disinfect your inventory or live with the unpleasant consequences (You're in a computer after all!)

  • Intense action, intense and deadly battles, and the trademark high-speed light cycle races, featuring a new light cycle design by Syd Mead, who developed the cycles for the original film.

  • Musical score by Wendy Carlos, the composer of the original Tron film score.

  • Vocal performers include Bruce Boxleitner, Rebecca Romijn, Ken Boynton, Cindy Morgan and many more, and featuring Jason Cottle as the voice of Jet Bradley.

  • Multiplayer includes some campaign scenarios and light cycle mode.

  • Rendered with the Lithtech Triton engine (specially enhanced version of their Jupiter engine)

Developer: Monolith Productions
Publisher: Buena Vista Interactive
Designer: Frank Rooke
Released: August 26, 2003 for the PC, April 21, 2004 for the Mac.

Minimum System Requirements
WIndows: 500 MHz CPU, 256 MB RAM, 2.4 GB hard disk space, 32 MB GPU
Max: 700 MHz G4, Mac OS X 10.2.8, 256 MB RAM, 32 MB GPU, 2.5 GB disk space
]]> 01 Jan 2007 11:33:32 The Corona The Corona is based int he distant future. It stars the hero, Jordan Kade, as he searches to reclaim stolen memories on the database of "The Nexus". It is here that he will come face to face with several enemy factions seeking to gain the power of "The Corona" for themselves. What the Corona is capable of...nobody but Jordan knows.
]]> 21 Jan 2007 12:27:32 Metroid prime: Hunters Samus is on yet another mission. This time, to investigate strange mental transmissions coming from the Alymbic Cluster.
Along the way, Samus will do battle with 6 other dangerous hunters, who are all out to obtain the "ultimate power" for themselves.
]]> 23 Jan 2007 01:33:08 Project Firestart In 2066, all contact has been lost with the spaceship Prometheus. You are sent to the ship to find out what went wrong, and you find out more as the game progresses.
]]> 23 Jan 2007 05:07:52 Metroid II: Return of Samus After the events on planet Zebes (alternately known as 'Zebeth'), the Galactic Federation decided that the Metroids must be eradicated to prevent anything similar from happening in the future. The danger was simply far too great. An extermination squad was sent to the Metroids' homeworld: SR388. Mysteriously, they were never heard from again...

Samus Aran was considered the only one capable of completing this mission, and so she was called on once again, to wipe out the entire Metroid species by herself. In spite of the disturbing disappearance of the special squad sent in before, Samus ventures into the depths of SR388 alone, collecting upgrades to her Power Suit and hunting down these dangerous, yet curiously fascinating, creatures.

However, the Metroids aren't simply the floating green parasitic jellyfish she encountered before... No, here in their home world, they grow beyond that and evolve into far more unnerving and powerful creatures, becoming increasingly tougher to kill. These creatures are defined by the stages of their evolution: Alpha, Gamma, Zeta, and Omega. Finally, the source of all Metroids, the Queen, lurks at the climax of the game.

Thoroughly scouring the murky depths of SR388, finding herself frequently lost in it's maze-like catacombs, and barely struggling her way out of some frightful close encounters with the Metroids, Samus clearly has her work cut out for her. However, with the help of conveniently hidden Missile and Energy Tank expansions, as well as the Varia Suit and arm cannon upgrades (the Ice Beam in particular was helpful - those savvy with the series will understand why!), she manages to battle through this challenge and arrive at the Queen Metroid... A massive, freakish monster that is so advanced in her mutated evolution she barely even resembles her own offspring...

The Queen, outraged at Samus for destroying her children, bursts through a wall and -eats- Samus! With some quick thinking, Samus curls into her Morph Ball and sets off as many bombs as she can inside the beast's stomach. After being consequently expelled out in result (and likely covered in some sort of mucus or slime), she's immediately attacked again! Narrowly scraping the surface of death, Samus leaps away from the lashing maw of the Queen, and frantically plugs her with every Missile she's got.

After suffering enough concussive blasts, the Queen is reduced into nothing but withering ash... Victorious, Samus makes her way through the giant tunnel the Queen had occupied during the battle, and heads for the planet's surface, where her ship waits for her. But wait.. what is this pulsing mass in the dark..? An.. egg..?

Samus witnesses the birth of the last Metroid as it breaks free of it's shell... The hatchling is immediately drawn to Samus - yet, it doesn't attack her. In an alert, confused analysis, Samus decides that since she was the first thing it saw after being born, it must see her as it's mother..! The little hatchling eats through obstacles in Samus' path as she treks for her ship to finally leave SR388, exhausted, her mission complete. Seeing this kind of behavior in the creature causes Samus to take the last survivor of the species back with her to the headquarters of the Federation...

This bizarre turn of events on SR388 results in the next compelling chapter in the franchise: Super Metroid. It's an underrated and misunderstood gem in the series, one that definitely deserves a chance, especially considering that it's the story that defines the rest that follow it.

Give it a play, you might be pleasantly surprised...

See you next mission!
]]> 08 Feb 2007 01:39:50 ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron After returning home to Funkotron from Earth, ToeJam and Earl find out that humans hitched a ride on their Rapmaster Rocketship. They are destroying the planet, and ToeJam and Earl are the ones at fault. To fix the situation, the two must capture all of the humans in jars and send them back to Earth where they belong.

Instead of being a top down adventure like the first, ToeJam & Earl 2 is a side scrolling platformer. The duo are also given a certain set of funk powers which will help them with their task. These skills include the ability to walk through walls or see hidden items. The hidden items that must be found are the possessions of Lamont Funkapotamus, the ultimate source for all funk. Like the first game, ToeJam & Earl 2 can be played solo or cooperatively.
]]> 08 Feb 2007 05:55:02 Panzer Dragoon Saga Panzer Dragoon Saga (titled Azel: Panzer Dragoon RPG in Japan) is a role-playing game released in 1998 exclusively for the Sega Saturn. It is the third game in the Panzer Dragoon and the only one which is not a rail shooter. The game centers around the plight of Edge, a young boy thrown into an ancient conspiracy.

Category: Turn-based role-playing game

Release date: April 30, 1998 (US)

Developer: Team Andromeda
]]> 26 Mar 2007 11:27:38 Earthsiege Five hundred years in the future, mankind is fighting a desperate battle for survival. Sentient Cybris war machines have rebelled against their human masters and crushed the great military powers of the world. Using stolen Cybrid technology, bands of Guerrilla fighters have survived the prolonged assaults and are now beginning to carry the fight to the machines. The next few months will tell whether man or machine inherits the Earth...
]]> 13 Feb 2007 06:05:16 Earthsiege 2 The Cybrids were thought to have been destroyed in the first Earthsiege, but this is not the case. Prometheus, the main Cybrid computer, has built a base on the moon and is constructing a massive army. He is launching an assault on the Earth, and you must put a stop to it.
]]> 13 Feb 2007 06:31:22 Shining Force EXA Shining Force EXA (pronounced "ikusa") is development by Neverland Co., Ltd.. It is currently scheduled for a PlayStation 2 release in January 2007 in Japan and a March 2007 release in North America. It tells the story of a world divided by a war between humans and demons.

Although it is part of the Shining franchise, it is notable that it, like Shining Force NEO, is not a turn-based strategy game as the pre-PS2 games of the Shining Force sub-series were. Instead, it takes an action oriented approach to combat, similar in nature to the popular CRPG Diablo by Blizzard Entertainment or the Record of Lodoss War for the Dreamcast (also by Neverland Co., Ltd.). The game features a variety of weaponry inspired by the medieval era, magic, and a collection of skills that can be improved upon for the main character.
]]> 19 Feb 2007 01:02:05 Deathtrack Hurtling through the turn, you lock-on to the lead car and fire. In less than a second, your falcon missile slams into the target and explodes in a ball of fire. You smile to yourself-he was a good assassin, but a lousy driver. Instantly, your radar detects a terminator bearing down on your exhaust. You swerve, but it's too late. Another small mistake ends a brief career on the Death Track-yours

-Box description
]]> 23 Feb 2007 06:12:32 Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri is a science fiction first-person shooter, squad combat computer game developed and published by Looking Glass Studios (known then as Looking Glass Technologies) in 1996.

The game is set in the year 2327 â€â€
]]> 01 Mar 2007 08:10:08