In an era where gamers are willing to spend $15 for mere downloadable content, the thought of purchasing a fully realized, high-quality game for the same price is beyond outrageous; it simply doesn’t happen. This however, isn’t stopping developer TimeGate Studios from doing just that with its upcoming FPS title, Section 8: Prejudice.
Follow-up title to the futuristic (and highly underrated), sci-fi shooter Section 8, Prejudice is an exclusively downloadable title that not only refines and improves what fans enjoyed in the original game, but greatly expands the gameplay as well. Boasting a handful of fresh multiplayer modes, 32-player support, and a new 4-player co-op mode, players looking for a great new online experience will not be disappointed with what Prejudice has to offer. TimeGate is even offering dedicated server support for all three platforms (PC, PS3, and Xbox 360). As a sci-fi- FPS, Section 8: Prejudice combines many of the elements one would expect from the genre, such as armored space-marines, jet packs, and futuristic weapons – all with a unique and inventive feel of its own. The Spawn System returns, dropping players from low orbit and into the battleground at super-high speeds. Players can control their fall and how hard they land, opening up some strategic opportunities such as meteor-smashing into enemies or simply landing in a hard-to-access spot.
Two of the game’s multiplayer modes were available for the preview build of Prejudice: the co-op and tower defense-style “Swarm”, and the domination-style “Conquest.” Swarm Mode pits the player’s team against waves of progressively stronger foes as they struggle to defend their base. While the opponents are relatively weak and simplistic early on, they get noticeably stronger as the match progresses; elite enemies and powerful enemy mechs start joining the fray about half-way into the match, forcing players to use their every resource to keep the enemies at bay. Players earn credits as they kill enemies, which allows them to purchase a wide range of support, ranging from weaponry to deployed defense turrets, hoverbikes and even mechs of their own to pilot. Conquest Mode, on the other hand, is a hectic yet surprisingly strategic game of domination, where up to 32 players can join the fray. The object is to take over and hold several control points on the map. This requires not only good defensive play to maintain control of the points, but strong a strong offensive as well to overtake enemy-controlled points. Essentially, quick thinking and effective teamwork are critical to success in Conquest Mode.
One of the biggest issues fans of the original Section 8 had with the game was its weak single-player mode. The campaign could be described as little more than glorified multiplayer (against bots) with objectives and light story elements tacked on. Add a very low difficulty level and infinite re-spawning to the mix, and you have a campaign mode that left much to be desired. With Prejudice, TimeGate Studios is trying to give its fans as much “bang for their buck” as possible, by offering not only the polished gameplay and expansive multiplayer fans expect, but a five-hour campaign mode, as well as the ability to play all game modes offline with full bot support.
Section 8: Prejudice is offering an enormous amount of content, more so than its fully priced predecessor and for only a fraction of the cost. FPS fans would be wise to keep Prejudice on their radar. Priced at only $15, Prejudice will be available for download via PSN, XBLA, and Steam and is currently scheduled to be released sometime this year. It's true what they say; the waiting is the hardest part.
Post contributed by Gabriel Zamora. Questions for the author? Send an email to game_examiner@live.com. Follow him on Twitter: @Dracozombie.