Syndicate / Review

Syndicate / Review
The year was 1993 when first marketed the Bullfrog Syndicate, strategy title for home consoles and computers with a bit of action in the recipe, which robbed the players of that period not only because of its gameplay, but also one of the presentations in ray tracing the most inspiring moment. After almost twenty years, Electronic Arts attempts a reboot of the series known as a pure FPS, changing the formula of the founder of the game and adapting to what are the standards of today's market.

Syndicate looks like a solid shooter, well-structured and visually appealing. The reason is plain: the development team behind the project is Starbreeze, who has to his credit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (Xbox, 2004) and The Darkness (360 and PS3, 2007), no two members bad for the kind of membership.

The story, set in a future dominated by mega corporations (known just as syndicate), we will screen in 2069 in the role of an agent modded with a revolutionary neural chip that can give extraordinary fighting skills and hacking. You and your DART 6, found that the name of the bio-engineering, weapons in hand you suddenly wake up (to say the least) in the middle of the action ... and from that moment on, in an escalation of events, you will experience firsthand the path of personal vengeance of your alter ego character of events: Miles Kilo.

Needless to say, the scenery and the atmosphere that, in general, you can breathe deeply throughout the production evoke the science fiction genre it belongs to Blade Runner, the William Gibson cyberpunk theorized that has influenced films and games in the course of ' last thirty years. Narratively speaking, therefore, Syndicate is a valuable member of this literary tradition, with its interweaving of plot and action bonus levels to more fans of sci-fi. Too bad that the story does not stipulate special surprises and result all in all pretty straightforward.

As for the gameplay, we are faced with an interesting game system, based mainly on a combination of special powers, guaranteed dall'innesto cybernetic nervous system of the protagonist, and guns all in all quite as conventional design, but are capable of surprise with secondary fire mode as the ability to punch walls. The clashes are made only from the need to exploit intelligently the arsenal available, together with the performance of the chip DART 6, could even remotely affect the behavior of the opponents, forcing them to turn their weapons against fellow soldiers, or blow themselves up in the middle of a compact group of comrades in arms ... with the results we all can imagine.

The power-Suicide, Kickback and Persuasion are not unlimited, relying on a reserve of energy that recharges according to how many enemies you kill and how they are eliminated, triggering very particular dynamics of close combat that will force you to weigh carefully the your movements, making the conformation of the game environments to your advantage to avoid as much as possible and simple a brutal head to head. The enemy AI is very reactive and, although it is theoretically possible preference for the sole use of weapons, moving forward in the single player campaign you often find yourself cornered if you do not rely on power-ups guaranteed by DART chip 6. As expected, melee combat are covered, but hardly exploitable.

The game provides a simple, clean and efficient looking to replicate what could be a vision of so-called augmented reality (augmented reality) if you had planted a chip capable of projecting images directly into your brain, overlapping the reality here is what is the Dart called Overlay. The chip does not only change the perception of things, but talk constantly and persuasive voice to the protagonist, telling any structural weaknesses of the environment and acting as a tutorial for the dynamics of combat and the use of arms. If you want to get the most out of the game, pay close attention to the recommendations provided by the DART 6, also and above all as regards the control system. For information, the manual is always available in accessible electronic form under the heading Extra at the main menu.

Regarding the move, Syndicate proves a title from a highly dynamic, recalling to mind (in a positive light) discussed the Brink. Run, slide, climb over a railing or break momentum of a door, are all actions that you learn to manage in a very intuitive and it will be useful (if not necessary) during combat more frantic. Also in the context of the choice of giving a good dynamic actions, has been very well taken care of the visual component of the action on screen, working hard on the effects of blur and dynamic realism of the movements of the hands that wield the weapon, constantly re- oriented in a realistic manner depending on the obstacles and possible collisions with the environment.
To avoid making the gaming experience too monotonous and place a small incentive to explore the environments, were scattered across the levels of business cards and holographic images of propaganda hidden from view, but visible with the use of the Overlay mode Dart that frame just to add to the list of collectibles.

Very valuable addition to the single player campaign is also planned including online co-op online for up to four players. The location will be taken from the main quest, but the goals of the 1993 remember the Syndicate, which is controlled in fact a team of four agents. The difficulty of cooperative missions has been adjusted upwards, encouraging teamwork and even warning when the number of players is clearly not enough to realistically complete a mission.

Even in co-op you can rely on bio-chip power-ups guaranteed by DART 6, but this time you will have as many as 20 variants of powers, that you still have to earn by accumulating experience in combat. Same goes for what concerns the arsenal, to be strengthened only if it found the right elements. If you are concerned about the lack of a competitive multiplayer, I can reassure you greatly on the intrinsic goodness of the co-op Syndicate, absolutely deserving of confidence, both in terms of content and entertainment for longevity.

Technically speaking, Starbreeze does not seem to have pre-assigned to any engine, but using his vast experience has created a visually appealing game, in which the dynamism of the scenes and the interesting use of blur filters and dynamic visual effects make the overlay 'action is absolutely spectacular. Excellent soundtrack accompaniment of the atmosphere, characterized by highly picturesque grounds in the background, creating the right mood to enjoy the best cyberpunk nature of this game.

In conclusion, a reboot of a series fully successful, the side that holds only one criticism: in a landscape dominated by first-person shooter is a choice too commercial a strategy to transform into a FPS. Perhaps Syndicate could be a unique masterpiece with a little 'more courage, but as it is, as exciting and well made​​, is lost in the cauldron of iperaffollato first person shooter.