How about some Syndicate?

[Diogo Ribeiro]

Apparently, there's a new Syndicate on the horizon. According to Boomtown's article, anyway.

Syndicate 3 on the cards
Another 16-bit remake?! Why ambassador, you’re really spoiling us!

Don’t like Desert Strike? How about Syndicate? Apparently Bullfrog’s old shoot ‘em-up strategy classic is also about to get the revamp treatment as a part of a new EA initiative to make better use of old game franchises.

If Spong’s anonymous source is to be believed the new game will be shown off at E3 for a spring release next year and will have a considerable number of ex-Bullfrog staffers working on it.

For those that don’t remember, Syndicate was essentially a real-time strategy game before there was such a thing as you controlled a team of four cyborgs roaming around various Blade Runner-esque cities killing lots of people. It was pretty good but the series came to an early death when the sequel Syndicate Wars bombed on the PC.

Hopefully this new one will suffer a kinder fate.

Source: Spong

I have no idea who Spong is, but here's a nostalgic pic:

 

[Anonymous]

classic is also about to get the revamp treatment as a part of a new EA initiative to make better use of old game franchises.

I dont like the sound of that.

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

Syndicate was one of the few games that got real time and ranged combat working well. I seriously hope they don't fuck it up by making it real time with pause.

 

[Spazmo]

EA

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.

 

[Sam Brown]

I found Syndicate frustrating in the sense that moving and fighting behind buildings was an infuriatingly frustrating experience. However, I really loved Syndicate Wars. 3D environments and puzzle-like missions that could be solved in many different ways just excited me no end. Add to that the destructible environment (we talk about how incredibly innovative Silent Storm's destructible environments are...it's been done before, and to quite spectacular effect). My only real problem with SW was its incredibly difficulty and the frustration that generated.

Personally, I'd love to see the game remade. If EA screws it up then I won't buy it, no harm to me. If it's good (even if it isn't GREAT) I'd still like to play it and have the enjoyment of playing an old favorite using some modern technology and gameplay elements.

To add to that last statement, I think the biggest innovations that have come in the last few years have been in the area of interfaces. Syndicate and Syndicate Wars were great, but their interfaces really got in the way of the gameplay. These days, interfaces are a lot more standardized and have been pretty well explored now. I think that's where a Syndicate game could gain the most ground.

 

[Deathy]

Syndicate sequels be damned. All I want is a GBA port.

 

[Human Shield]

I just started Syndicate yesterday, I am finding the controls annoying: not enough keyboard shortcuts, buildings make your character invisible, no in-mission save (esc key makes your mission fail). And I found driving cars in the game very buggy.

 

[hijks]

I hope the remake will integrate some gameplay upgrades. A simple graphical facelift is just not enough... The classic gameplay simply falls into "move the guys into the right position, turn on the sentry mode, and wait till all enemies are dead." That was ok back then, because there were not so many games with such a great graphics (SVGA!!) and RT gameplay-- not to mention a heavy dose of graphical violence, which was IMO only topped later by Fallout.

Syndicate was one of my most favorite games (standing side by side with X-Com), so let's hope the "remake" will be more than the original.

 

[Snuffles]

Can kind of see it being a futuristic grand theft auto with less driving in.

 

[Ibbz]

YES!
Been hoping for a Syndicate sequel for a long time. They better not tone down the violence either.

Now, if we can just get another Crusader game....

3D environments and puzzle-like missions that could be solved in many different ways just excited me no end. Add to that the destructible environment (we talk about how incredibly innovative Silent Storm's destructible environments are...it's been done before, and to quite spectacular effect). My only real problem with SW was its incredibly difficulty and the frustration that generated.

I actually disliked the graphics in SW, they seemed to be rather pixelated and blurry. I also found killing aircraft and other robots{those spider things} to be extremely annoying.

I just started Syndicate yesterday, I am finding the controls annoying: not enough keyboard shortcuts, buildings make your character invisible, no in-mission save (esc key makes your mission fail). And I found driving cars in the game very buggy.

The buildings not disappearing the easily the biggest annoyance of the game. Controlling the cars isnt so bad as long as you remember to only send them short distances as the vehicle pathfinding seems abysmal.

The classic gameplay simply falls into "move the guys into the right position, turn on the sentry mode, and wait till all enemies are dead."

I think the sentry mode is the only feasible way to do RT combat with guns, unless they try some sort of bullet time system. Still, it was fun watching enemy agents coming at you, filling your own agents with drugs and watching them hose down the enemy Not to mention creating your own army/cannon fodder with the persuadertron.