Kersey
Educated
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2010
- Messages
- 74
Anyone here know of these games? I've been getting into them a bit lately and couldn't help but notice there isn't much anything about them anywhere anymore. In short, Rules of Engagement is a starship command simulation and Breach 2 is a turn-based squad level tactical strategy game. They were both made by Omnitrend in the very early 1990's and "interlock" into one bigger game (sort of) where you can play Rules of Engagement as normal but when you board an enemy ship or outpost you will do the battle in Breach 2 and resume Rules of Engagement afterwards. Breach 2 is kind of simplistic even compared to the likes of Laser Squad but it's pretty good fun. Rules of Engagement on the other hand is proving to be very entertaining on its own right. The games are very Star Trek-like... only violent almost to the point of parody, though maybe that's just me.
There were sequels too. Rules of Engagement 2 is bigger and more complicated than the first one. I'm not really liking the interface on the sequel so for now I'm playing the original. RoE2 also interlocks with Breach 2 but there is also Breach 3 that can interlock with RoE2. In theory at least. It seems RoE2 requires a patch to version 1.08 to work with Breach 3 and goddamn was that one a major pain to dig up. And then the 1.08 patch seems to completely break RoE2 for DOSBox though version 1.07 works fine. It's probably not worth the trouble as Breach 3 pretty much sucks anyway, though it certainly would have been nice to see it in action with RoE2. Breach 3 basically took the already simplistic Breach 2, added VGA graphics and made it real-time with pause and that's it - in 1995 - after there were games like Laser Squad, X-COM and I think even Jagged Alliance on the market. The only real redeeming quality for it would be to have a bit of fun in it in the middle of a Rules of Engagement mission and even that just doesn't seem possible, at least without a real DOS machine.
All of the games include fully featured scenario editors and Rules of Engagement 2 and Breach 3 even have campaign editors with branching mission trees. So there must be all kinds of missions and campaigns out there with imaginative uses of the interlocking game system and tricky situations to solve? Well, I certainly found nothing. Dead links from 20 years ago, references to things like GEnie or wuarchive that don't exist anymore and the likes. Does anyone anywhere have any of this stuff anymore?
One interesting and unexpected thing that did come up in my searches is this audio interview with two of the makers of these games, Thomas Carbone and Maurice Molyneaux made a year ago by some guy who did a Rules of Engagement 2 video let's play. Good stuff. For those who can't get enough of old guys reminiscing of making games in the 80's.
And finally for anyone interested (hmm), an example of the interlocking game system with screenshots. I can't help it, I just like the idea of it. For this example I just edited the Rules of Engagement tutorial scenario to include a link to Breach 2 and the "Scout Class Ship" boarding mission. Normally you would only get Breach 2 links in some of the "real" missions.
EDIT: Fixed a few things
There were sequels too. Rules of Engagement 2 is bigger and more complicated than the first one. I'm not really liking the interface on the sequel so for now I'm playing the original. RoE2 also interlocks with Breach 2 but there is also Breach 3 that can interlock with RoE2. In theory at least. It seems RoE2 requires a patch to version 1.08 to work with Breach 3 and goddamn was that one a major pain to dig up. And then the 1.08 patch seems to completely break RoE2 for DOSBox though version 1.07 works fine. It's probably not worth the trouble as Breach 3 pretty much sucks anyway, though it certainly would have been nice to see it in action with RoE2. Breach 3 basically took the already simplistic Breach 2, added VGA graphics and made it real-time with pause and that's it - in 1995 - after there were games like Laser Squad, X-COM and I think even Jagged Alliance on the market. The only real redeeming quality for it would be to have a bit of fun in it in the middle of a Rules of Engagement mission and even that just doesn't seem possible, at least without a real DOS machine.
All of the games include fully featured scenario editors and Rules of Engagement 2 and Breach 3 even have campaign editors with branching mission trees. So there must be all kinds of missions and campaigns out there with imaginative uses of the interlocking game system and tricky situations to solve? Well, I certainly found nothing. Dead links from 20 years ago, references to things like GEnie or wuarchive that don't exist anymore and the likes. Does anyone anywhere have any of this stuff anymore?
One interesting and unexpected thing that did come up in my searches is this audio interview with two of the makers of these games, Thomas Carbone and Maurice Molyneaux made a year ago by some guy who did a Rules of Engagement 2 video let's play. Good stuff. For those who can't get enough of old guys reminiscing of making games in the 80's.
And finally for anyone interested (hmm), an example of the interlocking game system with screenshots. I can't help it, I just like the idea of it. For this example I just edited the Rules of Engagement tutorial scenario to include a link to Breach 2 and the "Scout Class Ship" boarding mission. Normally you would only get Breach 2 links in some of the "real" missions.
The main menu. Anyone who's seen an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation will probably recognise the UI theme.
There are two enemy ships in the area, a scout and a transport, and my orders are to destroy the transport and capture the scout. I have two other ships under my command so I order them to go after the transport.
While the transport is being "taken care of", I order helm to approach the scoutship up to a distance of 4672 km. I have to be less than 5000 km away in order to beam over a boarding party which I, the Fleet Commander, will naturally lead in person.
The scoutship is not returning fire or doing much anything on account of this being the tutorial mission and all so this is very easy. Soon its drive and shield systems are disabled. Boarding can now commence.
This is where Rules of Engagement quits and loads up Breach 2 and the appropriate scenario for the boarding.
Deadly exchange in the Sick Bay. There is also a prisoner here to rescue, kill or just leave there with no consequence whatsoever.
The boarding was easily accomplished as the ship is quite small and not very heavily defended. I wonder how easy it may be to get the Fleet Commander killed in the later ones. There are a few included with the game.
Back to Rules of Engagement where mission time is advanced to account for the time I spent in Breach 2. Before leaving Breach 2 the game checks if your commander qualifies for any skill advancements from the boarding mission.
Nothing left but to order the rest of the fleet to form on the flagship and set course for the waypoint to end the mission.
There are two enemy ships in the area, a scout and a transport, and my orders are to destroy the transport and capture the scout. I have two other ships under my command so I order them to go after the transport.
While the transport is being "taken care of", I order helm to approach the scoutship up to a distance of 4672 km. I have to be less than 5000 km away in order to beam over a boarding party which I, the Fleet Commander, will naturally lead in person.
The scoutship is not returning fire or doing much anything on account of this being the tutorial mission and all so this is very easy. Soon its drive and shield systems are disabled. Boarding can now commence.
This is where Rules of Engagement quits and loads up Breach 2 and the appropriate scenario for the boarding.
Deadly exchange in the Sick Bay. There is also a prisoner here to rescue, kill or just leave there with no consequence whatsoever.
The boarding was easily accomplished as the ship is quite small and not very heavily defended. I wonder how easy it may be to get the Fleet Commander killed in the later ones. There are a few included with the game.
Back to Rules of Engagement where mission time is advanced to account for the time I spent in Breach 2. Before leaving Breach 2 the game checks if your commander qualifies for any skill advancements from the boarding mission.
Nothing left but to order the rest of the fleet to form on the flagship and set course for the waypoint to end the mission.
EDIT: Fixed a few things
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