Commandos-Like Stargate: Timekeepers - real-time tactics game from Slitherine

[Parsimonious cook]

I used to dream about an RPG in which you would play a leader of another SG team that would sometimes interact with SG-1 on a mission or while hanging out at the base.

What would you use as a baseline for such game (in terms of perspective, mechanics, etc.)?

What I envisioned would be a Fallout Tactics/Silent Storm type system, ideally top down 3D view with adjustable camera, real time movement with switch to TB in combat.


The idea was that you would create your own character (leader of your own SG team) and select 3 other team members from premade chars (to allow some storyfagottry and JA2 style interactions between team members), there would be several classes (something like assaulter, recon, medic, engineer, anthropologist) with separate skill trees, the idea being that you would be forced to specialise your team (more classes than slots) and approach problems depending on your line-up (thus creating potential for multiple playthroughs).


The setting would be a bit later in the show (when SGC is already well established organisation and other countries are aware of Stargate, thus you could perhaps have some other nationalities on the team and Russians would sometimes appear with their own team, so you could rescue a cute Slavic waifu from inevitable problems). But definitely no replicants and shit like that.


The basic gameplay loop would be:

1) Start at the SGC base, receive mission briefing from general Hammond, select equipment, interact with various characters at the base (fan service talk, rivalry, maybe even side quests), go trough the Stargate to mission area (I would definitely do a mission or two on Earth as well, preferably against human opponents with modern weapons

2) Missions would usually have a complex setup and last multiple days and feature Fallout style map travel, for example something like “local human population on roughly dark age level has a village near strange ruins, find out what is there and collect some cool shit,” depending on your team line-up you could try to gain trust of the locals (talking to them, doing some hearts and minds stuff like healing their wounded, building something for them, hunting down a dangerous predator etc), or strongarm them into cooperating, try some sciencey stuff at the ruins, decipher glyphs, blow up a hole in the wall etc

3) At some point some Jaffas (sometimes even a Goa'uld) might show up, you might encounter some traps, ancient technology etc, upon completing objectives you return to the SGC base

4) Debriefing, healing, training (I would keep the levelling up in line with the military vibe of the show, so levelling up would only happen in the base by sending your characters to various training courses that would be locked by level and stats, rank of characters would also play a role in this), probably research as well, next mission

I guess sometimes a special character would temporarily join your team (Teal'c, Daniel etc), SG-1 should definitely show up on some missions too.


IMO something like this would have been pretty cool, but I guess it never was in the cards…

 

[Jaedar]

The stargate IP is probably the most mismanaged IP in modern history

Possibly. I think warhammer 40k is definitely a strong contender.

 

[Harthwain]

Parsimonious cook

Sounds a lot like a tactical game with emphasis on RPG elements to me. Am I correct?

The stargate IP is probably the most mismanaged IP in modern history

Possibly. I think warhammer 40k is definitely a strong contender.

Eh. When faced between not lending your IP and lending it to anyone I prefer the latter, because that way there is at least a chance of getting something decent out of it.

 

[Heroic Liberator]

For those unaware, we might be getting a new Stargate TV series too (and also a Dark Matter miniseries).

 

[Ravielsk]

For those unaware, we might be getting a new Stargate TV series too (and also a Dark Matter miniseries).

I know about it but lets be real here, the chance of a good Stargate sequel in the current year+"whenever it comes out" is effectively 0. Half the reason why SG1 was as good as it was came from the level headed approach the script had towards most of the problems encountered. For example whenever it dealt with US government corruption and "rogue agencies" it made a strict point of pointing out that the "bad guys" never operated under the impression that they were the bad guys but that they were doing what they considered to be best for america/world. Also it maintained that the government is composed of many branches and one bad branch does not automatically invalidate all the others. Even the "ebil Rusians" were given a fair shake in the shows writing and at worst came of as ruthless rather than wholly evil.

Expecting a similar level of writing from today's woketoids would be just pure naivety. Best case scenario they would squeeze out some BS on par with Atlantis's "but is it moral to launch biological warfare against space vampire bugs that explicitly feed on our species?"

 

[Jaedar]

Eh. When faced between not lending your IP and lending it to anyone I prefer the latter, because that way there is at least a chance of getting something decent out of it.

Afaik tho, they're *not* lending their ip to anyone. They've chopped up their IP into 100 different pieces and are lending those pieces to anyone. So anyone can make an ultramarines vs orkz game, but they're not allowed to have imperial guards or chaos in it.

But yeah, they are trying to make use of their IP. It's just they're really really bad at doing it. But it worse to sit on your IP and do nothing, or to wield your IP in the worst possible way? A question for the philosphers.

 

[Parsimonious cook]

For those unaware, we might be getting a new Stargate TV series too (and also a Dark Matter miniseries).

Ah fuck, if Jeff Bezos says "... with the talent at Amazon and the talent at MGM Studio, we can reimagine and develop that IP for the 21st century," you just know its gonna be shit.

@Parsimonious cook

Sounds a lot like a tactical game with emphasis on RPG elements to me. Am I correct?

Its possible to see it that way, though in this case – in comparison to lets say Silent Storm – there would be a huge amount of interaction with NPCs and generally a lot of problem solving through skill use (with variety of solutions dependent on the skill-set of the team, which would open some paths to proceed, while others would remain closed).


I would define the game as “Fallout with good combat” (due to FT/SS influence) or alternatively as “Silent Storm with strong non-combat gameplay.”


In fact, the abandoned Momentum project (the dev used to post about it here) had somewhat similar approach – it aimed to mix strong combat system with fairly heavy RPG gameplay outside of combat… perhaps somebody will manage to release something along these lines one day.

Afaik tho, they're *not* lending their ip to anyone. They've chopped up their IP into 100 different pieces and are lending those pieces to anyone. So anyone can make an ultramarines vs orkz game, but they're not allowed to have imperial guards or chaos in it.

But yeah, they are trying to make use of their IP. It's just they're really really bad at doing it. But it worse to sit on your IP and do nothing, or to wield your IP in the worst possible way? A question for the philosphers.

Yeah, as a huge hammerfag myself I am honestly glad GW has its retarded policy towards vidya instead of doing nothing with the IP. I can only speculate why they act the way they do (in comparison, their Black Library book publishing division has been running pretty great for decades at this point) when it comes to vidya, since they could certainly rake in huge profits if they actually did something decent (possibilities are literally endless when it comes to 40K), but w/e… at least we get something decent every now and then.

 

[Harthwain]

I would define the game as “Fallout with good combat” (due to FT/SS influence) or alternatively as “Silent Storm with strong non-combat gameplay.”

In fact, the abandoned Momentum project (the dev used to post about it here) had somewhat similar approach – it aimed to mix strong combat system with fairly heavy RPG gameplay outside of combat… perhaps somebody will manage to release something along these lines one day.

Indeed. There are never enough RPGs in which the player's ability to interact with the world outweights the player's ability to kill stuff.

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

SG-1 was basically the only TV series I really cared about when it was airing. I remain hopeful, even if I know this is probably going to go over like an underfilled firework. Its a shame it never got anything good official, maybe like that one Farscape game, since we're talking about ye olde sci-fi shows. (never saw that show when it was airing, I consider that a shame) There was a pretty good fan-made adventure game in AGS. Probably one of the best fan-made games of all time. I seriously suggest tracking it down if you're a fan of the series.

The setting would be a bit later in the show (when SGC is already well established organisation and other countries are aware of Stargate, thus you could perhaps have some other nationalities on the team and Russians would sometimes appear with their own team, so you could rescue a cute Slavic waifu from inevitable problems). But definitely no replicants and shit like that.

While this is a good idea in general, I feel like a cooler setting would being during the events of the show. You join the program after The Enemy Within and get upgrades as the show continues. Like getting FN P90s because the Iraq War is going on they have better penetration against Jaffa armor. Or, and this is an idea I've seen on the internet somewhere, you play as a team who left Earth after the Goa'uld successfully invaded it, trying to building a base while also avoiding attracting Goa'uld attention. The series I think, is one of the few that would work really well with most competently done kinds of games.

Expecting a similar level of writing from today's woketoids would be just pure naivety. Best case scenario they would squeeze out some BS on par with Atlantis's "but is it moral to launch biological warfare against space vampire bugs that explicitly feed on our species?"

It'll probably be like the last series, Origins. Except with a budget.

 

[0wca]

Question is: will they royally fuck this up like they did all the shows after SG-1?

I understand the hate for SGU given its change of tone, but what do you have against SGA? It was a pretty cozy show overall.

SGA was alright. Never clicked for me, probably because I didn't particularly like the cast. SG-1 seemed way more likable to me.

But it was a decent show. Everything after that was shit.

 

[lightbane]

Atlantis had the main cast be so edgy it was hilarious. Regarding the bad guys, they did not just invent a virus to kill them. They made one to turn them into humans, even though they never were human, as an attempt to fix their diet choices. Predictably, it goes horribly wrong. Then, they do it again, with the same poor bastard alien. Needless to say, he becomes a freak hybrid that is rejected by everyone and that does mad science experiments. Sadly... The plot didn't go anywhere with him.

It'll probably be like the last series, Origins. Except with a budget.

Origins had plenty of woke elements sadly, like the girl pretending to be a STRONK WOMAN! and charging headfirst the nazis. She's predictably owned at least.
Then there was the case how most guys of the show were invariably stupid, useless or evil, or all three at once.

 

[Jaedar]

Like getting FN P90s because the Iraq War is going on they have better penetration against Jaffa armor.

Maybe, but I think the P90 was a good choice. It has a really unique look as opposed to "generic assault rifle #25". Admittedly I know basically nothing about guns.

 

[Ravielsk]

Atlantis had the main cast be so edgy it was hilarious. Regarding the bad guys, they did not just invent a virus to kill them. They made one to turn them into humans, even though they never were human, as an attempt to fix their diet choices. Predictably, it goes horribly wrong. Then, they do it again, with the same poor bastard alien. Needless to say, he becomes a freak hybrid that is rejected by everyone and that does mad science experiments. Sadly... The plot didn't go anywhere with him.

That whole sub-plot was stupid from the get go but what made it extra dumb was when they started moralizing about how immoral it was for them to even use said virus in the first place. As if they were not fighting a race of space vampires hell bent on devouring humanity but some radical vegan support group. Atlantis in general had this problem where the characters would just assume the dumbest of stances. Like arguing that the whole Atlantis operation is not a military operation when its entirely sponsored and operated by the military while also fighting a war with space vampires. I mean even if it did not start as a military operation it sure pretty quickly devolved into one.

Its just insanely annoying to watch a plot where the characters priorities seem to be perpetually misplaced or just straight up insane.

 

[lightbane]

That whole sub-plot was stupid from the get go but what made it extra dumb was when they started moralizing about how immoral it was for them to even use said virus in the first place. As if they were not fighting a race of space vampires hell bent on devouring humanity but some radical vegan support group. A

They should have made a virus to wipe out these vampires, rather than attempting to make them human in a pointless attempt to pretend to have the moral superiority. Not only it doesn't work, they're called out rightly and they make things worse. In fact, the cast was so hilariously callous, eager to ditch would-be allies and such without hesitation, dooming an entire civilization to be eaten by the vampire aliens after they escaped that prisoner camp, screwing the soviet wannabes at every opportunity (although they might have a point on this case) and so on. The best part was a summary episode disguised as a trial for their crimes. Said trial won't end well for them, as one of the judges had family killed by the cast's exploits. Do they attempt to win the trial in a way that would make Phoenix Wright proud? NOPE.
The heroes' solution is to bribe one judge to be favorable to them, then have it declared that the mourning jury is unfit for the trial, then use the loophole and chaos that follows to escape.

 

[Ravielsk]

That whole sub-plot was stupid from the get go but what made it extra dumb was when they started moralizing about how immoral it was for them to even use said virus in the first place. As if they were not fighting a race of space vampires hell bent on devouring humanity but some radical vegan support group. A

They should have made a virus to wipe out these vampires, rather than attempting to make them human in a pointless attempt to pretend to have the moral superiority. Not only it doesn't work, they're called out rightly and they make things worse. In fact, the cast was so hilariously callous, eager to ditch would-be allies and such without hesitation, dooming an entire civilization to be eaten by the vampire aliens after they escaped that prisoner camp, screwing the soviet wannabes at every opportunity (although they might have a point on this case) and so on. The best part was a summary episode disguised as a trial for their crimes. Said trial won't end well for them, as one of the judges had family killed by the cast's exploits. Do they attempt to win the trial in a way that would make Phoenix Wright proud? NOPE.
The heroes' solution is to bribe one judge to be favorable to them, then have it declared that the mourning jury is unfit for the trial, then use the loophole and chaos that follows to escape.

SG-1 had a similar episode where Teal'c was on trial for his crimes under Apophis and instead of running away(despite having plenty of opportunities) Daniel convinced the court that Teal'c was already atoning for his crimes and that letting him continue atoning is a far more fitting and beneficial punishment than just killing him. Basically Daniel turned the courts logic against it to get Teal'c out. Its not entirely 100% but it servers to demonstrate the moral superiority of SG1 team as opposed to the perpetually implied but never displayed superiority of the Atlantis team.

 

[Faarbaute]

What I envisioned would be a Fallout Tactics/Silent Storm type system, ideally top down 3D view with adjustable camera, real time movement with switch to TB in combat.


The idea was that you would create your own character (leader of your own SG team) and select 3 other team members from premade chars (to allow some storyfagottry and JA2 style interactions between team members), there would be several classes (something like assaulter, recon, medic, engineer, anthropologist) with separate skill trees, the idea being that you would be forced to specialise your team (more classes than slots) and approach problems depending on your line-up (thus creating potential for multiple playthroughs).


The setting would be a bit later in the show (when SGC is already well established organisation and other countries are aware of Stargate, thus you could perhaps have some other nationalities on the team and Russians would sometimes appear with their own team, so you could rescue a cute Slavic waifu from inevitable problems). But definitely no replicants and shit like that.


The basic gameplay loop would be:

1) Start at the SGC base, receive mission briefing from general Hammond, select equipment, interact with various characters at the base (fan service talk, rivalry, maybe even side quests), go trough the Stargate to mission area (I would definitely do a mission or two on Earth as well, preferably against human opponents with modern weapons

2) Missions would usually have a complex setup and last multiple days and feature Fallout style map travel, for example something like “local human population on roughly dark age level has a village near strange ruins, find out what is there and collect some cool shit,” depending on your team line-up you could try to gain trust of the locals (talking to them, doing some hearts and minds stuff like healing their wounded, building something for them, hunting down a dangerous predator etc), or strongarm them into cooperating, try some sciencey stuff at the ruins, decipher glyphs, blow up a hole in the wall etc

3) At some point some Jaffas (sometimes even a Goa'uld) might show up, you might encounter some traps, ancient technology etc, upon completing objectives you return to the SGC base

4) Debriefing, healing, training (I would keep the levelling up in line with the military vibe of the show, so levelling up would only happen in the base by sending your characters to various training courses that would be locked by level and stats, rank of characters would also play a role in this), probably research as well, next mission

I guess sometimes a special character would temporarily join your team (Teal'c, Daniel etc), SG-1 should definitely show up on some missions too.


IMO something like this would have been pretty cool, but I guess it never was in the cards…

Having read this post, I played this game in my mind. Easily 10/10. Looking forward to the Atlantis sequel.

 

[lightbane]

Its not entirely 100% but it servers to demonstrate the moral superiority of SG1 team as opposed to the perpetually implied but never displayed superiority of the Atlantis team.

I don't remember the Atlantis team implying they have moral superiority, considering they're psychos who constantly and randomly backstab their potential allies, intentionally cause collateral damage and/or the death of third parties, absolutely unlikable cast, their pretentiousness, and the whole thing about attempting to humanize space vampires that were never human in the first place.

 

[Trans-Financial-Man]

I used to dream about an RPG in which you would play a leader of another SG team that would sometimes interact with SG-1 on a mission or while hanging out at the base.

What would you use as a baseline for such game (in terms of perspective, mechanics, etc.)?

What I envisioned would be a Fallout Tactics/Silent Storm type system, ideally top down 3D view with adjustable camera, real time movement with switch to TB in combat.


The idea was that you would create your own character (leader of your own SG team) and select 3 other team members from premade chars (to allow some storyfagottry and JA2 style interactions between team members), there would be several classes (something like assaulter, recon, medic, engineer, anthropologist) with separate skill trees, the idea being that you would be forced to specialise your team (more classes than slots) and approach problems depending on your line-up (thus creating potential for multiple playthroughs).


The setting would be a bit later in the show (when SGC is already well established organisation and other countries are aware of Stargate, thus you could perhaps have some other nationalities on the team and Russians would sometimes appear with their own team, so you could rescue a cute Slavic waifu from inevitable problems). But definitely no replicants and shit like that.


The basic gameplay loop would be:

1) Start at the SGC base, receive mission briefing from general Hammond, select equipment, interact with various characters at the base (fan service talk, rivalry, maybe even side quests), go trough the Stargate to mission area (I would definitely do a mission or two on Earth as well, preferably against human opponents with modern weapons

2) Missions would usually have a complex setup and last multiple days and feature Fallout style map travel, for example something like “local human population on roughly dark age level has a village near strange ruins, find out what is there and collect some cool shit,” depending on your team line-up you could try to gain trust of the locals (talking to them, doing some hearts and minds stuff like healing their wounded, building something for them, hunting down a dangerous predator etc), or strongarm them into cooperating, try some sciencey stuff at the ruins, decipher glyphs, blow up a hole in the wall etc

3) At some point some Jaffas (sometimes even a Goa'uld) might show up, you might encounter some traps, ancient technology etc, upon completing objectives you return to the SGC base

4) Debriefing, healing, training (I would keep the levelling up in line with the military vibe of the show, so levelling up would only happen in the base by sending your characters to various training courses that would be locked by level and stats, rank of characters would also play a role in this), probably research as well, next mission

I guess sometimes a special character would temporarily join your team (Teal'c, Daniel etc), SG-1 should definitely show up on some missions too.


IMO something like this would have been pretty cool, but I guess it never was in the cards…

I've always envisioned something similar to you. But you can pick a destination on the Stargate in a similar grand strategy element to OG Xcom . Add some light RPG elements like Dialogue, maybe throw in some space battles and make every character in your squad customizable with personality traits and stuff.

Also nick the relationship gimmick from Fire Emblem where your teammates relationships with each other grow as they fight in close proximity. Ending up with special events and even romance as relationships increase.

 

[Ravielsk]

Its not entirely 100% but it servers to demonstrate the moral superiority of SG1 team as opposed to the perpetually implied but never displayed superiority of the Atlantis team.

I don't remember the Atlantis team implying they have moral superiority, considering they're psychos who constantly and randomly backstab their potential allies, intentionally cause collateral damage and/or the death of third parties, absolutely unlikable cast, their pretentiousness, and the whole thing about attempting to humanize space vampires that were never human in the first place.

Its implied in the sense that they do all these shitty things but then occasionally go "huh, isn't this sorta bad?" or they encounter another group of douche-bags and condescendingly lecture them on how to be better without ever realizing the hypocrisy of it all. The main problem with it all is that its never consistent. One episode they are ready to commit viral genocide, next they are unwilling to shoot a couple of clows for a power source they desperately need.

Its paints are really incoherent picture of what they are supposed to be as a group or as characters. Hell, half the reason Mckay is the more popular character is because he is not constantly flipping between moral alignments, so he can actually have something like a character arc.

 

[J1M]

Question is: will they royally fuck this up like they did all the shows after SG-1?

I understand the hate for SGU given its change of tone, but what do you have against SGA? It was a pretty cozy show overall.

SGA's core team lacked the appeal SG-1 had, it was hard not to like that crew, those guys were the heroes. Maybe cheesy and cliched, but it fit the adventuring tone of the series with it's ancient aliens tech looting exploration premise while aliens larping gods want to enslave mankind. The characters could carry a bad episode.

Now in SGA this likeable team of heroes is nowhere to be found. Despite being written as a dick and object of cheap laughs McKay ended up being the only character that was enjoyable to watch (when he wasn't simping for Carter with alien whales or what the hell was that episode about). Shepard ended up being more of an arrogant cunt than McKay somehow and it was a fucking pity he never got bit back in the ass for it in some karmic way, because he was the writer's designated good guy or something. Theyla was as bland as a Gulag meal. Ronon was ok but extremely flat as a character. If an SGA episode had a boring premise there were no characters that could carry it.

Also they didn't do that many interesting things with the setting (Genii and Travelers being the more interesting SGA original ideas). It had its fair share of good episodes, and it was nowhere near as bad as say ST: Voyager as far the as good to bad ratio went, but I think the writers ran out of ideas at this point and really were just doing the same thing over again. The bastard stepchildren of a space lifeforce vampire bug and norwegian black metal band rejects I could forgive as retarded as that was, especially considering these guys managed to win against the fucking Ancients! Also we fucking didn't need fucking replicators again, those were the worst part of SG-1 and a Pegasus clone of them (Asurans) was just highlighting how SGA was just a rehash worse than what it was rehashing.

Finally I'll add that SGU's problem was not the premise which was actually pretty interesting due to the mystery, but the absolutely horrible characters and their plotlines straight from a teen drama show and all the other CW aping, like pop-rock songs. The plotlines not from teen drama are a cheap attempt to do a BSG inner-fleet conflict that is not even 1% as well thought out as what Moore did with Adama's vs Roslin's clashing visions of how the fleet should work in their post-ITZ situation. With Adama and Roslin I could see why one or the either thought they were right about this or that issue, the conflict didn't feel forced.

There are like two characters in SGU that aren't completely annoying fucking morons all the time, Rush who despite his cartoon villain-ish scheming and shady agendas was interesting to watch (TBH I think he saw he's on a ship full of morons so he stopped giving a fuck) and the Chinese lady (I guess).

Great post, but had to rescind the brofist due to Chinese lady comment.

 

[Heroic Liberator]

I personally liked the lead military guy in SGU. Would've been better as a family man struggling due to being stuck far away from his family rather than having that whole subplot with the paramedic or whatever that blonde character was tho.

 

[J1M]

I personally liked the lead military guy in SGU. Would've been better as a family man struggling due to being stuck far away from his family rather than having that whole subplot with the paramedic or whatever that blonde character was tho.

Good actor, terrible character, awful show.

An extravagant waste just to produce that one good episode with 2 Rushes.

 

[Kruno]

Has there been any new information about this?

 

[Infinitron]

Gameplay and store pages:




https://af.gog.com/game/stargate_timekeepers?as=1649904300

Stargate: Timekeepers is a tactical game in which you lead a team of specialists through a story-driven campaign featuring an original narrative set in the Stargate SG-1 universe. Sneak a newly formed team behind enemy lines, use your characters’ unique skills, craft the perfect plan to unravel a timeloop mystery, and defeat the Goa’uld threat.

DIVE INTO THE STARGATE SG-1 UNIVERSE
Stargate: Timekeepers departs from the end of season 7 of the Stargate SG-1 main plot to create an original story, unfolding over 14 narrative-rich missions. Your adventure starts during the Battle of Antarctica, where Commander Eva McCain and her team are supporting the SG-1 against Anubis’s fleet.

Sometime later, Eva and her team of specialists are tasked with a new mission in the Stargate universe: help the Jaffa Resistance, prevent brutal rituals, strike against Moloc’s army, and seek an alliance with the Unas.

During the fight against a new power hungry Goa’uld system lord, Dolus, the team gets stuck in a timeloop! How to break the loop and turn the tables in their favour is up to you. In Stargate: Timekeepers choices matter - the adventure has multiple potential outcomes: using other worldly tech, travel back in time and replay the missions to shape your heroes’ destiny.

LEAD A TEAM OF SPECIALISTS
Lead a team of specialists operating behind enemy lines. Use your characters’ unique skills to come up with perfectly synchronized plans to overcome Kull Warriors, Jaffa Generals, Moloc’s Officers and many new and original enemies.
Natural leader and long-time soldier, Eva McCain is a master of hand-to-hand combat and automatic rifles. Extremely agile and an expert sniper, Max Bolton can climb difficult surfaces to find the perfect spot to take down enemies from long distances. Sam Watson, trained spy and technical officer, is an expert on alien gadgetry. Derreck Harper’s drones carry out some of the most difficult tasks, including healing allies and deactivating hostile electronic devices. The core team from Tau’ri makes friends along the way: A’ta, Jaffa rebel and sneaky thief, carries a Ma’tok staff for short-range combat. Xugga, a powerful yet good-natured Unas veteran, joins your team - along with a little friend.

Each individual has a set of unique abilities: play smart and combine them to silently eliminate your enemies in quick succession. Tactical Mode allows you to synchronize your characters’ actions perfectly.

 

[Parsimonious cook]

So a pure Commandos clone then? Well... the footage didnt show anything ground breaking, but who knows, perhaps it will be better than War Mongrels.