Turning Point: Fall of Liberty Preview

Submitter: Starlight - 551 days ago (http://spong.com)

Site Tags: ps3 xbox360 pc gaming news

Category: General/Off Topic

Craig Allen is passionate about history. So much so that the CEO of Spark Unlimited arranged to present his latest project at the Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms in Westminster. Not only that, but Allen was also encouraging the press to check out the Churchill Timeline – it’s actually worth a read as well. I'm glad I took his advice.

Being behind Call of Duty: Finest Hour and leading a team that has been involved with the Medal of Honour franchise, I asked Allen what it was about historical events that excite him so much. “All good things come from life experiences, I believe. And I think it’s important to keep learning and teaching about the life experiences of others who have made a difference, it’s incredible to see what people have gone through in their lifetimes.” In developing Turning Point, he reveals in his presentation that games based on history have the power to teach gamers about important events. “Once you’ve explored history however, you start to take that further and begin to ask ‘What if?’”

It’s this ‘What if’ concept that Turning Point adopts to give it a unique angle on the now familiar World War II FPS. The game is set in an alternate reality to our own, based on one pivotal moment in history - Winston Churchill, having been involved in a traffic accident in New York, 1931, does not survive. The accident kills him and Britain becomes defenceless against the Nazi regime.

The game then focuses on the United States some years later, once the Nazis have a complete hold on Europe and most of the world. Dan Carson, a New York City construction worker, has the strangest day of his life when he finds himself battling Germans for survival. The impact of this alternate history really hits home in the trailer Allen showcases, which displays the Statue of Liberty emblazoned with a Swastika banner.

I was then treated to a few game-play demo clips. The first has Carson trying to escape a series of high-rise buildings and scaffoldings as airships loom overhead, blowing the landscape to smithereens. German war planes litter the skies, and all around the player there are civilians hanging onto edges of scaffolding for dear life. The graphics wonderfully detail the chaos and the sense of immediacy hits you, even from an audience perspective.

The immediate aim in this demonstration is simply to survive, as you traverse scaffold to building and more scaffolds. In an image more evocative of a more recent NYC tragedy, people are falling past windows when in the office blocks, and entire rooms collapse beneath you as the Nazi invasion rages on. You meet your first enemy on an overpass as the paratrooper scrambles to find his gun. It’s at this point Carson can use his varied number of melee moves to grab the gun out of the enemy’s hand and shoot them. Or have them pushed off the edge. Either is fine I guess.

This is my guess because one of the things Allen is trying to push is the amount of personal connection the player can have with Carson, and thus can approach situations in different ways. “We really wanted to outline a set piece experience with Turning Point, but I also wanted to display a personal side. You can run in guns blazing if you fancy, or you can also outsmart your opponent and in that way be more resourceful with your game-play.”

Later in the demonstration, Carson has to keep his wits about him and evade Nazis in the night, avoiding spotlights from airships, and trying not to be spotted by marching units. One of the ways you can be resourceful is to hide behind totalled cars in the street for cover and smack the enemy in the chops after running towards him. Melee moves in the game are really likened to intense street brawling by Senior Producer David Brickley: “It’s not about this one guy going in guns blazing like Rambo… Carson is just a normal guy and you have to use methods that a guy like him would use in tight situations. Would you shoot enemies or would you fight them hand-to-hand? Carson’s skills in combat are very much down to you rather than the character”.

There are many situations that Carson will get himself into as well. From the looks of the demonstration we were shown you’ll be shooting parachuting Nazis as you’re going down an outside elevator shaft, shimmying along the edges of buildings and taking refuge in dilapidated train stations. Brickley mentioned that they had thought about using a free, open world to explore and finish levels your own way, but that would have detracted from the experience. “We want to tell a very specific story with Turning Point, and having an open world wouldn’t allow you to see the entire game.”

I wasn't given hands-on material, but judging from what I saw Spark has to be applauded for its original take on the World War II style of shooters. Beyond that I'm not sure if it looks to play like many FPS games before it, but there are some great graphical touches and features that grab our interest. Particularly the weapons you’ll use, and other items and aspects that might play on the ‘alternate reality’ theme. Because the Nazis would have improved their technology following their stranglehold on Britain and the rest of Europe in this alternative universe, you’ll be discovering a lot of original guns that will reflect this. I personally can’t wait to see more of these weapons and what they do.

Allen provided some teasers to some more of the story as players unfold the mystery of the invasion, announcing “a more sinister plot at hand” and hinting at “how people use symbols to associate with power”. Perhaps most challenging of all, Carson will have to venture into London, where the Nazi regime is an understood way of life for many British people. “I wanted to make it feel like this is a world that really could have been, by including memorable locations such as Tower Bridge. We’re ultimately trying to present what I feel is fresh and has its own distinct style.”

Well after almost passing on the idea the day before, my ears well and truly pricked to hear more on this interesting concept, and to learn whether the game-play supports the unique storyline. Before I left the Cabinet, I felt it was only right to ask Allen about the power of history as a tool for learning.

“I just love studying history and think that the actions of our predecessors can teach us so much – video games these days can teach players about the past by putting them in the shoes of famous people or on the frontlines. We shouldn’t lose our past, and you know, it’s a real shame that the schools are going to be dropping such a charismatic leader and figure in history. But I guess if the schools aren’t going to teach kids about this stuff then that’s where we can come in!”

Turning Point is released on PlayStation3, XBOX 360 and PC in 2008.

(0) Comments

PermaLink

Related PS3 News Articles