Jagged Alliance (video game)
| Jagged Alliance | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Madlab Software |
| Publisher(s) | Sir-tech Software, Inc. |
| Platform(s) | DOS |
| Release | 1994 |
| Genre(s) | Tactical role-playing game, Turn-based tactics, RPG |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
Jagged Alliance is a tactical role-playing game for DOS, released in 1994. It is the first game in the Jagged Alliance series, and was followed by Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games (1995) and Jagged Alliance 2 (1999).
Plot
Jagged Alliance takes place on a south Atlantic island of Metavira, once used as nuclear testing site by some western nation. The nuclear testing altered some trees on the island and several years later it was discovered by scientist Brenda Richards that those trees (Fallow trees) produce unique sap that proved to be a medical marvel, but she also discovered that the trees couldn’t reproduce. Her assistant Lucas Santino realized how profitable this sap would be and managed to convince the leader of the scientific mission Jack Richards, who is also Brenda’s father, that it would be beneficial to have two independent science teams and establishes a new base on the other side of the island. He immediately started to recruit new people and gradually took over the island by force.
When the game begins you have been contacted by Jack Richards and arrives to the island. There Brenda and his father asks you to hire mercenaries trough organization named A.I.M. and to take back the island from Lucas Santino’s forces sector by sector.
Gameplay
Room screen
The room screen is where the player end the beginning of every day and starts when he first time loads the game. There the player can load saves, change settings, access the computer to hire new mercenaries or sleep to begin the next day. The player can only recruit up to eight mercenaries and they are all in single team. Some characters won't agree to join your team from the start as they want to see if you can be trusted to lead them in hostile territory.
Map screen
The map screen displays Metavira in a square grid, its terrain, Fallow trees, and the forces deployed by the enemy and the player. This is the strategic side of the game, as the player directs their team and equips them with different kind of equipment like guns and ammo. Player doesn’t have to take all the mercenaries with him on the mission if he doesn’t want to. They can leave one or several mercenaries in the base to do various jobs like train themselves to repairing equipment. There are several characters in the game that aren’t so good in the field but are very good as a support character. You can also leave wounded mercenaries in the base so they will heal during the day. At least one mercenary has to leave the base and go to a sector. In this screen the player can also add militia and sap harvesters to the sectors. Militia’s only purpose is to protect the sector from enemy attack and sap harvesters collect the sap from the trees so that it can be sold to gain more money. Bobby Ray man who sells guns and other equipment also sometimes contacts the player to make a deal.
Battle
Battles occur whenever the player's and enemy forces occupy the same square on the grid. These take place from an isometric viewpoint, and in real time until a member of one force spots an enemy.
The game then switches to turn-based play, as each force takes alternating turns to move, attack, and perform various other actions. Each character has a limited amount of action points, which must be spent to perform actions, and are renewed at the beginning of each turn. The amount of gained action points depends upon the physical state of the mercenary. A maximum of 5 unspent action points will also be carried over to the next round. Moving is only possible by walking but the mercenaries can also crouch so they are smaller target.
When attacking, there is a certain chance that the mercenary will hit. This can be done in a wide variety of ways, using firearms, close combat weapons like knifes and throwing weapons such as grenades. There are also some characters that won’t change target they have once shot until the target is death as characters have different personalities.
Characters
Characters in Jagged Alliance are all the people within the game: mercenaries, enemies and allies. Skills increase when the mercenary intensively uses them or by training. They can also decrease if a character is wounded. When health is lost, the first thing required to regain this is bandaging, or first aid. The mercenary can apply this to their self, or to another character, unless they have no medical skill or are dying. It also requires a first aid or medical kit. When a character is fully bandaged, they are no longer bleeding and all of the lost points will be replaced with bandaged points. If a character is shot, health will be drained, the amount of bandaged points stays the same. Turning bandaged points in normal points requires either time or staying in the base as a patient.
Mercenaries
The game is played almost entirely through the mercenaries chosen. These mercenaries can be hired from computer in your room and there are also two characters that can be hired for free in one of the sectors but only one of the two will appear in one campaign. Some characters don't like to work with another mercenary and some decline to join if some certain mercenary is on the team. This can lead to disappearance of characters permanently from the game.
References
External links
- Official homepage
- The Jagged Alliance series at MobyGames
- Template:Dmoz
- Bear Pit Jagged Alliance Form Rooms