Without Warning

Without Warning is a third-person, arcade-style shooter video game set in a vast chemical plant. In the midst of a brutal terrorist plot, the game follows the actions of the six playable characters; three Special Forces members, a security guard, a secretary, and a cameraman. Set over twelve hours, the feel of the game, storywise, is similar in style to the TV series 24.

Released: 28 October 2005
Platforms: PlayStation 2 Xbox
Genres: Arcade Puzzle Shooter Third-person shooter
Developers: Circle Studio
Publishers: Capcom
Modes: Single-player
Perspective: Third person
Themes: Action
Engine: RenderWare
Country: United Kingdom
Age ratings: PEGI 16 ESRB M

About

Without Warning is a 2005 third-person shooter game developed by Circle Studio and published by Capcom for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Set in a vast chemical plant, during a brutal terrorist plot, the game follows the actions of the six playable characters; three Special Forces members, a security guard, a secretary, and a cameraman. Set over twelve hours, the feel of the game, storywise, is similar in style to the TV series 24.

Despite relatively high expectations during development, given the developers' previous work on the Tomb Raider series, Without Warning received generally negative reviews from critics, who criticised the plot, characters, poor AI and technical issues. The game turned out to be Circle Studio's only video game as the company transitioned to developing DVD games only after the game's poor reception, before closing down altogether in 2007.

Keywords

military
over the shoulder
renderware
xbox 360 backwards compatibility

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Gameplay of Without Warning varies depending on which character is being played. In the case of the Special Forces members and the security guard, gameplay is generally fast-paced, as is often the case with arcade-style shooters. While the game features a dedicated cover system, there is little emphasis on tactical combat, with the best approach often being simply to eliminate all enemies as quickly as possible. Despite the core gameplay of the four characters being largely alike, they all have small differences between them.

These involve exclusive objectives for each character, making their gameplay differ slightly from each other. There are also minor differences between the weapons of each character, which in turn affects the gameplay of each as well.

Story

The story begins with a Special Forces unit being briefed on a terrorist takeover of a chemical plant, led by a man known as Derbec. The Special Forces unit, consisting of veteran Kyle Rivers, rookie Jack Hooper, bomb expert Ed Reagan, and two others, soon prepares to infiltrate the plant. Elsewhere, news cameraman Ben Harrison begins to head to the chemical plant as well, via helicopter. Inside the plant, secretary Tanya Shaw and security guard Dave Wilson quickly comprehend the situation, both managing to evade the terrorists before they can kill them or take them as hostages.

Upon reaching the chemical plant, the two minor Special Forces members are killed in a terrorist ambush, and the remaining three are separated from each other. They quickly continue forward through the plant.

Reception

The game received "generally unfavorable reviews" on both platforms according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. Edge magazine would describe it as "a work of stultifying incompetence that seems to hate its own players."