Tron 2.0

For the film sequel to Tron, see TR2N.

Tron 2.0
Developer(s)	Monolith Productions
Publisher(s)	Buena Vista Interactive
Designer(s)	Frank Rooke
Series	Tron
Engine	Lithtech: Triton (enhanced version of the Jupiter engine)
Platform(s)	PC (Windows), Mac, Gizmondo, Xbox, GBA
Release	(Win) NA: August 26, 2003 DE: August 26, 2003 PL: September 11, 2003 (Mac) NA: April 21, 2004 (Xbox) NA: November 2, 2004
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer

Tron 2.0 is a computer game developed by Monolith Productions. It is a sequel to the 1982 motion picture Tron. The PC version of the game was released by Buena Vista Games on August 26, 2003. The Mac version was released by MacPlay on April 21, 2004.

The game is a first person shooter set "inside" a computer in the same sense as the original movie. It cheerfully uses and abuses computing conventions; players will find themselves in the flaming red environment of a firewall and the minimalistic white one of a PDA, battle viruses while fleeing a format, and wield a sniper rifle known as the LOL. A light cycle mini-game is included as part of the plot as well as available in multiplayer mode across a network. In the game, Bruce Boxleitner reprises his role from the original movie as Alan Bradley. Cindy Morgan, who also starred in the original movie, voices the new character Ma3a. Rebecca Romijn (credited as Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) provides the voice of Mercury. A new Light Cycle design was contributed to the game by Syd Mead. The story is centered around Alan's son Jet, who is digitized at the start of the game, like Kevin Flynn was in the movie. As the plot progresses, Jet must rid the computer system of a virus, protect his father and Ma3a, and thwart the efforts of the evil fCon company and their human Data-Wraiths, all while constantly dodging the efforts of the computer protection forces to eliminate him.

In addition to the Mac, the game was also ported to the Xbox with significant changes to the single and, especially, the multiplayer modes. The Xbox version is entitled Tron 2.0 Killer App. Changes to the single player mode include optional jumping sequences, and overall console-tailored controls. The real changes were made to the multiplayer modes. Added is up to sixteen player multiplayer disc arena, light cycles, or overRide modes for system link or Xbox Live. The new overRide mode allows for first person mayhem with the ability to ride light cycles at any time. There is also a version of Tron 2.0 Killer App for the Game Boy Advance that has different story and gameplay from its Xbox counterpart. A version of the game was planned for the Gizmondo, but was canceled during development.

The idea of Tron 2.0 was originally explored as a movie concept, but it was eventually decided to focus first on making it as a game. The film TR2N has recently been announced, and production is expected to begin soon.

Gameplay

Single Player Campaign

The single-player campaign takes place entirely inside the computer world (though some cutscenes are shown around the ENCOM research laboratory). The goal of each level is generally to complete tasks and find keys ("permission bits") which allow access to the next level. Some conventions which don't make much sense in other first-person shooters, such as the ability to carry a half-dozen weapons or to heal instantly with a medkit, are much more appropriate to this setting.

The design of the game's levels is linear; there are no choices about how to proceed or about what to say during the interactions with other characters. The levels are abstract as the ambiance seen in the movie, not to say surreal: they feature energy bridges and gates, neon-glowing contours, vibrant colors, floating boxes and tiles, teleports and deep chasms. However, some conventional physics apply: Jet will be harmed if he falls from a height (or killed if the height is great enough). He can also be crushed by certain moving objects in the digital world.

Jet starts out with the same disc weapon seen in the movie. In time, he obtains other weapons (not surprisingly similar to the ones found in other titles): a shotgun, a submachine gun, a sniper rifle and grenades, each reworked to fit the computer world reality. Ammunition for these new weapons is energy, which Jet can collect at various points during the game (an exception is the disc, which uses no energy in its basic form). The in-game names for these weapons are, respectively, rod, mesh, ball. The other weapons are upgrades of these basic weapons (called "primitives").

Jet's abilities are customizable. He acquires new abilities, and also the aforementioned weapons, in the form of "subroutines" held in "archive bins" scattered around the levels, and he has a limited number of memory slots in which to "install" these subroutines onto his person. Subroutines start out as alpha-grade software, but can be upgraded to beta and gold statuses, which both take up less space in memory and become more effective.

As he moves through the levels, Jet must engage many lower-tier enemies. Although none are particularly powerful, they usually show up in gangs, making them more of a threat. Among the regular levels, there are some with boss enemies that add to the thrill of the game.

Interspersed with the first-person-shooter levels are several light cycle races. As seen in the movie, these races are actually arena duels in which each light cycle attempts to destroy its opponents by driving them into its jetwall. The arenas contain 'improvements' (such as speed zones that affect the cycles' speed), more complex layouts with walls and other artifacts (instead of the "empty box" as seen in the movie), and power-ups that can be collected during races. In addition to Tron's regular light cycle, Jet can also gain access to the super light cycle that sports a more modern design and offers more speed. Tron 2.0 initially required the player to win the light cycle races in order to advance the campaign. Consumer feedback revealed that many felt the computer-controlled light cyclers were impossibly precise in their controls (turning at angles a human could not, for example), forcing players to wait for the enemy lightcycles to destroy themselves. As a result, the vendor released a patch eliminating this rule.

Single Player Light Cycles

This mode contains no campaign; instead, the player is presented with a choice of several light cycle arenas.

Multiplayer

Tron 2.0 offers some multiplayer scenarios, both in campaign mode and in light cycle mode. Internet and LAN play are available, although the vendor does not recommend that the light cycle mode be used over the Internet due to its generally high lag.

Legacy

Despite several positive reviews, Tron 2.0 failed to meet sales expectations. As a result of not meeting sales expectations, both a possible expansion pack and a sequel (which was, apparently, tentatively titled Tron 3.0) were cancelled while still in the planning stage. It is rumored that one of these additional games would have been set in the early 1980s, when the storyline of the original motion picture Tron took place.

A four-issue Tron 2.0 comic book series based on the game was going to be released by 88 MPH Studios, but was cancelled before the first issue was completed due to licensing issues with Disney. However, Slave Labor Graphics is now producing a Tron comic book sequel series called Tron: The Ghost in the Machine.

External links

• Tron: The Ghost in the Machine comic book by Slave Labor Graphics (SLG). Issue #1 was released on 4/26/2006
• Gamasutra technical article about the glow effect
• Tron 2.0 retrospective