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Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot

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Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot
Developer(s)Vatra Games[1]
Publisher(s)Konami
EngineUnreal Engine 3
Platform(s)PlayStation 3 (PlayStation Network), Xbox 360 (Xbox Live Arcade)
ReleasePlayStation 3
  • NA: March 29, 2011
  • PAL: April 13, 2011
Xbox 360
March 30, 2011
Genre(s)Platform, metroidvania[2]
Mode(s)Single-player

Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot is a platform game and a sequel to the 1985 game Rush'n Attack.[3] It was developed by Vatra Games and published by Konami. The game follows Sergeant Sid Morrow, an American special agent sent with his team to recover a prisoner from a secret Russian military base.

Gameplay

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The player primarily attacks with a knife, with rewards for kills from behind and from shadows.

Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot is inspired by many of the action gameplay elements from the original Rush'n Attack. The game is played from a 2.5D perspective, with players being able to move horizontally and vertically. The game has several new features over its predecessor such as non-linear levels, stealth-based combat, attack combos and usable equipment such as gas masks and night vision goggles.[1][4][5] The game spans three large levels that are traversed both horizontally and vertically.[6]

The player character is initially armed only with a knife, but can pick up other temporary-use weaponry such as grenades, rifles and rocket launchers.[1] The game sometimes requires the player character to use stealth to avoid enemy units or security cameras. Triggering any alarm will result in nearby enemies rushing to the source of the alarm trigger. Alarms can be triggered by making too much noise or being noticed by one of the security cameras within the game's setting.[7] In a departure from Rush'n Attack, the player character is given a health bar instead of the original one hit death.[8]

Shank combos are the primary way in which players can earn points. The attacks are based on systema, a Russian style of fighting.[9] As the character progresses new combos can be unlocked.[8] Chaining combos together will result in the player gaining more points earned.[10] The character can also dispatch enemies using stealth tactics. Stealth kills reward the player with a higher score[10] and they can be performed by hiding in dark areas or by entering dark doorways, then exiting for the kill as an enemy passes.[11]

Plot

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Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot takes place fifteen years after the Cold War struggle between Russia and the United States. During a flashback the player watches as the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) learns that the Russians have discovered a previously unknown material called Ulyssium that could be used to create the world's most powerful nuclear missiles. To combat the threat they form Harvest, a secret CIA task force designed to investigate and infiltrate the Soviet weapons program. The Cold War ends without confrontation, and the team is extracted from Russia, save for one member. Fifteen years later new Harvest operative Sgt. Sid Morrow, callsign Wolf Spider, is sent with a team on Operation: Angel Tear to retrieve original Harvest team member Rory Gibson, who had been abandoned in Russia during the extraction.

Having received intelligence that the missile program may have been re-initiated, the CIA also tasks Wolf Spider with re-evaluating the missile threat, sabotaging it if necessary.[1]

Development

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Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot was revealed by Konami at Konami Gamers Night in April 2010.[1][12] It is the sequel to Rush'n Attack,[3] developed by Vatra Games and published by Konami[1] and is powered by Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3.[1] Ex-Patriot associate producer James Wong said that the team wanted to retain the fun and quick pick up and play nature of the original game, but with more depth.[6] The scores are posted to online leaderboards and estimated gameplay time is 6-8 hours.[6]

Reception

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Prior to its release, Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot drew comparisons to Shadow Complex and Bionic Commando Rearmed by the media.[10][6] On release, the Xbox 360 version received "mixed" reviews, while the PlayStation 3 version received "generally unfavorable reviews", according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[13][14]

Arthur Gies of IGN was disappointed with the game,[21] criticizing its gameplay, graphics, and level design.[21] Several reviewers said that the game attempts the metroidvania formula of open exploration, but fails due to its linearity.[16][22][7]

Sales data during the game's first week revealed that only 652 players had scores on the game's leaderboard, the lowest opening week for any game in the month of March 2011. In contrast the next highest game, Strania, had 3,250 players posted to their leaderboards, while the highest opener, Beyond Good & Evil HD, posted 41,629 players.[25][note 1]

Notes

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  1. ^ Sales data was driven from the game's leaderboards, which post scores during specific events in Xbox Live Arcade games. Thus actual sales are estimated.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g IGN staff (April 12, 2010). "Konami Announces Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot For PSN and XBLA". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  2. ^ Futter, Michael (April 4, 2011). "Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot Review". ZTGD. Archived from the original on August 2, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016. What we've been given in Ex-Patriot, is a Metroidvania game that apes Bionic Commando Rearmed and Shadow Complex while, in the process, losing nearly every differentiating quality.
  3. ^ a b gamervision (August 31, 2010). "Rush N Attack: Ex Patriot Interview - Pearl Lu". YouTube. Google. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  4. ^ "Rush 'N Attack Ex-Patriot: Gas Mask Gameplay". IGN. Ziff Davis. September 29, 2010. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  5. ^ Wittmershaus, Eric (April 13, 2010). "Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot Preview: The 80s Strikes Back". Kotaku. G/O Media. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d CGR Publishing (June 16, 2010). "Classic Game Room: RUSH'N ATTACK EX-PATRIOT producer interview and preview". YouTube. Google. Archived from the original on December 29, 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Perlee, Ben (October 5, 2010). "Hands-on: Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot". Destructoid. Gamurs. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Keast, Matthew (August 31, 2010). "Rush'N Attack Ex-patriot hands-on". GamesRadar+. Future plc. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  9. ^ "Konami Blog – The Deadly Influence Of Systema". Siliconera. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  10. ^ a b c North, Dale (July 24, 2010). "SDCC: Rush'N Attack is coming back". Destructoid. Gamurs. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  11. ^ Haas, Pete (July 28, 2010). "Comic Con Preview: Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot". CinemaBlend. Future plc. Archived from the original on July 31, 2010. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  12. ^ Nelson, Randy (April 9, 2010). "Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot Reignites Cold War Tensions". Engadget (Joystiq). Yahoo. Archived from the original on April 12, 2010. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on November 12, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  15. ^ Reed, Kristan (April 1, 2011). "Download Games Roundup Review [date mislabeled as "April 5, 2011"]". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  16. ^ a b c Vore, Bryan (March 2011). "Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot Review". Game Informer. No. 215. GameStop. p. 98. Archived from the original on April 2, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  17. ^ Méreur, Thomas (April 7, 2011). "Test : Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot (XLA)". Gamekult (in French). Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  18. ^ "Review: Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot (PS3)". GamesMaster. Future plc. July 2011. p. 89.
  19. ^ a b Baughman, Jordan (April 7, 2011). "Rush'N Attack Ex-Patriot review". GamesRadar+. Future plc. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  20. ^ "Review: Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot (X360)". GamesTM. No. 106. Future plc. March 2011. p. 124.
  21. ^ a b c d Gies, Arthur (March 30, 2011). "Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on March 7, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  22. ^ a b Krpata, Matt (April 12, 2011). "Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot review: Ex-crement (X360) [author mislabeled as "Justin McElroy"]". Engadget (Joystiq). Yahoo. Archived from the original on April 15, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  23. ^ "Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot review". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. April 2011. p. 79.
  24. ^ "Review: Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot". PlayStation: The Official Magazine. No. 46. Future plc. June 2011. p. 80.
  25. ^ Langley, Ryan (April 14, 2011). "In-Depth: Xbox Live Arcade Sales Analysis For March 2011". Game Developer. Informa. Archived from the original on March 5, 2023. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
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