''Time Crisis 4'' is a 2006
light-gun shooter video game
A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
developed by
Namco Bandai Games
is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game video game publisher, publisher, and the video game branch of the wider Bandai Namco Holdings group. Founded in 2006 as it is the successor to Namco's home and arcade video game ...
and
Nex Entertainment
, formerly known as GAU Entertainment and , was a Japanese video game developer originally established in 1992. It developed games for publishers on a contract basis. Its clients included Sega, Capcom, Namco, Takara, Taito Corporation, Taito, Atl ...
and published by Namco Bandai Games for
arcades. It is the fourth main installment of the ''
Time Crisis
''Time Crisis'' is a first-person on-rails light gun shooter series of arcade video games by Namco, introduced in 1995. It is focused on the exploits of a fictional international intelligence agency who assigns its best agents to deal with a ...
'' series. It was ported to the
PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
in 2007, where it features a new
first-person shooter
A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
mode.
It was later re-released as part of ''
Time Crisis: Razing Storm'' with support for the
PlayStation Move
is a Motion controller, motion game controller developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Initially released in 2010 for use with the PlayStation 3 home video game console, its compatibility was later expanded to its successor, the PlayStation ...
controller, without the first-person shooter mode.
Gameplay
Time Crisis 4 introduces new and returning features from previous games. The multiple weapon system introduced in ''Time Crisis 3'', with the
pistol
A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...
,
machine gun,
shotgun
A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...
and
grenade launcher
A grenade launcher is a weapon that fires a specially designed, large caliber projectile, often with an explosive, Smoke screen, smoke, or tear gas, gas warhead. Today, the term generally refers to a class of dedicated firearms firing unitary gre ...
,
and also features new vehicle sections. On several occasions, the player equips a machine gun with infinite ammo or a sniper rifle used to shoot the tires on a marauding truck. Several other functions exclusive to the game includes a scene where the player can escape from quicksand, several scenes where a certain position must be defended, with the penalty of one life if the position is lost. On multiple occasions, Rush appears onscreen, whether caught in a trap or attacking an enemy as a diversion, and care must be taken to avoid shooting him. It featured a voice navigation system that guides players through different situations. It can be set to speak Japanese or English. Prior to the game, it was voiced exclusively in English.
PlayStation 3 version
The
PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
is bundled with the
GunCon 3 light gun peripheral. This edition features
480p
480p is the shorthand name for a family of video display resolutions. The p stands for progressive scan, i.e. non-interlaced. The ''480'' denotes a vertical resolution of 480 pixels, usually with a horizontal resolution of 640 pixels and 4:3 a ...
(4:3) and
720p
720p (720 lines progressive) is a progressive HD signal format with 720 horizontal lines/1280 columns and an aspect ratio (AR) of 16:9, normally known as widescreen HD (1.78:1). All major HD broadcasting standards (such as SMPTE 292M) includ ...
(16:9 widescreen) support and a specially-programmed
first-person shooter
A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
mode, where players engage combat similar to a typical FPS game, but with manual gun pointing, aiming and firing in addition to arcade mode.
[Remo, Chris]
Time Crisis 4 Review
, ''Shack News'', Nov 21st 2007, Accessed Mar 29, 2008 The GunCon 3 is fully compatible with both standard and high-definition televisions. Players control William Rush, Giorgio Bruno or Evan Bernard for each levels throughout the game with arcade footages.
Much like its predecessors, it featured the Crisis Missions that has some backstories, starring star of ''Time Crisis'' characters from previous installments. The game was re-released for PlayStation 3 as part of ''
Time Crisis: Razing Storm'', released in October 2010, with support for
PlayStation Move
is a Motion controller, motion game controller developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Initially released in 2010 for use with the PlayStation 3 home video game console, its compatibility was later expanded to its successor, the PlayStation ...
controllers but without the first-person shooter mode.
Plot
The game opens in
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
in 2006, where intelligence officials from the
United States Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...
and V.S.S.E. organization learn about a top secret weapon targeted for terrorists' smuggling and their plot. Captain William Rush infiltrates a pier to gather information, and learns that the enemy acquired insect-like weapons, Terror Bites. Informed by Elizabeth Conway about the airport incident, Rush accompanies VSSE agents, Giorgio Bruno and Evan Bernard. They kill Hamlin 3rd company leader Marcus Black at the city. They discover
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
dog tags on each soldiers. The terrorist faction is then revealed to be the Biological Weapons Special Operations Unit (AKA the Hamlin Battalion). Rush then gathers more intel about the Hamlin Battalion and defeats Hamlin lieutenant Frank Mathers in a nearby dam, who dies via detonation. He discovers that the occupation of the dam was a diversion for the main unit to make their next move in stealing the Terror Bites. Giorgio, Evan and Rush fly to
Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
's secluded bio-weapons research facility, but are too late to stop the supply of Terror Bites from being stolen. After killing Frank's older brother Jack Mathers, they soon learn that the Hamlin Battalion is attacking
Buckley Air Force Base in
Aurora, Colorado
Aurora (, ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, Arapahoe, Adams County, Colorado, Adams, and Douglas County, Colorado, Douglas List of counties in Colorado, counti ...
, prompting the men to depart for the base. As they arrive, a number of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) depart the base without warning. Rush leads the
Colorado National Guard
The Colorado National Guard consists of the Colorado Army National Guard and Colorado Air National Guard, forming the state of Colorado's component to the United States National Guard. Founded in 1860, the Colorado National Guard falls under ...
toward an entrance, while Giorgio and Evan try to take care of the UCAVs. They also encounter V.S.S.E.'s old enemy Wild Dog in the base who, in addition to his standard handgun, minigun and RPG, is now armed with a grappling hook and tractor beam device. After a long battle, Giorgio and Evan defeat him, ending with Wild Dog detonating himself once again. Meanwhile, Rush defeats Wild Fang (Wild Dog's younger partner from
the previous game), sending him into the path of a UCAV as it lifts off. It is revealed that the Terror Bites' creator, Colonel Gregory Barrows hijacked the nuclear-armed UCAVs to destroy the United States in retaliation for the poor treatment he received from the military. After Giorgio and Evan kill Barrows near the control center, Rush and his unit form a human pyramid to lift Giorgio and Evan into it to stop the missiles, where the agents press a big red button on the control computers to self-destruct all nuclear missiles the UCAVs have launched.
Development
The game was first shown at E3 2006 prior to its recent final revision arcade release. One major change is the addition of the multi-screen or multi-hiding system, introduced in ''
Time Crisis: Project Titan''. Unlike the game, which players went on the offensive, players are placed on the defensive. In ''Project Titan'', players can hide and shoot arrows to switch screens. Screen switching has been refined to allow the player to merely point the gun outside the screen to move around. The game utilizes a new light gun control with
infrared
Infrared (IR; sometimes called infrared light) is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than that of visible light but shorter than microwaves. The infrared spectral band begins with the waves that are just longer than those ...
emitters. Prior to this, all Namco light gun games used gun controllers relying on
cathode ray
Cathode rays are streams of electrons observed in discharge tubes. If an evacuated glass tube is equipped with two electrodes and a voltage is applied, glass behind the positive electrode is observed to glow, due to electrons emitted from the c ...
timing. Because the light guns with cathode ray timing utilized memory chip-to-lens pointing, the arcade cabinet designers had to ensure the
infrared-emitting light gun controllers would provide the same accuracy as their cathode ray timing-based gun provided in the past. This delayed the game's release given past accuracy issues with IR light guns. The player can choose to customize gun calibration, and turn the blowback on or off with a pre-game code explained in the cabinet. The game, like its predecessors is available either in a 29" standard twin cabinet or a 52" deluxe twin. It was released in North America at arcades in July 2006.
Reception
The game received mixed reviews, with an average
GameRankings
GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
score of 60.70%,
and a
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
score of 60 out of 100.
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
gave the game a 5.5 out of 10,
while Jeff Haynes of ''
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' gave it an 8 out of 10, concluding that it is "a fun game for any shooting fan looking to blast away with their PS3".
Matt Miller of ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'' is an American monthly Video game journalism, video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and video game console, game consoles. It debuted in August 1991, when the video game reta ...
'', however, was more critical of the game, giving it a score of 4.25 out of 10,
criticizing its first-person shooter mode, "ludicrous plot", and shooting mechanic.
''
GamePro
''GamePro'' was an American multiplatform video game magazine media company that published online and print content covering the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software. The magazine featured content on various video ...
'' rated ''Time Crisis 4'' a positive score of 4 out of 5, saying the games plays just like the arcade, but replayability is an issue.
''
X-Play
''Xplay'' (previously ''GameSpot TV'', ''Extended Play'', and ''X-Play'') was a television program about video games. The program, known for its reviews and comedy skits, aired on G4 in the United States and has aired on '' G4 Canada'' in Canada ...
'' also gave the game a score of 4 out of 5.
One of the main key areas was the GunCon 3 controller included with the game. Chris Remo of
Shacknews
''Shacknews'' is an American video game journalism website founded in 1996. It that publishes news articles, reviews, and cheat codes.
History
''Shacknews'' was founded in 1996 by Steve Gibson. The website, originally named 'Quakeholio', was ...
wrote that it uses "
two analog sticks for full movement and camera control, with pointer-based aiming on top" and that once "you get accustomed to it, this control actually works just fine, and feels like it could be the basis for its own game".
According to Miller, however, the controller "feels cheap", with
analog stick
An analog stick (analogue stick in British English), also known as a control stick, thumbstick or joystick, is an input method designed for video games that translates thumb movement into directional control. It consists of a protruding stick mo ...
s that are "chintzy and hard to use"; referring to the left-hand subgrip which forces the main shooting handgrip to be held with the right hand, Miller claims that the GunCon 3 "hardly accommodates left-handed players".
Ryan Davis of GameSpot expressed that the complexity of the control scheme seems to contradict the pick-up-and-play mentality of the light gun genre.
References
External links
Time Crisis 4at
Namco Bandai
(commonly known as and formerly Namco Bandai until 2015, also known as Bandai Namco Group,) is a Japanese mass media and entertainment conglomerate founded in 2005 by the merger of Namco and Bandai. The company specializes in toys, video ...
{{Authority control
2006 video games
Arcade video games
Cooperative video games
Light gun games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Namco arcade games
Nex Entertainment games
PlayStation 3 games
Rail shooters
Sony Interactive Entertainment games
Time Crisis
Video games about nuclear war and weapons
Video games about terrorism
Video games developed in Japan
Video games set in 2006
Video games set in California
Video games set in Colorado
Video games set in Wyoming