Singularity (computer game)
| Singularity | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Studio | Raven software | ||
| Publisher | Activision | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
 June 29, 2010 June 25, 2010 |
||
| platform |
Microsoft Windows PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 |
||
| Game engine | Unreal Engine 3 | ||
| genre | Ego shooter | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Gamepad , keyboard and mouse | ||
| Age rating |
|
||
| information | German version cut | ||
Singularity is a computer game from the first person shooter genre of which by Raven Software developed and in 2010 Activision released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 was. Singularity is the second title from Raven Software based on the Unreal Engine 3 from Epic Games . The game was announced at E3 in 2008 during a press conference by Activision.
action
Singularity is set on the fictional Russian island of Katorga-12, where experiments with the chemical element 99 (E-99 for short) were carried out during the Cold War . In 1955 an accident occurred in which a singularity was created, which is why the existence of the island was kept secret by the Russian government.
In 2010, an electromagnetic wave from Katorga-12 damaged an American spy satellite, causing a US reconnaissance team to be sent to the area to investigate the cause. However, due to a renewed electromagnetic pulse, the two helicopters sent crash shortly before landing. Captain Nathaniel Renko can save himself to the island, where he enters the abandoned research complex, where he lived through events in 1955 and 2010.
Renko's first time jump after 1955 happened without warning at the time when a major fire raged in the research facility. There he saves Dr. Nikolai Demichev from the flames and thus saves him from certain death. He hears an unidentifiable man calling out to him that Demichev must not be saved. At that moment, however, the man is swallowed up by the flames. Renko is thrown back to 2010, where he finds that the island has changed. Alien aggressive beings, who were once employees on the island, appear. These mutated due to radiation from E-99 when the singularity exploded. Eventually he meets a second soldier from the reconnaissance team, Devlin, who survived the crash. However, both are captured by Russian soldiers under Demichev's command. Devlin demands asylum in the American embassy, but is shot by Demichev.
Renko can be saved by Kathryn, a member of a resistance organization called Mir-12. Their activities are based on a report from Katorga-12 that states that Renko could stop Demichev using a time manipulation device (ZMG). The ZMG was founded by Dr. Viktor Barisov, who allegedly was killed in an unsolved incident in his research laboratory, whereby Demichev gained command of the facility and was ultimately able to take over the world. Kathryn persuades Renko to search for the ZMG, to travel back in time and to save Barisov. Renko is able to stop Demichev from killing Barisov in 1955 and returns to 2010, where the aged Barisov thanks him for his intervention.
Barisov, Kathryn and Renko plan to undo the story by destroying the singularity on the island with an E-99 bomb. Renko can find a bomb on the Pearl, a sunken ship. In this action, however, Kathryn is lost when she tries to stop Demichev's men while Renko secures the bomb.
Renko and Barisov fight their way to the tower in the heart of Katorga-12 where the singularity was created. When they reach the reactor, Renko travels back in time and uses the E-99 bomb to destroy the Singularity. It returns to 2010, just before the tower is destroyed. It is implied here that the explosion triggered the destruction of the singularity and mutated the living things on the island.
Renko notes that nothing has changed. He finds Demichev threatening Barisov with a gun. Demichev reveals that he had the facility rebuilt after the bomb detonated. Renko shoots Demichev, freeing Barisov. He realizes that Demichev's rescue from the flames was the actual event that changed the timeline and asks Renko to travel back in time again to warn himself about saving Demichev. Demichev reveals that Renko has already tried this; for it was he who had shouted to himself in the flames that Demichev should not be saved. Barisov realizes that Renko will have to kill himself to prevent Demichev's rescue. Demichev offers Renko infinite power when he leaves the ZMG to him. It is now up to the player what he chooses.
If the player kills Demichev, Barisov will continue to urge him to go back in time and stop himself at Demichev's rescue. The player can also travel back to 1955 immediately. In these two cases, you take the position of the man who called on Renko not to save Demichev. If you kill Demichev, the scene repeats itself over and over again. If you kill yourself, you return to the beginning of the game when the reconnaissance team arrives at Katorga-12. The credits shown at the start of the game are written in Russian, the helicopters carry hammer and sickle on their side and Devlin, armed with a Russian weapon, says that the investigation of Katorga-12 is a waste of time. The helicopters pass a statue that was seen in the intro, but has now changed. It represents Barisov, who wears the ZMG on his wrist. Renko seems to have suspected something of what happened in the past, as he throws a scrutinizing look at his wrist when he sees the monument with the ZMG. Devlin and Renko's mission is aborted by their client - the command is no longer called Titon One, but Red Fleet, and Devlin names Renko (due to a translation error) a comrade ("Comrade" would be more appropriate). There are indications that Barisov could save the ZMG and unite the world under Russian rule.
If the player shoots Barisov, he allies with Demichev and together they take over almost the entire world. But through the ZMG, Demichev fears Renko's power and starts a secret weapons research program in the former United States. This leads to a new Cold War with Renko on one side and Demichev on the other.
If the player shoots both Barisov and Demichev, Renko leaves Katorga-12 and leaves the world to chaos. The public doubts its existence and believes in a myth after it disappears from the scene with the ZMG in its possession. A few years later, the singularity explodes, destroying the east coast of Russia and the west coast of Alaska. The mutants of Katorga-12 can reach mainland Russia and wreak havoc. A new leader rumored to be aggressive is rising in the former United States of America. The final cutscene indicates that the leader is Renko because he wears the ZMG on his arm - the narrator explains that there is a rumor that this leader has godlike powers.
If the player waits a while, Demichev grabs the pistol on the ground, shoots Barisov and Renko, and the game ends with a game over.
In a final cutscene, the wounded Kathryn appears from the sunken wreck of the Pearl. Badly injured, she escapes to an office and begins to write the Mir-12 report there.
Gameplay
Singularity is a first person shooter . In addition to the usual genre commands like running, jumping and shooting, one of the main elements in the game is the so-called time manipulation device, or ZMG for short. The ZMG is powered by the element E-99 and can manipulate the time. With the help of the device, objects can be moved in time to age them or to rejuvenate them. In addition, objects can be attracted and held in the air or an energy pulse can be sent out, which can stun or even kill opponents. The ZMG can only influence living beings or objects that have come into contact with E-99 (although almost everything on Katorga-12 has come into contact with E-99, only certain things can be manipulated in the game), with the exception of some units with heavier ones Armor immune to E-99. The ZMG can be improved at designated stations in order to acquire new skills or expand existing ones. The weapons can also be improved, for example to increase the range or damage. The player can only carry two weapons at a time, but can exchange them at the weapon cabinets in the game. Ammunition can also be bought here for a fee in the form of E-99, which is scattered all over the island. At some points in the game, collapsed stairs or bridges must be restored with the ZMG in order to allow progress. Likewise, rotted boxes can be tapered so that they serve as platforms to reach higher points. Defective ammunition boxes or crumbled first-aid kits can also be restored and used.
Multiplayer
There are two multiplayer modes. In both, the player either takes on the role of soldiers or mutants, each with their own classes and skills. One mode is a classic Deathmatch mode, while in the other, certain points must be captured by the soldiers and defended by the mutants. If the soldiers have taken the points or if the time limit has expired, the players change roles. Different weapons are available to the players.
criticism
Singularity received a Metascore of 76/100 for the PC and XBox 360 version and 77/100 for the PS3 version at Metacritic.com. Some testers criticized the game for its similarity to other games such as BioShock (2007). The developers were also aware of the similarities to BioShock, but were based on their own ideas that they had already implemented in a prototype of the game before the publication of the competing title.
Activision was disappointed with the low sales figures, but had hardly advertised the game before.