Time Crisis 4
Encyclopedia
Time Crisis 4 is the fourth installment in Namco
's Time Crisis series
. The game introduces new features to the cover
-based light gun shooter
gameplay engine of its predecessors alongside a new story and roster of characters. It was initially released as an arcade game
in 2006, and was ported in 2007 to the PlayStation 3
, which utilizes the Guncon 3 light gun
peripheral and features a new first-person shooter
mode. It was later re-released as part of Time Crisis: Razing Storm
with support for the PlayStation Move controller but without the first-person shooter mode.
William Rush infiltrates a pier to gather more information, and finds that the enemy has already acquired the insect-like weapons (codenamed "Terror Bite"). After being told by Elizabeth Conway about an information leak incident at the airport, Rush then heads to the airport to rescue VSSE agents Giorgio Bruno and Evan Bernard advance further to subdue the weapons smugglers. After defeating all of the enemies, they discover U.S. Army dog tags on the enemies' bodies and realize that the terrorists are soldiers like Rush himself.
After Rush found out about the terrorists' identities (The Special Biological Weapons Research Unit, a.k.a. the Hamlin Battalion), he was forced to thwart the enemies' plot to destroy a dam alone. After having to put up with the battalion's destruction at the dam, Rush, Giorgio, and Evan fly to a secluded bio-weapons research facility in Wyoming
only to discover the Battalion's alleged smuggling at San Francisco was actually an act of treason
. Elizabeth Conway then tells the men that the Hamlin Battalion has hiijacked Buckley Air Force Base
near Aurora, Colorado
, prompting the men to rush to the AFB. As William, Giorgio, and Evan invade the AFB from the outside, a couple of Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAVs) departed the base without warning. The mercenary Wild Dog also appears and attacks the agents, forcing the agents to defend themselves. After they land their helicopter safely, they pursue Wild Dog into the base and defeat him, ending with Wild Dog detonating
himself for the fourth time. Wild Dog's arsenal in Time Crisis 4 includes a grappling gun which he uses to snare the player's helicopter and a tractor beam with which he throws detritus at the player. In the PlayStation 3 port of the game, Rush encounters and defeats Wild Fang, Wild Dog's younger partner from the previous game.
Colonel Gregory Barrows reveals that he was the one behind the stealing of the Terror Bites and that he ordered the nuclear-armed stealth bombers, intending to destroy the United States as a retaliation scheme for the poor treatment he received from the U.S military. The two agents gun down Barrows. The UCAVs, which have already launched several nuclear missiles, self-destruct when the agents press a big red button
on the control computers.
The PlayStation 3 port of the game contains plot elements not seen in the arcade game.
One major change is the addition of the multi-screen/multi-hiding system, introduced in Time Crisis: Project Titan
. Unlike Project Titan, which players went on the offensive, players are placed on the defensive. In Project Titan, players had to 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.
Time Crisis 4 also utilizes a new light gun control with infrared
emitters. Prior to this, all Namco light gun games used gun controllers that relied on cathode ray
timing. Because Namco's light guns with cathode ray timing utilized memory chip-to-lens pointing, the arcade cabinet designers had to ensure that 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/or turn the blowback on or off with a pre-game code explained in the cabinet. Time Crisis 4, like its predecessors, is available either in a 29" standard twin cabinet or a 52" deluxe twin.
Time Crisis 4 also includes the multiple weapon system introduced in Time Crisis 3, with the pistol
, shotgun
, machine gun
, and grenade launcher
. On several occasions, the player is equipped with a machine gun with limitless ammo or a sniper rifle used to shoot the tires on a marauding truck. Several other functions exclusive to Time Crisis 4 include a scene where the player must pull himself from quicksand, several scenes where a certain position must be defended, with the penalty of one life if the position is lost.
The game also features a voice navigation system that guides players through different situations. Given the voice navigation system, the game can be voiced either in Japanese or English. Prior to Time Crisis 4, the game was voiced exclusively in English.
PlayStation 3
exclusively bundled with the GunCon 3
light gun peripheral. The release dates are as follows:
The PlayStation 3 edition features 480p
(4:3) and 720p
(16:9 widescreen) support and a specially-programmed first-person shooter
mode, which players engage combat similar to a typical FPS game, but with manual gun pointing, aiming, and firing, in addition to the arcade mode. Players play as Captain William Rush for 5 levels and as VSSE agents Giorgio Bruno or Evan Bernard for 10 levels through the game's "complete mission", with footage not seen in arcades. Much like its predecessors, it featured the Crisis Missions. The Crisis Missions has some backstories, starring star of characters from previous installments.
Time Crisis 4 was re-released on the PlayStation 3
as part of Time Crisis: Razing Storm
, released in October 2010, with support of the PlayStation Move controllers.
gave the game a 5.5 out of 10, while Jeff Haynes of IGN
gave it an 8.0 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
, 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
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. G4 TV
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
stated 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
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.
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
's Time Crisis series
Time Crisis (series)
Time Crisis is a first-person light gun shooter series of arcade video games by Namco. The first installment of the series was released in the arcades in 1995 and later ported to the PlayStation consoles.-Overview:...
. The game introduces new features to the cover
Cover system
A cover system is how a video game lets a virtual avatar avoid dangers usually in a three-dimensional world. This method is a digital adaptation of the real-life military tactic of taking cover to dodge enemy gunfire or explosives. Similar gameplay elements can be traced back to as early as 1986,...
-based light gun shooter
Light gun shooter
Light gun shooter, also called light gun game or simply gun game, is a shooter video game genre in which the primary design element is aiming and shooting with a gun-shaped controller. Light gun shooters revolve around the protagonist shooting targets, either antagonists or inanimate objects...
gameplay engine of its predecessors alongside a new story and roster of characters. It was initially released as an arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
in 2006, and was ported in 2007 to the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, which utilizes the Guncon 3 light gun
Light gun
A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games.Modern screen-based light guns work by building a sensor into the gun itself, and the on-screen target emit light rather than the gun...
peripheral and features a new first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
mode. It was later re-released as part of Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Time Crisis: Razing Storm, known in Japan as Big 3 Gun Shooting, is a compilation of light gun rail shooter video games by Namco for the PlayStation 3 home console. Featuring full compatibility with both the GunCon 3 light gun and the PlayStation Move motion control system, the compilation consists...
with support for the PlayStation Move controller but without the first-person shooter mode.
Plot
The game begins in California, where intelligence officials from both the US Military and the V.S.S.E. learn about a top secret weapon targeted for terrorists' smuggling.William Rush infiltrates a pier to gather more information, and finds that the enemy has already acquired the insect-like weapons (codenamed "Terror Bite"). After being told by Elizabeth Conway about an information leak incident at the airport, Rush then heads to the airport to rescue VSSE agents Giorgio Bruno and Evan Bernard advance further to subdue the weapons smugglers. After defeating all of the enemies, they discover U.S. Army dog tags on the enemies' bodies and realize that the terrorists are soldiers like Rush himself.
After Rush found out about the terrorists' identities (The Special Biological Weapons Research Unit, a.k.a. the Hamlin Battalion), he was forced to thwart the enemies' plot to destroy a dam alone. After having to put up with the battalion's destruction at the dam, Rush, Giorgio, and Evan fly to a secluded bio-weapons research facility in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
only to discover the Battalion's alleged smuggling at San Francisco was actually an act of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
. Elizabeth Conway then tells the men that the Hamlin Battalion has hiijacked Buckley Air Force Base
Buckley Air Force Base
Buckley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Aurora, Colorado, that was established by the U.S. Army in 1943. The base was named in honor of the World War I Army pilot 1LT John Harold Buckley.-Overview:...
near Aurora, Colorado
Aurora, Colorado
City of Aurora is a Home Rule Municipality spanning Arapahoe, Adams, and Douglas counties in Colorado. Aurora is an eastern suburb of the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area . The city is the third most populous city in the Colorado and the 56th most populous city in the...
, prompting the men to rush to the AFB. As William, Giorgio, and Evan invade the AFB from the outside, a couple of Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAVs) departed the base without warning. The mercenary Wild Dog also appears and attacks the agents, forcing the agents to defend themselves. After they land their helicopter safely, they pursue Wild Dog into the base and defeat him, ending with Wild Dog detonating
Detonator
A detonator is a device used to trigger an explosive device. Detonators can be chemically, mechanically, or electrically initiated, the latter two being the most common....
himself for the fourth time. Wild Dog's arsenal in Time Crisis 4 includes a grappling gun which he uses to snare the player's helicopter and a tractor beam with which he throws detritus at the player. In the PlayStation 3 port of the game, Rush encounters and defeats Wild Fang, Wild Dog's younger partner from the previous game.
Colonel Gregory Barrows reveals that he was the one behind the stealing of the Terror Bites and that he ordered the nuclear-armed stealth bombers, intending to destroy the United States as a retaliation scheme for the poor treatment he received from the U.S military. The two agents gun down Barrows. The UCAVs, which have already launched several nuclear missiles, self-destruct when the agents press a big red button
Big red button
A big red button , sometimes called a big red switch , is a real or fictional button with various functions. The purpose of being big and red is for its quick identification and actuation...
on the control computers.
The PlayStation 3 port of the game contains plot elements not seen in the arcade game.
Background
Time Crisis 4 was first shown at E3 2006 prior to its recent final revision arcade release.One major change is the addition of the multi-screen/multi-hiding system, introduced in Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan
Time Crisis: Project Titan is a side-story installment to Time Crisis released exclusively for the Sony PlayStation.-Story:Following the assassination of the President of Cuba, Xavier Serrano, VSSE agent Richard Miller has been implicated in the crime. V.S.S.E. only has 48 hours before it must turn...
. Unlike Project Titan, which players went on the offensive, players are placed on the defensive. In Project Titan, players had to 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.
Time Crisis 4 also utilizes a new light gun control with infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
emitters. Prior to this, all Namco light gun games used gun controllers that relied on cathode ray
Cathode ray
Cathode rays are streams of electrons observed in vacuum tubes. If an evacuated glass tube is equipped with two electrodes and a voltage is applied, the glass opposite of the negative electrode is observed to glow, due to electrons emitted from and travelling perpendicular to the cathode Cathode...
timing. Because Namco's light guns with cathode ray timing utilized memory chip-to-lens pointing, the arcade cabinet designers had to ensure that 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/or turn the blowback on or off with a pre-game code explained in the cabinet. Time Crisis 4, like its predecessors, is available either in a 29" standard twin cabinet or a 52" deluxe twin.
Time Crisis 4 also includes the multiple weapon system introduced in Time Crisis 3, with the pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
, shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
, machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
, and grenade launcher
Grenade launcher
A grenade launcher or grenade discharger is a weapon that launches a grenade with more accuracy, higher velocity, and to greater distances than a soldier could throw it by hand....
. On several occasions, the player is equipped with a machine gun with limitless ammo or a sniper rifle used to shoot the tires on a marauding truck. Several other functions exclusive to Time Crisis 4 include a scene where the player must pull himself from quicksand, several scenes where a certain position must be defended, with the penalty of one life if the position is lost.
The game also features a voice navigation system that guides players through different situations. Given the voice navigation system, the game can be voiced either in Japanese or English. Prior to Time Crisis 4, the game was voiced exclusively in English.
PlayStation 3 release
The game was released for the SonySony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
exclusively bundled with the GunCon 3
GunCon
The Guncon , known as the G-Con in Europe, is a family of light gun peripherals designed by Namco for the PlayStation consoles.-Background:...
light gun peripheral. The release dates are as follows:
- November 20, 2007 in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
- December 20, 2007 in JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
- April 18, 2008 for Europe
- April 24, 2008 for Australia
The PlayStation 3 edition features 480p
480p
480p is the shorthand name for a video display resolution. The p stands for progressive scan, i.e. non-interlaced. The 480 denotes a vertical resolution of 480 pixel high vertically scanning lines, usually with a horizontal resolution of 640 pixels and 4:3 aspect ratio or a horizontal resolution of...
(4:3) and 720p
720p
720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
(16:9 widescreen) support and a specially-programmed first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
mode, which players engage combat similar to a typical FPS game, but with manual gun pointing, aiming, and firing, in addition to the arcade mode. Players play as Captain William Rush for 5 levels and as VSSE agents Giorgio Bruno or Evan Bernard for 10 levels through the game's "complete mission", with footage not seen in arcades. Much like its predecessors, it featured the Crisis Missions. The Crisis Missions has some backstories, starring star of characters from previous installments.
Time Crisis 4 was re-released on the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
as part of Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Time Crisis: Razing Storm, known in Japan as Big 3 Gun Shooting, is a compilation of light gun rail shooter video games by Namco for the PlayStation 3 home console. Featuring full compatibility with both the GunCon 3 light gun and the PlayStation Move motion control system, the compilation consists...
, released in October 2010, with support of the PlayStation Move controllers.
Reception
The game received mixed reviews, with an average GameRankings score of 60.33%. GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave the game a 5.5 out of 10, while Jeff Haynes of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave it an 8.0 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
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
, 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
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
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. G4 TV
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
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
Shacknews, commonly referred to as "The Shack", is a website offering news, features, editorial content, and forums relating to computer games and console games. Shacknews and its sister site, FileShack, are currently owned by GameFly...
stated 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
Analog stick
An analog stick, sometimes called a control stick or thumbstick, is an input device for a controller that is used for two-dimensional input. An analog stick is a variation of a joystick, consisting of a protrusion from the controller; input is based on the position of this protrusion in relation...
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.
External links
- Time Crisis 4 at Namco BandaiNamco Bandai, also known as the Bandai Namco Group, is a Japanese holding company formed from the merger of Namco and Bandai. It has interests in toys, video games and arcades, anime, and amusement parks. The new entity was founded on September 29, 2005...