Super Counter-Strike!

Analysis

Super Counter-Strike is a simple 2D arcade adventure game that is heavily inspired by vintage videogames right down to the replicated "sprite" pixel art form. It features very simple rules, and game play in hopes to recreate the experience found in classic videogames.

In the game you play as a Counter-Terrorist that attempts to rescue hostages in a desert base. It's not as easy as it sounds as there are opposing soldiers who shoot at the Counter-Terrorist to prevent him from reaching his objective.

Inspiration

I was inspired by the "The Grey Album" produced by Dangermouse, which re-mixed the original works of The Beatles (The White Albumn) and Jay-Z (The Black Album) to produce an entirely new creative work.

I took a similar path with my gaming assignment by re-mixing Super Mario Bros. (Produced by Nintendo) and Counter-Strike (Produced by Sierra) to produce an entirely different game title "Super Counter-Strike".

Super Mario Bros. Is a 2D side scrolling platform adventure game, you play as Mario and attempt to rescue the princess toadstool from the evil Lizard King "Bowser Koopa". It was released in 1985 and it's simplistic blocky graphics reflect that.

Counter-Strike is a 3D online multi-player tactical Shooter. Two opposing teams face off to complete different objectives that include rescuing hostages and defusing bombs. The team that completes the objective first is declared the winner. It was released in 1999, and while the engine shows noticible signs of age, it is still quite a leap from Super Mario Bros.


Super Mario Brothers
Counter-Strike

Re-mixing two games on such far ends of the gaming spectrum was a constant refreshing challenge as I had to determine what elements I wanted to keep or drop from these very distinct games.

Graphics

For the creation of the main "Counter-Terrorist" sprite I studied Super Mario Bros. and the animations of it's main character "Mario".

The Original Mario

Re-Drawn "Counter-Terrorist"

I used Mario as a guide and attempted to inject some inspiration from Counter-Strike as well as some originality for good measure.

The rest of the graphics were drawn from "scratch" pixel-by-pixel as traditional videogame graphics were drawn back in the day. I tried to make them reasonably detailed and a little washed to provide contrast with the animated characters (who were simple and bold).

Overall the Super Counter-Strike mostly resembles Super Mario Bros. due to it's 2D appearance.

Sounds

Most of the sounds were lifted straight from Counter-Strike, from the walking sounds, to the gunfire sounds. The distinct jumping *boing* sound however was lifted from Super Mario Bros. The combination of sounds created an audial contrast which played out very well.

GamePlay

The game play ended up to be a medley of both Counter-Strike and Super Mario Bros. which was the overall goal of this project.

The Magic Circle

With a 2D game it's quite hard to build Magic Circule (especially given the expectations attention spans of today's gamers). However that didn't make me give up. I tried to create a sense of atmosphere and unity with the graphics of Super Counter-Strike and follow it up with the Technical Documentation and even this essay in a similar style. This "branding" scheme to keept things consitiant with the game for a unified experience.

What Worked

What worked were the simple controls. Direction controls and two functional buttons, it doesn't get much simpler than that! The overall interaction interface is also quite simple as it's easy to interact with the enemies (with chops) and hostages (with rescuing).

What Didn't work

I may have over simplified, as the lack of variety becomes apparent over time. The objectives are also very weak, and pretty much optional as the player can simply run to the end. The "Mario Mechanics" were also not simulated completely such as "skidding" when the character changes direction or the simplistic jumps featured in that well polished game.

Changes I Would Make

I would have definately liked to do more levels, and perhaps different graphic sets to give the impression of different locations. More objectives would have also complimented more levels. More enemies would have also kept things more interesting and fresh.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I've learned that even the most simple games still have a world of complexity behind them and that interpolation can lead to entirely new concepts. Also, I've always appreciated the work that went into traditional 2D videogames, but now experiencing it first hand I appreciate it on another "level".

 

References