Let me start by saying that I am a huge fan of Tactical Intervention, which Minh Le (the co-creator of the original Counter-Strike) previously worked on. It was introduced to me once when it was still on Steam and I was blown away by how much fun and addictive it is, especially with friends. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to play it as much as I would have liked, and this left a gap in my soul for a long time, which no game could fill. And now, many years later, I quite accidentally stumble upon the recommendation of Alpha Response. When I found out whose studio this game was, I was excited and without thinking twice I purchased the game in early access. And I feel somewhat deceived...
So, this is not Tactical Intervention, how I and many others remember it. It is not a sequel. This is only a spiritual heir, a separate game that resembles it which has partially adopted some functions, style and gameplay. Therefore, there is no famous Highway mission, repelling, rolls and many more. And it's dissapointing... Don't get me wrong, that doesn't make it a bad game. It's still a chaotic, dynamic, stupid action-FPS and I truly love it. But at this current stage, it looks and feels more like a stereotypical game labeled "simulator" on Unreal Engine 5 (especially tutorial). Alas, in my opinion, the price is not fair.
In your first launch you'll see an expressionless menu in the style of games from the 2010s (not a bad thing tho), where I first chose the tutorial... which I couldn't finish. At the stage of understanding how to steer a car, you can accidently get stuck or roll over, and since there is no reset button, and you don't have any weapon in your hands, you can't do anything about it. Respawning will only break the game completely, so you won't be able to move.
Then I created my session, and problems started to reveal themselves one by one. The lighting is very poor, and the shadows are completely broken (especially on Valermo). You walk to the mission point, and you have a solid gray color under your feet, as if the sun is at a perfectly straight angle above you. The situation with interiors is no better, in many rooms there is no such thing as shadows and they are illuminated exactly the same as the street. Reflections are poor, I can only see my hands and weapon. I have no problems with not the most advanced graphics, especially since TI has also never been about visuals, but about action. However, with all there is, the optimization is not good, thanks to all the UE rough edges for that, I guess. I honestly don't understand how such an unstable and low fps can be with such a visual. It's even more strange when the specified system requirements are quite lenient.
There are significant issues with the sound effects, they either not play, or they overlap (including reloading, driving, explosions, etc). The dead bots say phrases like "I'm going for cover," which is comical, especially if their heads are gone, but confusing when you're looking for other enemies in the vicinity. No water sound, granades are weak and vehicle SFXs are awful. Can it actually sound more like a car and not a leaf blower screaming in my right ear? WHY DO SILENCED GUNS SOUND SO UNNATURALLY WEIRD AND WONKY?! Like a broken flute or something. If you don't plan on making it more realistic, please, at least make it sound cool, like in action movies (you have a perfect game for it). It just doesn't give that satisfying punch.
A friendly AI is not so bad, but the civilians and enemy AI is downright dumb. They can stand still for very long or acting confused until they get eliminated. Very often I could see their limbs clipping through the door, and they shoot me, as if I'm right in front. The static image of the operator with glitch effects appearing in the right corner looks ridiculous and silly (at least make it animated). Very small amount of environment can be broken or damaged. The weapons look weird and low-quality (it's 2026, c'mon). And cars in the city are just objects glued to the floor (annoying when you're driving through the narrow streets). You can only drive those you are given (which is a huge L).
Huge number of bugs: everything gets stuck in walls, objects and NPCs appear right in front of your eyes, the drawing range is minimal (you can see every texture loading), cars fly off surfaces (like in a pinball machine), a lot of invisible walls and places where you can easily fall through the map and die, and so on. And my favorite, the one where you need to escort the VIP along the green path, the mark on the map disappears and you fail the mission once the time has run out.
I unironically like shooting in the spirit of the previous game. AR is still crazy, and fun as hell (tho a bit slower). There are lots of innovations, such as reviving, drones, the ability to walk in very narrow spaces (f.e., the interior of a bus), which I was personally very impressed with. There is a modest selection of real anti-terrorist organizations, and they actually added dogs back, which is a huge thing today, I respect that. I like the idea of customizing individual body parts and weapon mods, with time and the right direction, I'm sure it can grow into something great. The maps are pretty big and open - perfect for a street shootout and they look nice most of the time.
Probably what bothers me the most is that they rejected PVP (which imo made TI the most fun) even as a separate mode, and that you can't play for a criminal faction.
Please, consider this not as a negative review, but as an actual feedback. I really wish this game success and want to see it develop and grow. However, for the amount of content that is currently in the game (including two maps), personally, I can't recommend it at this price, even with a discount.
