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Overview |
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Alterius is a single-player modification for the game Unreal Tournament 2004. The game will include a mixture of stealth-based gameplay, puzzles, and fast-paced action segments. Whenever possible, multiple solutions to the game's challenges will be made available to encourage exploration and creative problem solving on the part of the player. Players are further pushed to invest themselves in the game world when faced with choosing between potential allies who are not clearly good or evil.
Additionally, the world of Alterius will be a lush, dynamic environment that takes full advantage of Unreal Tournament 2003's graphical and physics capabilities. Swinging rope bridges connecting soaring, biomechanical towers, glowing lamps swaying gently in the breeze, and an overall unique, inventive conception of the world of Alterius will all contribute to an engaging and exhilarating environment for our story to play itself out in.
Another goal for the project is to include cooperative gameplay, but this feature is contingent on our having enough time to implement it. Furthermore, if we feel that this project is a success and we get positive feedback from the mod community, it's possible that we will continue development at a later date, expanding on the story and creating new environments to explore. For the time being, though, we do plan on presenting the essentials of the entire story in three acts.
Jump to a section:
Story
Characters
Weapons and Items
System Requirements
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Characters |
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Alterius is a story about characters with very human motivations. Our three main characters:
Ophelia - Our heroine, a young woman in search of independence. Known for her mastery of bio-computational systems and stealth breaking & entering operations, she's made a name for herself as a mercenary for hire in the information wars of the future. When someone needs to break into a digital or physical security system, she's on the short list of effective black market operatives. After being abandoned at a young age, she's driven by a willingness to undermine the future technocracy whose harsh realities she knows all too well.
Claudius - The villain, a man who lusts for power. He's a revered political figure and war hero who is in the process of running for the highest office in the land. The man is exceedingly unctuous, but generally respected with a "devil you know" attitude for his past heroism. Of course, he's not without his enemies. The shadowy factions opposing Claudius are what set our story in motion, as they contact Ophelia for a job that will discredit him.
Laertes - A man looking for a little justice. This is tougher than it sounds when you've been dead for about half a century, but his moment is about to come. One of the strange side effects of a future dominated by biotechnology is the interaction between human and bio-machine intelligence. Science doesn't yet understand it, but the occasional freak accident causes mysterious crossovers between the two. Since his victory in battle fifty years ago, Cladius' biomechanical armor has been a museum piece and symbol of his glory. What no one knows - at least, not yet - is that Laertes' consciousness has been trapped inside the whole time. Death and psychic imprisonment, as you can imagine, can have a debilitating effect on the psyche. Especially when the only thought that one has for consolation is exacting revenge upon the man who trapped you there.
There are many additional lesser characters and creatures you will encounter during the game. Some examples:
Security Guards - Security guards are present in some areas to maintain law and order. These guards are not be extremely tough, packing only a modestly powered helmet-mounted energy weapon and a melee attack capability. They serve mostly as a deterrent, and as handlers of the Sentripedes (see below). A careful player might find that some guards can be dealt with using words, not weapons.
Sentripedes - These roving bio-robots are quick and low to the ground. Though they have a robotic appearance, they are mostly organic, derived from genetically engineered centipede-like creatures. They have been bred to have a very specific behavior set - search and destroy intruders! You will encounter two types of Sentripede: one with a melee attack and one with a close-range venom blob attack.
Intruder Detector Mite - These floating 'security cameras' are genetically engineered insects that hover through sensitive areas scanning for intruders. A cone of phosphorescence cast over their survey area warns players to keep their distance. Also, though violence aimed at a mite is a surefire way to advertise your presence, the mites must communicate with some central security system....
Allurafish - These beautiful and alluring but dangerous aquatic creatures live in certain pools and canals. They aggressively attack anything that falls into the water and are quite deadly. If you run in to one of these beasts, running is definitely your best option.
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Weapons and Items |
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There will be a wide array of weapons and items to collect and use in Alterius. Here are a few examples of the hardware you will encounter in the game:
Bio-Armor - Stealing a legendary suit of bio-armor is your first objective in Alterius. Bio-armor is a full-body suit of armor melding organic and mechanical elements to greatly enhance a human's combat capabilities. The suit provides increased strength, greater speed and agility, and powerful integrated weapons systems. Getting your hands on it, however, is not an easy task.
Lamprey Pistol - A distant genetically modified descendant of a lamprey-like creature, the Lamprey Pistol fires venomous spines from its mouth. It has a small supply of these spines that regenerates slowly over time. The Lamprey also has an alternate melee attack - the first, most immediate effect of this attack is a massive dose of venom delivered to the victim. Additionally, a successful melee attack significantly increases the Lamprey's spine regeneration rate for a period of time as it absorbs some nutrients from the victim for its own use! The Lamprey's venom is non-lethal; rather, it induces paralysis and unconsciousness. This makes it a favorite of private black-ops personnel, as unnecessary casualties always draw unwanted attention. Unfortunately, this reliance on a carefully tailored chemical agent has the side effect of rendering it largely ineffective against non-human targets.
Shark Rifle - The Shark Rifle is an energy weapon that disrupts bio-robot tissue (and as a consequence isn't very effective against humans). Like the Lamprey Pistol, the rife has a limited ammunition capacity that regenerates on its own. It also has a melee slashing attack that does equal damage to both humans and bio-robots.
Explosive Energy Pod - Throughout the environments of Alterius, different types of energy pods grow on stalks and hanging branches. Low-energy pods are used as lights and high-energy ones for powering biomechanical equipment (including bio-armor suits). The energy pods are highly volatile and will explode if handled too roughly. This explosive tendency means that they can be used as grenades or traps - at the cost of a highly efficient source of energy for your bio-armor.
Endorphins - Endorphins can be injected into a weapon to improve its characteristics, such as firing and recharge rate. However, this boost comes with a price. After the endorphins wear off, weapons may go into a withdrawal state, firing more slowly or regenerating ammo at a reduced rate. Endorphins may also be used to improve the performance of bio-armor for a period of time. Of course, as with weapons, your bio-armor can suffer negative aftereffects from an endorphin rush.
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