Tactical shooter

According to IGN, tactical shooters "are about caution, care, cooperation, coordination, planning, and pacing. In these games, making decisive pushes, quick moves for cover, strategic retreats, and last ditch grabs at the gold are not only important to success, but balanced in such a way that they become enjoyable activities in play."[4] David Treharne of GameSpew identifies four criteria for what qualifies as a tactical shooter: “[M]ainly you’re looking for the use of: realistic constraints of player movement; realistically simulated ballistics and accuracy; squad based or multiple approach/style accessibility; and a low tolerance or low health realistic damage model. Basically, you usually move slower than most shooters, your accuracy is much lower and bullets drop over a distance, you usually have a squad to command, and all of you only being able to take two or three shots before dying.”[5]

Tactical shooters are designed for realism.[6] It is not unusual for players to be killed with a single bullet,[7] and thus players must be more cautious than in other shooter games.[6] The emphasis is on realistic modeling of weapons,[8] and power-ups are often more limited than in other action games.[9] This restrains the individual heroism seen in other shooter games, and thus tactics become more important.[10][11][12]

Overall, the style of play is typically slower than other action games, due to the significantly more punishing gameplay.[13] Jumping techniques are sometimes de-emphasized in order to promote realism,[14] with some games going so far as to omit a jump button.[15] In contrast to games that emphasize running and shooting, tactical shooters require more caution and patience (making use of cover and avoiding being caught in the open),[16] plus tactical shooters are usually designed so that shooting becomes inaccurate while running which increasing accuracy for crouching or prone stances.[17] Players often have the choice of shooting from the hip ("hippie") which is less accurate but gives a wider view of the area, or using the scope/iron sights for better zoom-in accuracy but at the penalty of restricted view. Some tactical shooters such as the InfiltrationMod for Unreal Tournament even lack the crosshair seen in other first-person shooters, in order to achieve a high degree of realism.[18]

Many tactical shooters make use of group-based combat, where the player character is supported by other teammates. While early tactical shooters had simple computer-controlled teammates who offered support fire, the artificial intelligence in later games has evolved with more complex teammate responses such as cover-fire mechanics.[19] In games with a sufficiently robust artificial intelligence, the player character is able to issue commands to other computer-controlled characters.[13] Some games in the genre allow players to plan their team's movements before a mission, which the artificial intelligence then follows.[7] Many games also offer a multiplayer online play, allowing human players to strategize and coordinate via a headset. Team-based tactics are emphasized more than other shooter games, and thus accurate aiming and quick reflexes are not always sufficient for victory.[20]

The level design usually reflects the game's setting. For example, the player may play the role of SWAT police fighting terrorists or other criminals,[21] or may engage in military combat in real world conflicts as either battlefield soldiers or special forces commandos.[7] Some games take place in entirely fictional universes, and incorporate elements of science fiction.[13] Each level will have different objectives. Although some levels may simply require that the player defeat their enemy,[7] other levels may challenge the player with objectives such as escorting a VIP safely to a specific location or planting a demolition charge on a target.[21] Levels are often designed with check points or alternate routes. As "run and gun" assaults are often met with heavy resistance, it becomes important to exploit a superior position and/or take the enemy by surprise and even evading them entirely.[21]

Features now common to the tactical shooters genre appeared as early as 1987, with Airborne Ranger by Microprose. Computer Gaming World compared it to the earlier arcade game Commando (a more typical action shooter of the period), but commented that it was "deeper and more versatile".[28] The game featured a limited inventory which had to be carefully managed, a variety of mission types which often promoted guile over violence, and the impetus to plan ahead and outmaneuver the enemy—all of which are features common in the tactical shooter genre as a whole. Airborne Ranger was followed by Special Forces in 1991, also by Microprose, which first introduced squad mechanics to the genre.

The next technical breakthrough came in 1993 with the release of SEAL Team by Electronic Arts. This game already offered many of the basic features associated with the genre, including utilizing support elements and vehicular units, and running a real-time simulated environment (with 3D Vector graphics) that reacts to the player's actions. Experiments in tactical shooter design were sparse over the next five years, and included Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri, released in 1996—one of first 3D-rendered games with squad-oriented gameplay.[29][30]

The first major successes of the genre came in 1998, with games such as Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon, which are credited for defining and refining the genre.[21][31][32] Another key title was Delta Force, which emphasized real-world weaponry and quick kills.[8] Other influences on the genre included games such as the SOCOM series, as well as the SWAT series - a spin-off from the Police Quest series of adventure games.[21]

Rainbow Six has been credited as a revolutionary game,[33] which defined the conventions of the genre.[34] The game was inspired by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Hostage Rescue Team, and was designed to replicate a team of specialists performing a skilled operation. The game was designed to emphasize strategy in a way that would be fun for players without the best reflexes.[35] The series has since become a benchmark for the genre in terms of detail and accuracy.[36]

Some of the most notable tactical shooters have been total conversion mods of first person shooter titles which have been released for free. Infiltration, a total conversion of Unreal Tournament (1999), has been described as "turning Unreal Tournament's wild cartoon action into a harrowing game of cat and mouse". Infiltration has been noted for detailed aiming system including hip ("hippie") and scope/iron fire while lacking a crosshair, different movement stances (running, walking, crouching, and prone, leaning around corners), and a customizable loadout system that allows configuration of weapons (including attachments) with a weight penalty.[37] Half-Life: Counter-Strike (2000), a mod of Half-Life (1998), was the most popular multiplayer game of its era despite the release of first-person shooters with more advanced graphics engines such as Unreal Tournament 2003.[25][38] One of the developers of the Half-Life expansions was Gearbox Software, who in 2005 released the game Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 that further defined the genre.[39][40] Critics praised the game for not only adding realism to its first-person shooter gameplay, but also in its unique tactical gameplay that allows players to command soldiers and teams during combat.

• Military simulation, where individual soldiers or units are not directly controlled by the player are often real-time tactics games. Tactical shooters are video-games, while Military simulations take place in real life.
• MilSim, a genre of recreation incorporating real life activities and video games