In the Line of Fire Kickstarter Cancelled

In the Line of Fire was possibly the most ambitious Kickstarter we've yet seen for the Dreamcast, with a bespoke 3D engine designed from the ground up for Sega's hardware. Not only this, it wasn't a stretch goal for an existing project. A full-on 3D shooter with tactical gameplay elements and multiplayer options specifically created for the Dreamcast. We covered it several times here at the Junkyard, from the first teaser shots to the Kickstarter launch, and we got to preview an early build, and it looked like such a promising game. Sadly, the project didn't get the backing it deserved on Kickstarter and the team appear to have cancelled the game. An update from Wilson Guerrero of Militia Studios was posted on the project page which reads:

"Hello everyone, first I want to thank you all, you are one amazing and generous group of people. 
Sadly I'm quitting the team right now and the sound designer is gone too so basically there is no team now. Best regards."

- Wilson Guerrero, Militia Studios

It's a real shame because In the Line of Fire represented - to me at least - a move away from the myriad 2D shooters and platformers that have come to the Dreamcast. It represented something of a turning point for crowd-funded games and maybe a glimmer that there was a bright future for Dreamcast indie development - even more so when you consider Militia was looking to release the engine to other developers. The level of detail in the enemy character models, and environment in the stage I got to sample was almost on a par with commercially-related software.

However, the failure of something as impressive as In the Line of Fire to gain backing will no doubt make other potential developers question if the Dreamcast is a financially viable platform to put their games out on. Last year the impressive looking Xenocider from Retro Sumus also failed to hit its target, although that game was was resurrected through pre-orders. There are still plenty of games coming - at least at the time of writing - for the Dreamcast, but that In the Line of Fire was so criminally ignored could potentially have repercussions for future development on the system.

El Charnock Returns!

My continued efforts to get Tom's likeness digitised into a Dreamcast game has been given a huge kick in the pants thanks to the new crowd-funding campaign that started this week. While our chance to shoot Tom in the face in Retro Sumus's game Xenocider was scuppered due to a lack of funds (on both sides), we have a brand new chance to see our Mancunian candidate starring on our favourite little white box of tricks.

Initially, not one, but two of the support tiers for the upcoming indie tactical FPS game In the Line of Fire, gave us the opportunity to see a digitised Tom shoot other people in the face. I was going to focus on the higher tier: Become Gun Cage Manager, which would have seen Mr. Charnock taking a leading role in the game, but some lucky sod has already beat us to it.

You sunk my Battleship!

But fear not, we still have one remaining avenue to get Tom into the game. As of now, there are still 12 spots left for Tom's ugly mug to feature on a support character that will also be available in multi-player. Imagine how cool that would be, we might still get a chance to shoot him in the face...

Dreamcast Exclusive Shooter In The Line Of Fire Hits Kickstarter

A few months ago we shared some brand new images of Militia Studios' awesome Dreamcast exclusive tactical first person shooter In the Line of Fire. We were given access to an early build of the first mission, in which a lone police officer must try to prevent bank robbers from escaping with and contents of the vault, pursuing them through the offices and eventually onto the roof of the bank. It wasn't perfect and it needed work, but as an early demonstration of what Militia Studios were trying to achieve, it was nothing short of breathtaking. With graphics comparable to those seen in officially released games like Headhunter, we knew In the Line of Fire was going to be special. Now we all get the opportunity to make this a reality.

In the Line of Fire has finally hit Kickstarter with a full campaign that details all of the features the team at Militia want to include. A lengthy single player mode, squad-based tactical gameplay elements where you control a team of up to four AI teammates, split screen and online multiplayer modes. Additional third person camera modes allow you to 'tag' enemies and then pop out from behind cover to take shots at them, and the final game promises other features such as hacking CCTV controls and being able to issue on the fly commands to your team...the list goes on.

At this point, I know what you're thinking. Not another Dreamcast Kickstarter?! Wait. This is different. It's different because In the Line of Fire is literally built from the ground up as a Dreamcast game. It is not a stretch goal. It started life a Dreamcast game, and will only ever be a Dreamcast game. And for that reason we cannot champion this project enough.

New Dreamcast Game Revealed: In The Line Of Fire

A few months ago we showed off some images of a brand new first person shooter that didn't actually have a name. If you don't know what I'm talking about, cast your mind back to those pictures of the clowns holding invisible guns. If you still don't know what I'm blathering on about, simply cast your peepers downward a few pixels and refresh your memory:

Remember now? Excellent. The guys behind the 'unnamed shooter' have been hard at work behind the scenes, it seems and have finally put together a fully playable build of the game. Oh, and it has a name now too: In The Line Of Fire. I'm not usually one to blow my own trumpet (much), but I thought I should mention that I had a small hand in choosing that name...but this isn't about me. It's about a brand new story-driven first person shooter coming exclusively to the Dreamcast...and we've played the alpha build!