Outtrigger

North American Dreamcast cover art
Developer(s)	Sega AM2
Publisher(s)	Sega
Producer(s)	Yu Suzuki[1]
Platform(s)	Arcade, Dreamcast
Release	Arcade 1999 Dreamcast NA: July 24, 2001 JP: August 2, 2001 EU: August 3, 2001
Genre(s)	First-person shooter, third-person shooter

Outtrigger (アウトトリガー) is a first/third-person shooter video game developed by Sega AM2 for the Sega NAOMI arcade cabinet and the Dreamcast. The game was originally released in 1999 for the arcades and was later ported over to the Dreamcast in 2001 where supported online play for up to six players was added in; however, this function was taken out of the European version before release, but the split-screen multiplayer remains.^[2] The game also can be played from either a first-person or a third-person perspective.

Gameplay

The player chooses one of four characters to play as. Each character has a weapons specialty (such as laser pulse rifles or sniper guns) as well as different attributes (such as speed and jumping ability).^[3] The story revolves around a counterterrorism organization called Interforce, set up in response to terrorist attacks on military research facilities.

Along with the default characters, there is an edit mode for players to create their own character by combining weapons of other characters. Each character is limited to three weapons: a general shooting weapon, an artillery-type explosive weapon, and grenades. The stages of the game have a number of power-ups, including thermography allowing players to see through walls, a plasma cannon that shoots a ball of energy which can bounce off walls, and a power-up icon that temporarily increases damage.^[3] The game also has a frag system where fragging an opponent gives the player an opportunity to collect a coin for an extra point, encouraging players to directly confront and frag opponents rather than picking off enemies from a secluded corner.^[2]

Reception

The game was generally well received. On release, Famitsu magazine scored the Dreamcast version of the game a 33 out of 40.^[4] IGN gave Outtrigger an 8.6 out of 10, praising the gameplay, calling it "refreshingly different", and the graphics, calling it "one of the best looking first person shooters," but criticizing the Dreamcast version's control setup.^[3]

Edge scored the European version of the game 7 out of 10. They stated that "AM2 has ingeniously incorporated typical Japanese game design and its arcade heritage" with FPS mechanics, resulting in "something quite refreshing" and "somewhat new territory." They praised Outtrigger for its "colourful, lively" environments, unique character personalities, fast action, and frag system, but criticized the removal of online multiplayer from the European version.^[2]

References