Spec Ops: The Line, just announced over the weekend at the Video Game Awards in Los Angeles, is 2K Games‘ “next big shooter”. The publisher has detailed the game today, which promises an emotional story set in a sand-stormed Dubai.
You’ll play as Captain Martin Walker, leader of an elite Delta Force team ordered to infiltrate Dubai — hit with the biggest sandstorm ever recorded — and bring home US Army Colonel John Konrad.
A full single-player campaign and multiplayer features with both competitive and team-based modes will be present in the game; one multiplayer mode is promised to be “a never-before-seen mode with unique connections to the main story”.
One of the game’s coolest features is probably the dynamic sand, which can “turn the tables on foes by crushing them under a cascade of sand cast down by a strategically placed shot.” However, the sand can work against you as well, so be on your toes because it feels like it’s “alive”.
Spec Ops: The Line is in development at YAGER under 2K Games publishing with a TBA release date for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Check out the first two screens at the gallery. The debut trailer can be seen below.
2K Games Announces its Next Big Shooter – Spec Ops(R): The Line
Narrative-driven military shooter features intense combat and gut-wrenching decisions set against the backdrop of the sandstorm-ravaged city of DubaiNew York, NY – December 14, 2009 – 2K Games, the publisher of the critically acclaimed BioShock® and Borderlands™, announced today that Spec Ops®: The Line™ is currently in development at YAGER for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC. Spec Ops: The Line is a provocative and gripping third-person modern military shooter that challenges players’ morality by putting them in the middle of unspeakable situations where unimaginable choices affecting human life must be made.
“At the heart of the 2K DNA is the creation of intellectual properties that provide consumers with compelling narrative, heart-pounding action, and worlds that come to life around them,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “Spec Ops: The Line is the epitome of a 2K Games title and incorporates all of our gameplay values: immersive experiences that draw you in, unique and innovative features that make you rethink the way you play them, and an amazingly high quality bar that is synonymous with the 2K name. By meeting these core values, I’m confident that Spec Ops: The Line will be a great experience that people will enjoy playing for years to come.”
Spec Ops: The Line unfolds within the destroyed opulence of Dubai. Once the playground for the world’s wealthiest elite, Dubai has fallen victim to a series of cataclysmic sandstorms. The city’s ultramodern architecture lies half-buried under millions of tons of sand. The very sand that blankets the city plays a marquee role in altering combat situations and serves as a powerful but unpredictable force that will both help and hinder players throughout the course of the game.
While most people have fled the now-barren wasteland before the sandstorms swept through, U.S. Army Colonel John Konrad and his loyal squad remained behind to protect those incapable of escape. Unable to reach anyone in Dubai after the storm hit, the U.S. Army feared Konrad and his team dead until they picked up a weak distress signal and launched a rescue operation. As U.S. Army Captain Martin Walker, you and your elite Delta Force team are sent to infiltrate the treacherous region to bring Konrad home. Players will experience “The Line”, that razor’s edge known only to men who deal in war. It is the line they cross when death and duty become one and the same. It is the end — of self and sanity — when their duty is done and only they remain.
“The production of Spec Ops: The Line has been a tremendous experience for YAGER,” said Timo Ullman, managing director at YAGER. “Our close collaboration with 2K Games over the course of this production has allowed us to achieve our goal of giving players a unique and exciting gaming experience in Spec Ops: The Line. YAGER’s goal is to always push the boundaries of what is possible and exceed players’ expectations in every production.”
Spec Ops: The Line underscores 2K’s commitment to deliver original and innovative single and multiplayer experiences to current generation consoles and PCs. Spec Ops: The Line will take that commitment to the next level by providing players with a new and exciting multiplayer experience that offers a unique perspective on the single-player storyline.
Spec Ops: The Line is not yet rated by the ESRB. The title is planned for release during Take-Two’s 2011 fiscal year, which begins on November 1, 2010. For more information, please visit www.specopstheline.com.
