Open Space: Above and Beyond – Project IGI Successor Released

Windows •

If I whisper the words ‘solid’ and ‘snake’, you’ve got a fifty-fifty chance you’re not being charged four dollars ninety-nine a minute. ‘Sam Fisher’, you know you’re dealing with a shadowy Michael Ironside and his counter-productive tri-bulb NV goggles. But if I say ‘David Llewellyn Jones’, you just might be stumped. UK politican? Author? Welsh choralist?

How about the stony protagonist in Innerloop’s tactical FPS Project I.G.I.? Because what we’ve got in Polygon Art‘s Beyond Enemy Lines is the distant fan-made descendant of that fabulous forgotten franchise.

Beyond Enemy Lines drops the player into the verdant vales of an unnamed slice of Eastern European real estate currently beset by Soviet separatists pining for the Good Ol’ Days. They’ve bagged a satellite equipped with nuclear weapons — obviously on the wrong side of the stratosphere — and it’s up to you to roll up, assess the situation and act accordingly. Here’s the spiel from its one-man developer.

Oldschool Hardcore

Beyond Enemy Lines is a true PC Hardcore Tactical Shooter. No Aim-Assistance, no unnecessary tooltips, no restrictions! Learn to control the recoil, read the terrain and adapt your tactics – Beyond Enemy Lines is an unforgiving, intense experience where skill and tactical decisions matter!

Smart AI System

An unforgiving, new generation of combat AI. Beyond Enemy Lines features an independent-minded AI, meaning that each enemy operates without pre-scripted behavior. All enemies react dynamically to each threat, and decide their tactics based on a new, innovative moral system. You’ll never know what they’ll do next or where they are patrolling. They will communicate, organize and sneak up on you, so be ready to face them!

Advanced Fighting Mechanics

You will fight with various weapons against a numerically superior enemy. Make sure to use all available tactical elements and gadgets to decide the struggle in your favor.Use your knife, a silenced pistol, the map computer or even a whistle to distract guards and strike from the shadows. Or grab an assault rifle and a shotgun and go the offensive way!

Unlimited Solution System

All missions are designed in an open way. There are thousands of routes, so make use of your equipment to find the most efficient way of completing your mission!

Noise Calculation System

Beyond Enemy Lines utilizes a movement based noise calculation system. Each move or action will result in a noise with a different intensity, calculated from your movement.Act carefully, the enemy will hear you!

Content

Beyond Enemy Lines will launch with an eight missions long campaign and two special standalone missions, with a combined average playtime of 10-15h on the first playtrough. Several new missions, each with an average playtime of 1h, will be added for free after the release.

Replayability

Beyond Enemy Lines is a hardcore tactical shooter and specifically designed to be replayed numerous times. There are no savegames while in a mission, so beating the game becomes a real challenge. It takes patience and dedication to beat this game, which makes it stand out among casual titles that are so prevalent in current times. Expect your raw skill to be tested in an unforgiving way!

Now that sounds rather good, in an ambitious, STALKER’y way. Given that Beyond Enemy Lines started out as a Project I.G.I. fan remake, and encouragingly growing, ahem, beyond the boundaries of its esteemed inspiration, I’m eager to see if the gameplay tenets still holds its own after seventeen years. Good grief. It’s been seventeen years since I scaled the water towers and stalked the railyards of the original. Certainly time to reacquaint.

We might get a thorough look up on Stately Play in the coming weeks, but until then, enjoy a video.

• Beyond Enemy Lines for Windows via Steam, $19

Liked it? Take a second to support Stately Play on Patreon!