The most epic “Realistic” Ghost Recon mission never released!

When I first started at Red Storm Entertainment in the early 00’s as an assistant designer, my task for the first few months was to get up to speed on RSE’s proprietary Ghost Recon scripting system.  Since I had been a prior Rainbow Six modder, I was familiar with scripting, but Ghost Recon’s system was much more complex than the earlier engine iterations.

As part of my “training” I was told to come up with scenarios, document them, and then script them to work in game, utilizing existing maps.  I did a few different missions, the first being something silly revolving around setting people on fire, then a tutorial mission that was used to build a guide for community modders, and then a mission of my own design.  I decided to make a truly realistic Ghost Recon mission (since the forums were so full of requests for “realism.”).  

While I may still have the mission file laying around somewhere, here is the gist of that mission design.  I recently talked about it on twitter, and someone said I should do a writeup of it.  So here it is.

Mission: Guard Duty

Map: Fortress

Objective 1: Move to Guard Tower

Objective 2: Patrol Guard Tower for 12 Hours

Objective 3: Do not violate ROE

Objective 4: Return to HQ

Objective 1:  Player must move from spawn point, at HQ entrance, to designated guard tower.  If player fails to enter guard tower within 5 minutes, or exits base boundaries, mission fails.

Objective 2: Once player is in guard tower, player must patrol guard tower, demarcated by four volumes (or zones, in 2D GR scripting parlance).  If player does not move from current zone to a new zone every 30 seconds (i.e., falls asleep), mission fails.  If player leaves guard tower before 12 hours is completed, mission fails.

Objective 3: Only engage valid targets.  If player fires weapon with no threat, mission fails.  Script calls for a 1/500 chance that at a random time durring mission an enemy sniper will spawn in one of 20 locations and move to LOS of player.  If player shoots sniper before he shoots, mission fails.  If sniper kills player, mission fails.

Objective 4: Oncer player completes Objectives 1-3 without failing, player must move to entrance to base HQ within 5 minutes.  If player does not, or player exits base boundries, mission fails.

MISSION COMPLETE

So there you have it.  The most realistic Ghost Recon ever designed.  Needless to say it was not all that popular, and never shipped, because it sucked.  Like real life.

Hope you enjoyed it.

@serellan

www.serellan.com