Line #51 VideoGame/RenegadeOps


1	[[quoteright:217:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Renegade_Ops_cover_7462.png]]
2
3	->"''Ready for some serious action, Renegades''?"
4	-->-- '''Bryant'''
5
6	''Renegade Ops'' is a [[TopDownView top-down]] Twin-Stick ShootEmUp developed by Creator/AvalancheStudios, creators of the ''VideoGame/JustCause'' series and published by Creator/{{SEGA}}. It was released on Platform/PlaystationNetwork on September 13th, 2011, and on Platform/XboxLiveArcade the following day. After a series of delays, it also came out on Platform/{{Steam}} for the PC on October 27th. As the story goes, one day Avalanche were toying with the idea of depicting ''VideoGame/JustCause'''s over-the-top action and vehicle combat as a top-down shooter. The result was apparently awesome, as they decided to make a game out of such.
7
8	It's the present day, or maybe NextSundayAD. [[EvilOverlord A power-hungry madman]] [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast by the name of Inferno]] has [[MoralEventHorizon firebombed defenseless Catalonia City]]- and promises to an assembly of world leaders that he will torch other cities [[TakeOverTheWorld if control is not ceded to him.]] [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath The leaders want to negotiate.]] But one [[FourStarBadass General Bryant]] believes that Inferno is not the sort of man to be negotiated with. [[CassandraTruth The leaders shut Bryant down,]] so he decides to take matters into his own hands, [[DefectorFromDecadence tossing his medals onto a desk in disgust.]]
9
10	Enter [[TitleDrop The Renegades]]: [[RagTagBunchOfMisfits A team of four paramilitary specialists,]] each armed with [[TravelCool a distinctive, heavily armed combat vehicle.]] [[VigilanteMan Acting outside the bounds of international law,]] Bryant leads this team on a mission to stop Inferno's mad scheme and smash his military machine, [[StuffBlowingUp one gratuitous explosion at a time.]]
11
12	The game can be played alone, or in [[CoopMultiplayer two-player split-screen or four player online co-op.]] You earn ExperiencePoints as you play, even if you do not complete a mission. A new CharacterLevel grants Upgrade Points, which are then spent on a series of upgrades that affect the offensive, defensive and [[SpecialAttack tactical]] abilities of each character's vehicle. Up to four upgrades can be equipped at any one time.
13
14	DownloadableContent was released on December 19th, 2011. One pack contains two new characters, the other a new, three-level campaign featuring EvilOverlord Coldstrike.
15
16	The game has been called the modern day equivalent of the cult classic 3DO game
17	''Return Fire'', as both are top down military-based vehicular shooters with a heavy focus on action and a sprinkling of strategy. It’s also probably the closest thing we have to a spiritual successor to EA’s classic ''VideoGame/StrikeSeries''.
18
19	----
20	!!''Renegade Ops'' provides examples of:
21
22	* AnimalMotifs: Inferno's logo is a phoenix.
23	* AttackItsWeakPoint: Damaging certain enemies sufficiently, like the Tanks or Juggernauts, [[spoiler: or Inferno's personal APC]], will reveal a glowing weak point. In particular, hitting a tank's exposed core with a rocket is a OneHitKill.
24	* AttackReflector: Armand's "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Rebound]]" upgrade causes his [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe armor shell]] to reflect bullets and rockets back at enemies.
25	* AwesomePersonnelCarrier: Armand's and Crystal's vehicle of choice. Inferno also has one... [[BiggerIsBetter though his is quite a bit bigger.]] And armed with ''[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill four]]'' [[FireBreathingWeapon flame]] turrets. There are of course regular Inferno APCs... but they aren't quite as awesome. [[StuffBlowingUp Except when they explode.]]
26	* BattleAmongstTheFlames: Given the [[MeaningfulName Inferno]] group's weapon, this can happen often. More to the point of the trope, though, [[spoiler: The FinalBoss fight against Inferno himself is this.]]
27	* TheCameo: The Platform/{{Steam}} version of the game features [[GuestFighter guest driver]] [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman!]] He drives the junked Charger from ''VideoGame/HalfLife: Episode 2'' (with some upgrades- it now sports [[MoreDakka a machine gun turret]]) and can summon [[ZergRush a mob of Antlions]] as his SpecialAttack. His car behaves much like Roxy's buggy, [[FragileSpeedster fast but lightly armored.]]
28	* CarFu: Armand's "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Ram Plate]]" upgrade allows him to destroy small enemy vehicles on contact and not lose speed when crashing through buildings.
29	* ChargedAttack: The railgun sub-weapon can be charged up to deliver more damage.
30	* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: Anything belonging to Inferno is red, Coldstrike stuff is blue. Things belonging to the Renegades are generally black.
31	* CollectionSidequest: A small one in many levels, such as rescuing hostages or collecting relics stolen by Inferno. Completing one typically nets you an [[CosmeticAward achievement.]]
32	* {{Combos}}: You have a "Damage Streak" meter, a measure of how much damage you've inflicted in a given short time. It's hampered by damage you take. Maxing it out nets you an [[CosmeticAward achivement.]]
33	* CompetitiveBalance: Armand's and Crystal's [[AwesomePersonnelCarrier APCs]] are [[MightyGlacier Mighty Glaciers]], Roxy's buggy and Gordon's charger are [[FragileSpeedster Fragile Speedsters]], and Diz's van, Gunnar's jeep and Blazemo's buggy [[JackOfAllStats fall somewhere in the middle.]]
34	* CoolBoat: Inferno's carrier... and one hell of a ChekhovsBoomerang.
35	* CoolCar: All the [[AddedAlliterativeAppeal Renegade rides.]] And maybe [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Genawi's]] limousine.
36	* CoolPlane: The Renegade's transport plane, and also the attack helicopter you get to use on occasion. CoopMultiplayer means there can be ''[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill four]]'' of these things [[DeathFromAbove swarming around a target.]]
37	* CoolTrain: Inferno's armored cargo trains, bristling with static defenses.
38	* CustomUniform: The Renegades. Not being an actual military organization, this is probably [[JustifiedTrope justified.]]
39	* DeathFromAbove:
40	** Many missions have you going after Inferno mortar trucks, which in the meantime will try to rain down shells on you... foretold by [[CrosshairAware a glowing red crosshair.]] In addition, Inferno also has attack choppers and later, rocket choppers.
41	*** Coldstrike has all that, plus the ability to air-drop groups of deployable [[SentryGun Sentry Guns.]]
42	** Roxy's special attack is an aerial strike
43	* DeflectorShields: Crystal's special ability.
44	* DownloadableContent: Done in a surprising way - if you bought the game before the DLC launched, you get the Reinforcement pack, containing two new renegades, AND the Coldstrike campaign for FREE. - whether this trend will continue, or it was a sort of "feel good" sort-of-christmas present, we don't know.
45	* TheDragon: Surprisingly, [[spoiler: Inferno]] is one to [[spoiler: Natasha.]] And ''[[spoiler: she]]'' is someone ''else's'' Dragon!
46	* ElevatorActionSequence: [[spoiler: The final battle, culminating in a duel with Inferno's personal APC.]]
47	* {{EMP}}: Diz's ability that disables enemy vehicles. An early upgrade lets it inflict damage.
48	* {{Expy}}:
49	** Inferno's {{Mooks}} of [[Franchise/GIJoe Cobra]] ones, right down to the red uniforms and flanged helmets. To a lesser extent, the Renegades of Franchise/GIJoe themselves, given their preference for high-speed, highly customized combat vehicles.
50	** Coldstrike's {{Mooks}} take this up a notch, [[GasMaskMooks adding gas masks to the look.]] This in turn makes them somewhat resemble [[Franchise/GIJoe Cobra's]] EliteMooks.
51	* EvilIsBurningHot: Inferno's favorite motif is fire.
52	* EvilLaugh:
53	** Inferno would like you to know he finds your antics rather amusing. [[VillainousBreakdown Except when he doesn't.]]
54	** Coldstrike is less prone to this, though is not above a PsychoticSmirk.
55	* EvilPlan: You don't find out the extent of it, but Stage 1 was gathering [[spoiler: slave labor to mine some type of glowing ore in Africa.]]
56	* FourStarBadass: Bryant doesn't take shit from ''anybody.''
57	* GasMaskMooks: Coldstrike's {{Mook}}s. Blazemo has the kind that only covers the nose and mouth, and couples this with GogglesDoNothing.
58	* GogglesDoNothing: Blazemo again.
59	* GreenRocks: Red Rocks, to be exact. Some type of strange ore that powers Inferno's "LVA" weaponry. [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience Coldstrike of course, has a blue version.]]
60	* FireBreathingWeapon: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin For obvious reasons]], Inferno's forces ''love'' these. Specifically, there are flame infantry and flame trucks that like to chase you around, trying to get you in range. There's also the "Smelter" tanks, [[DeathFromAbove which lob fiery mortars at you.]] You can respond in kind with the Flamer sub-weapon, which Roxy and Blazemo's buggies can be upgraded to spawn with. It has the unique quality of degrading an enemy vehicle's armor in addition to inflicting burn damage over time, meaning that an enemy set alight takes more damage from your machine guns.
61	* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the second-to-last mission, you pick up various Inferno intelligence files. Mixed in with one about Inferno himself are ones named "Coldstrike" and "Shadowhunter". Other [[EvilOverlord Evil Overlords]], perhaps?
62	** Confirmed with the Coldstrike DownloadableContent. That leaves out Shadowhunter as a [[SequelHook threequel hook.]]
63	* HeelFaceTurn: In the second mission, you rescue a woman named Natasha, an apparent ex-Inferno scientist who vows to help you defeat him. [[spoiler: [[FakeDefector At least, that's what she wants you to think...]]]] Worse, [[spoiler:it turns out that Natasha is Coldstrike, this wasn't some lowly [[{{Mooks}} mook]] infiltrating the renegades... this was a [[BigBad bigger bad]] than Inferno himself!]]
64	* HeroicMime: The player characters don't do any talking. [[TrashTalk Bryant has that pretty well tied up.]]
65	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler: Inferno]] winds up falling into [[spoiler: the lava in his [[ElaborateUndergroundBase volcano base,]]]] while [[spoiler: Coldstrike]] ends up [[spoiler: [[CruelAndUnusualDeath crushed in the depths of the earth]]]] when her [[spoiler: [[SandWorm Panzer Wyrm]]]] malfunctions.
66	* HomingProjectile: The Rocket Launcher can do this with the "Advanced Arms" upgrade installed. Some enemy rockets also try chasing the player.
67	* HordeOfAlienLocusts: [[VideoGame/HalfLife2 Gordon's Antlions]]. You can take advantage of their [[{{Determinator}} suicidal dedication]] to munching Inferno {{Mooks}} by upgrading them to drop health pickups on death... or ''[[ActionBomb explode.]]''
68	* INeedAFreakingDrink: [[spoiler: Bryant, in the ending - of both campaigns no less. With vibes of DrowningMySorrows, because of the loss of Natasha - then again, he had [[{{Squick}} a front seat view]] [[CruelAndUnusualDeath to her death at the core of the earth...]] not pretty.]]
69	--> "Let's go find a bar, Renegades. I'm buying!"
70	* InTheBack: What happens to [[spoiler: Bryant]] when [[spoiler: Natasha reveals herself as TheMole.]]
71	* InfiniteSupplies: The "Auto Reload" upgrade allows you to regenerate ammo for your secondary weapon.
72	* KillItWithFire: With a name like [[MeaningfulName "Inferno"]], this is expected for both him and his {{Mooks}}. [[MeaningfulName Blazemo]] is a more heroic proponent of this.
73	* KillItWithIce: [[MeaningfulName Coldstrike's]] [[spoiler: A.K.A. Natasha's]] specialty. [[ThemeNaming Like Inferno, this extends to the]] {{Mooks}}.
74	* LeftForDead: ''Twice,'' in quick succession. [[spoiler: Natasha, as part of her [[TheReveal reveal]] as TheMole, shoots Bryant InTheBack and leaves him lying there. She then triggers a landslide, seemingly burying the Renegades in their vehicles. [[NotQuiteDead You can't keep a good Renegade down, though.]]]]
75	* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Armand's shield ability, as well as Gunnar's "Riot Shield" upgrade, though that only protects from the front where Armand's is all sides. Blazemo also fits in here, as his flame wheel protects him from incoming damage while active.
76	* ManBehindTheMan: [[spoiler: Or rather, woman. [[TheMole Natasha]] has been pulling the strings from the beginning, and even ''she'' isn't the real BigBad. [[SequelHook Who that is, we aren't told...]]]]
77	* MagneticWeapons: The Railgun sub-weapon, of course. One of Diz's, Crystal's (and Gordon's) upgrades allows them to spawn with one.
78	* MeaningfulName: All over the place, often to the point of ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin, with the BigBad.
79	** Armand, a name that means "army's man", drives the most obviously military vehicle.
80	** Gunnar means "fighter", "warrior", or "soldier". Also, he has a big gun.
81	** While Diz is short for a name that doesn't really apply, she does make enemies "[[StatusEffects dizzy.]]"
82	** Roxy is short for Roxanne, which can mean "dawn" or "bright": Like the glare from her rocket barrage.
83	** Blazemo doesn't seem to be a real name, but it does [[KillItWithFire sum up his fighting style.]]
84	* MercyInvincibility: Of a sorts. The "Second Chance" upgrade [[LastChanceHitPoint allows you to survive what would have been a fatal hit]], but only if you can [[OhCrap find a health pickup within the next ten seconds]]- less difficult then it sounds, as health drops are common.
85	* MilitaryMashupMachine:
86	** Inferno's [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Juggernauts]] certainly count- massive war machines armed with [[MacrossMissileMassacre multiple rocket turrets]] and riding on four separate tread pods.
87	** Coldstrike gets in on the action with Golems, which in addition to lots of missiles are escorted by groups of [[AttackDrone Attack Drones.]]
88	* MoreDakka: You begin each level with a machine gun, [[EvolvingWeapon which can be upgraded via a]] PowerUp [[EvolvingWeapon with a second and then a ''third'' barrel]] for extra dakka.
89	* NGOSuperpower: Inferno's organization, in the finest tradition of classic evil organizations. Coldstrike's forces as well.
90	* NitroBoost:
91	** Every vehicle can engage an infinite boost. It's mostly useful for traveling around a map faster, as you cannot fire any weapons while boosting. However, you can get a boost upgrade that allows you to use a quick, even faster boost to evade enemies or put out flames on your car.
92	** Not to mention that Blazemo can upgrade his buggy to let him boost while his special is in effect, the only thing worse than [[IncendiaryExponent a car on fire coming at you is a car on fire that's coming at you]] ''[[OhCrap fast]]''.
93	* NonLethalBottomlessPits: If you fall into water or in an area you can't escape, you are respawned after a few seconds without losing a life. However, a few exceptions exist.
94	* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Inferno.
95	--> ''Politician: The best intelligence agencies in the world, [[LampshadeHanging and we don't even know this madman's real name!]]''
96	* OutrunTheFireball: [[spoiler: The Renegades open a prison box, hoping to find [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Genawi... ]] [[OhCrap and instead find a live LVA warhead.]] With no time to disarm it, their only option is to drive like hell across a collapsing bridge to escape the blast.]]
97	* PowerUp: Pickups found in-game include [[HealThyself health,]] [[EvolvingWeapon upgrades for your main gun,]] sub-weapons, ammo for said sub-weapons, and mission-specific drops like keycards or prisoners.
98	* PressXToNotDie: In many levels, you will need to enter certain buildings and rapidly press a button to make something happen, like raising a bridge or planting charges on a key building, [[spoiler: or you know... ''[[RammingAlwaysWorks ramming an aircraft carrier]]'' into a sealed off lair!]]. A little panel shows up when you do this, depicting your character beating up a bunch of {{Mooks}} and then performing the action.
99	* TheQuincyPunk: Roxy. I mean, check out that [[TotallyRadical radical hair, man.]]
100	* RampJump: Conveniently-placed ramps can be found throughout most of the maps. [[DynamicEntry Often, these can be used to drop in on an Inferno outpost.]]
101	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Genawi, the president of the unspecified African country you visit partway through the game. In return for rescuing his wife and protecting him and his people from Inferno, he lends some intel and resources to your cause.
102	* RecurringBoss: Inferno himself, apparently a proponent of the notion that [[EvilOverlord Evil Overlords]] can't really trust their minions to defeat the heroes. Not that it does him any good. His Phoenix gunship is itself another example, which is fought ''three times'' in one level and reappears later as a DegradedBoss.
103	* RedRightHand: After defeating him for the first time, part of Inferno's face gets badly burned.
104	* RegeneratingHealth: Not normally, but certain upgrades can provide a semblance of such. "Auto Repair" restores some health when you are low, and Armand's "Guarded Repair" upgrade causes him to regenerate while his [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe shield is active.]]
105	* TheRival: Possibly. Inferno seems to know Bryant, though that fact isn't expanded upon.
106	* SandWorm: [[spoiler:Coldstrike's secret weapon is the snowbound, mechanized "Panzer Wyrm", which Bryant makes fun of, calling it the "pansy worm" (which happens to be the name of the [[CosmeticAward achievement]] for destroying it). It proves rather detrimental to her health [[WeaksauceWeakness when the brakes fail]] and [[FastTunnelling it speeds down into]] [[CruelAndUnusualDeath the crushing depths of the earth.]]]]
107	* SeeYouInHell: [[spoiler: Inferno's LastWords (''"I WAIT FOR YOU -- '''IN HEEELL!'''"'')]]
108	* ShockAndAwe: Diz's {{EMP}} can be upgraded to damage enemies in addition to [[StatusEffects stunning them.]]
109	* ShootTheBullet: Gunnar's Heavy Gun can be upgraded to be able to shoot down incoming rockets.
110	* SigilSpam: The Renegade and Inferno logos abound. The Renegade one is a simple gray shield with a big black "R" on it, and Inferno's is a stylized phoenix.
111	* SpecialAttack: Each character has one.
112	** Armand's APC can deploy a segmented [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe armored shell,]] [[InvincibilityPowerUp negating all incoming damage.]] [[TimedPowerUp It drains quickly, however,]] and is best used as a timed block to intercept strong attacks, like missiles.
113	** Diz's van can deploy an {{EMP}}, [[TheParalyzer disabling nearby enemies momentarily.]]
114	** Roxy's buggy can [[DeathFromAbove vertically launch]] [[MacrossMissileMassacre a cluster of rockets that severely damage anything in her vicinity.]]
115	** Gunnar's Jeep can deploy itself, [[StoneWall becoming immobile]] but bringing [[{{BFG}} a nasty autocannon]] to bear. Among other abilities, it can be upgraded to fire [[StuffBlowingUp explosive rounds.]]
116	** Blazemo can turn his buggy into a [[IncendiaryExponent flaming]] [[SpectacularSpinning pinwheel]] of doom - and said flames protect him from attacks. You can't use weapons while it's active, but you don't need them- you're [[InvincibilityPowerUp an invulnerable,]] [[IncendiaryExponent flaming,]] [[{{Determinator}} unstoppable juggernaut.]] [[TimedPowerUp Briefly.]]
117	** Crystal can drop a [[DeflectorShields Forcefield]] at her location. Your teammates can shoot out of it and through it, but all enemy attacks are blocked.
118	** [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon]] [[TheBeastmaster can summon a pack of]] Antlions, which ZergRush nearby enemies. In addition to upgrades previously mentioned, [[TheHorde you can increase the swarm's raw size]], as well.
119	** While in the Helicopter, your SpecialAttack is replaced with the ability to drop flares, spoofing incoming missiles.
120	* SpiritualSuccessor: Sometimes seen as one to EA's VideoGame/StrikeSeries, especially the helicopter parts. As well as the 3DO game ''Return Fire''.
121	* StuffBlowingUp: The Game. The rocket launcher sub-weapon facilitates this. Armand and Gunnar's vehicles can be upgraded to spawn with one.
122	* TankGoodness: Inferno likes to send huge combat tanks after you, armed with anything from [[StuffBlowingUp a basic cannon to missile launchers]] to ''[[KillItWithFire flame mortars.]]'' They all dwarf your vehicle, but are in turn out-sized by Bryant's awesome Renegade tank, seen in Mission 7.
123	* TimedMission: Technically, all of them, but the time limits are so lenient that they don't even display the timer unless you're slow about shooting what you need to be shooting. A few times, it decides not to screw around and starts the timer below the normal 3-minute warning.
124	* TheUnfought: [[spoiler: Natasha... but only because [[NotQuiteDead Bryant]] [[IncrediblyLamePun beats you to the punch!]]]]
125	** Resolved in the DownloadableContent [[spoiler:where you face Natasha A.K.A. Coldstrike and her 'pansy worm.']]
126	* VehicularCombat: The core of the gameplay is driving your vehicle around with your left thumb stick while shooting everything in sight with your right. Anything that can't be shot up can usually be destroyed by running them over.
127	* TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: [[spoiler: "The Furnace", Inferno's [[ElaborateUndergroundBase mountain headquarters]] in Europe.]]
128	* VideogameLives: How many you have depends on the difficulty level. You can occasionally find one in-game, and the "Extra Life" upgrade allows you to begin with... well.
129	* VoiceWithAnInternetConnection: Bryant, and later on Natasha.
130	* WeaponizedCar: Armand's and Crystal's APC aside, the other Renegade rides fit the bill, as does Gordon's Charger.
131	* WorldOfHam: The game's story and dialogue plays out like a cheesy 80's Saturday morning cartoon mixed with a silver age comic book. Every line General Bryant says is spoken with the serious gravitas of a total badass who isn't going to take shit from anyone or let a situation get out of his control. Inferno chews the scenery with his dedicated evil dialogue with the intensity of [[WesternAnimation/GIJoe Cobra Commander]] or [[WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget Doctor Claw]] swearing vengeance for having their plans foiled again.

Context VideoGame / RenegadeOps