GDC 2009: Section 8 Hands-On

In old US military parlance, getting a Section 8 meant getting dismissed from duty for reasons of mental instability. In the upcoming game from TimeGate Studios, Section 8 is the nickname given to the 8th Armored Infantry, an elite unit of futuristic soldiers who are the first to jump in into any galactic hotspot. And when we say jump, we mean a serious jump: Section 8 soldiers drop thousands of feet from their orbiting carrier to the ground without so much as a parachute, creating a small impact crater when they land, ready to fight.

TimeGate--the team behind the two original F.E.A.R. expansions--is hoping to make a similarly large impact on the crowded first-person shooter market with Section 8, a game that's scheduled to ship sometime in the fall of this year. We managed to get some hands-on time with the game at this year's Game Developers Conference, specifically with the multiplayer side. TimeGate has been tight-lipped about Section 8's single-player segment so far, but we do know some of the story details: It's the distant future, and a rebel group of humans called the Arm of Orion have started assaults on Earth's territories. It will be your job as a Section 8 soldier to squash the upstarts, "burning in" (the game's term for a dropship jump) to various planets as a first strike force.

When it comes to multiplayer, the plan is for TimeGate to have support for 16 players on consoles and 32 on the PC. Bots will be used to populate sparse games, although real-life allies and opponents will be able to join in at any time. Due to the "burn in" mechanic, you will be able to choose any spot on the map to drop into, although jumping over enemy-controlled territory or bases will probably result in being shot down by turrets before you even land.

While the game won't have any classes per se, you will be able to select certain proficiencies before burning in. You can choose to bump up your stats in areas such as damage, shield, stealth, ammo, and more, effectively allowing you to create soldiers with different specialties. These specialties won't be locked once you start a game, however, as you can change your loadout with every spawn, or while fighting on the ground by finding supply depots.

Once on the ground, Section 8 plays like a typical shooter. We played on a large map with two bases that needed to be captured and controlled--capturing a base will turn all of its defenses (such as turrets and missile launchers) against your opposition and will also earn your team points. When fighting, your shields will automatically regenerate if you stay out of the line of fire for long enough, but any damage done to your armor is permanent (until you find that handy supply depot, that is). The weapons we saw seemed fairly stock-standard: rifles, shotguns, railguns, missile launchers, and grenades, just to name a few. You will also be able to call in tactical support using points earned during a match. Some of the support we saw included a large mech-like robot that was armed with a powerful machine gun, sensors that would jam enemy signals, and a four-person tank with plenty of firepower.

But one of the more interesting things TimeGate is including in Section 8 is what it terms "dynamic combat missions." These are randomly generated by the game's AI and will task you with objectives outside of the main capture points mission. These can include having to "assassinate" an AI-spawned opponent, escort a convoy, destroy a convoy, and more. TimeGate also says you will be able to set your own missions.

From what we saw of Section 8, the game has promise, although it's looking a little rough at this stage. The game is only in pre-alpha, however, so there will naturally be many more improvements as the months pass. Keep it locked to GameSpot for more updates.