Future Cop: LAPD
Developer(s)EA Redwood Shores
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts
Composer(s)Dave O'Neal
Platform(s)PlayStation
Microsoft Windows
Mac OS
ReleasePlayStation
  • EU: September 1, 1998
  • NA: September 16, 1998[1]
Windows
Mac OS
Genre(s)Third-person shooter
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Future Cop: LAPD is a third-person shooter developed by EA Redwood Shores and published by Electronic Arts and released first for the PlayStation, then Mac OS and Microsoft Windows. Future Cop was originally developed as an installment of the Strike series.

In the game, players assume the role of a pilot for the X1-Alpha, a robot designed to fight in the "Crime War" in Los Angeles in the year 2098. The X1-Alpha is a police vehicle that can transform between a fast, hovering pursuit vehicle, and a slower, full-fledged combat mecha.

Gameplay

There are two modes of play in the game, Crime War and Precinct Assault (both modes can be played either as single player or two player). Precinct Assault is a strategy mode that is similar to Herzog Zwei (except the player can actively help their armies get to the other base) and is well known for inspiring MOBA games like DotA and League of Legends.[3][4]

Crime War Mode

Crime War is a story mode, following a day in the life of an LAPD X1-Alpha pilot. The story events range from rogue lunatics arming observatories with weapons, to a malfunctioning supercomputer. Players begin in a futuristic Griffith Park, but as they advance through the game they may unlock areas such as Venice Beach, LAX and Long Beach. Crime War also supports a second player in cooperative play. Cooperative play features the unique feature that the life bars of the two players are intertwined; if either player is destroyed, it counts as a failure for both players.

Precinct Assault Mode

Cited as an early MOBA game, Precinct Assault is an arena battle mode in which each player starts with a single base and can capture automated Turrets or Outposts across the map. The objective is to defeat one's opponent by purchasing and deploying Hovertanks to invade their main base. The game ends when one player's base is breached by either a standard or super-sized "Dreadnought" Hovertank. Players may also deploy defensive Helicopters or the "Flying Fortress" Superplane to assist in securing their perimeter, shooting down enemy tanks that come near the base. Single-player mode consists of fighting a computer opponent named "Sky Captain", whose in-game avatar is a Superplane, more powerful and advanced than the X1-Alpha. Two player mode is a competitive battle between two X1-Alpha robots. There are five different precinct assault areas with 10 difficulty settings (for single player); however the level "La Cantina" was not on the original PlayStation release, only being added later for the computer versions. There is also a bonus area, known as 'Bug Hunt', which is the same as the 'Proving Ground' level, except all objects have been made into creatures such as worms and butterflies, instead of Hovertanks and Helicopters. The Flying Fortress is now a bat, and the Dreadnought is a large, armored caterpillar. The level features an up-beat music track in comparison to the game's normal dark military music and "Sky Captain" is a dragonfly.

The PC version also allowed for online competitive play,[5] technically making Future Cop: LAPD the first MOBA game ever released.

Reception

The game received favorable reviews on both platforms, according to the review aggregation website GameRankings.[6][7] In Japan, where the PlayStation version was ported and published by Electronic Arts Square under the name Sōkō Kidōtai L.A.P.D. (装甲機動隊L.A.P.D.) on August 5, 1999, Famitsu gave it a score of 29 out of 40.[13]

AllGame gave the PlayStation version four stars out of five, saying, "Fun? You bet! The bottom line is that Future Cop is the ticket for fans of the Strike series and those longing for a third person shooter with personality."[25]

The Macintosh version was nominated for Best Macintosh Game at the 1998 CNET Gamecenter Awards, which went to Unreal.[26]


Notes

  1. ^ GamePro gave the PC version 4.5/5 for graphics, 3/5 for sound, and two 3.5/5 scores for control and overall fun factor.
  2. ^ GamePro gave the PlayStation version three 4.5/5 scores for graphics, sound, and control, and 5/5 for overall fun factor.

References

  1. ^ GameSpot staff (September 16, 1998). "Now Shipping to Stores [date mislabeled as "April 28, 2000"]". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 28, 1999. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  2. ^ a b IGN staff (November 25, 1998). "News Briefs". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on March 4, 2000. Retrieved April 23, 2021. Now Shipping: Electronic Arts is shipping Future Cop: L.A.P.D....
  3. ^ Lopuszanski, Stefan (July 2019). "It's Mods All The Way Down". doi:10.13140/RG.2.2.25818.08644. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. ^ McCarthy, Caty (October 19, 2017). "The Rise and Fall of Visceral Games". USgamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  5. ^ "Future Cop: LAPD". Play Old PC Games. May 23, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. for PC". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. for PlayStation". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  8. ^ Rausch, Allen (December 31, 1998). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. (PC)". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  9. ^ D'Aprile, Jason (September 29, 1998). "Future Cop: LAPD (PS)". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  10. ^ Hunter, Scott (January 6, 1999). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D." Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on July 9, 2003. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  11. ^ Nguyen, Thierry (March 1999). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D." (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 176. Ziff Davis. p. 163. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  12. ^ EGM staff (October 1998). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D.". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 111. Ziff Davis.
  13. ^ a b "装甲機動隊L.A.P.D. [PS]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  14. ^ Storm, Jon; Anderson, Paul; Reiner, Andrew (November 1998). "Future Cop [L.A.P.D.] - PlayStation". Game Informer. No. 67. FuncoLand. p. 57. Archived from the original on September 14, 1999. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  15. ^ Morris, Daniel (1999). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. Review for PC on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  16. ^ Scary Larry (October 1998). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. (PS)". GamePro. No. 121. IDG Entertainment. p. 164. Archived from the original on August 20, 2004. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  17. ^ Dick, Kevin (September 1998). "Future Cop L.A.P.D. Review (PS)". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on December 27, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  18. ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (September 25, 1998). "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. Review (PS) [date mislabeled as "May 2, 2000"]". GameSpot. CBS Interactive.
  19. ^ Blevins, Tal (December 14, 1998). "Future Cop: LAPD (PC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  20. ^ Perry, Douglass C. (September 16, 1998). "Future Cop: LAPD (PS)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  21. ^ Ho, Jennifer (March 1999). "Future Cop: LAPD". MacADDICT. No. 31. Imagine Media. p. 42. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  22. ^ "Future Cop: L.A.P.D.". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. Vol. 2, no. 1. Ziff Davis. October 1998.
  23. ^ Lee, John (February 1999). "Future Cop [L.A.P.D.]". PC Accelerator. No. 6. Imagine Media. p. 94. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  24. ^ Williamson, Colin (February 1999). "Future Cop L.A.P.D." PC Gamer. Vol. 6, no. 2. Imagine Media. Archived from the original on February 29, 2000. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  25. ^ Marriott, Scott Alan. "Future Cop: L.A.P.D. (PS) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
  26. ^ Gamecenter staff (January 29, 1999). "The CNET Gamecenter.com Awards for 1998! (Macintosh Nominees 1)". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved November 16, 2021.

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