Soldier of Fortune

Soldier of Fortune sends the player into the role of a mercenary chasing stolen nuclear weapons around the world, from the New York subway through Siberian complexes to locations in Africa and Asia. The structure is classically mission-based, meaning progress through corridors, objective completion, and firefights against huge numbers of armed enemies, but the game stands out for its weapons. The arsenal is largely based on real-world models, each weapon has a secondary fire mode and distinct behavior, so a shotgun, a sniper rifle, and a flamethrower all really handle differently. Good pacing helps too, alternating open firefights with quieter stretches and squadmate escorts.

What people talked about most was the localized-damage system, which could tell exactly where a bullet landed and change both the enemy's reaction and its model accordingly. The result was an extreme level of brutality for its time, which got the game released in trimmed versions in some countries and made it a fixture in debates about violence in games. The developers aimed for a realistic touch too, working with an expert with real combat deployment experience on mission design. Technically the game was built on modified Quake II technology, so it ran smoothly even on weaker rigs of the day, with hardware acceleration support and quality weapon sound.

Contemporary reviews praised the gameplay and weapon handling, with criticism aimed at the repetitive environments and the fact that the story is little more than an excuse. Even so, the game found a large audience and got a sequel. Its influence is mainly technical, since it showed that more precise hit reactions could dramatically change the feel of shooting, and similar systems later showed up elsewhere. Today Soldier of Fortune is a legible period action title with excellently tuned shooting, but it lacks variety, and its portrayal of violence may be uncomfortable for some players.