DEFCON

There are certain films that form an indelible bond with a particular generation, and for we of Generation X, that film will always be WarGames. Staring Mathew Broderick, WarGames was the movie that introduced countless impressionable Reagan-era youngsters to the joys of hacking! Who can honestly say that, after seeing the film, we did not have fantasies of hacking into our high school’s computer system and changing our grades (“password: pencil”)? Or about breaking into a Sunnyvale computer to play an unreleased computer game (“Protovision, I have you now!”). Or…to play a nice game of “Thermonuclear War”? Yes, I think of all the fantasies cooked up by that seminal film, the ability to hack into NORAD’s mainframe and play a world-ending game of nuclear warfare against the WOPR probably was the most enticing (indeed, after the movie’s release, NORAD defended against an unprecedented number of hacker attacks). It has proven such a popular idea that, spanning from the Atari 800 to the PC, various game companies have attempted to replicate that film’s thrilling apocalyptic simulation with less than satisfying results. Now we have another attempt: Introversion’s DEFCON: Everybody Dies. Will the company known for innovative game design succeed where many others have failed? Read on….

DEFCON arrives on your hard drive as a petite 58.5 MB download that is activated with a purchased key for $17.50 (albeit, you can order a limited boxed edition for slightly more). Installing the game is quick and painless and, before long, you will be confronted with the sinister green interface of a defense mainframe computer (it is here that you will get your first inkling of how stylish DEFCON can be; every small detail is designed to maintain the illusion that this is something more than a mere game). From this initial screen, which is dominated on the top right by the foreboding “DEFCON: www.Everybody-Dies.com” to the scrolling casualty projection figures on the bottom left (as well as some classic references to the movie WarGames), you are free to set-up your game in a number of ways. For example, you can select a solo experience (one human versus up to five AIs) or as a six-player grand brawl multiplayer match. Likewise, you can specify a number of gameplay options, from score calculation (with such inviting titles as “survivor” and “genocide”) to alliance rules and unit deployment specifications. Most importantly, you can select which continental power you wish to control: North America, South America, Europe, Russia, Asia/Middle East, or Africa (I am unsure why Oceania was exempted from the destruction). Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with just how many set-up options were available. Who knew there were so many ways to destroy the world?

Once you are satisfied with the parameters, you then enter the game proper which is played upon an austere blue Mercator projection of the globe. Immediately you are informed that the world is at Defcon (Defense Condition) 5 with about six minutes left until the next level (Defcon 4). These Defcon levels are important as they govern what activity is possible at any given moment. For example, you are only free to place units on the map through Defcon 4. When at Defcon 3 or 2, are you able to initiate non-nuclear hostilities. And, of course, at Defcon 1, you are given authority to let the nukes fly. Since you only have roughly twelve minutes until Defcon 3, you should get to work placing your units so as not to run out of time.

Military units in DEFCON operate in the typical ‘rock-scissor-paper’ fashion. You have land units (missile silos, radar installations, and air bases), air units (fighters and bombers), and naval units (submarines, battleships, and carriers) which can be grouped into six-ship fleets. Each one of these units has a specialty. For example, fighters are great at shooting down bombers; bombers are great at sinking carriers; and carriers are very good at depth-charging subs. Similar to chess, the real trick to DEFCON is learning the particular strengths and weaknesses of each unit type and maximizing the abilities of each through a combined-arms approach. For example, to successfully launch a carrier-based attack, you will need to put together a fighter screen for the slower and weaker follow-up bombers. Failure to do so will cost you quite a bit in aircrews! Likewise, I have found that a good fleet is comprised of two carriers, three battleships, and at least one sub as such a combination can meet just about any threat above, on, or below the surface (just my two cents---DEFCON encourages each player to come up with his own unique strategies and force mixtures).

It should also be pointed out that many units in DEFCON have multiple capabilities. Missile silos are interesting in that, at the player’s behest, they can be set to launch ICBMs or to act as an air defense installation and shoot down incoming air targets (both missiles and aircraft). Submarines can be set to active sonar mode and used to attack other ships, or remain in stealthy passive sonar mode to sneak just off an enemy coastline, awaiting its moment fire a nuclear salvo. Bombers can be used in a conventional fleet attack mode where they will launch air-to-surface missiles against naval vessels, or as nuclear bombers against any conceivable target, from airbases to cities. This dual-capability role adds greater complication to the already full strategic plate of the player and requires that you think creatively and carefully weight the pros and cons of utilizing a unit in a particular fashion.

Added to the already satisfying military mix is diplomatic relations! When playing in an online multiplayer session, DEFCON very much resembles the classic board game DIPLOMACY. Players are free to form alliances and cooperate in any way they see fit. Want to form a defensive league of nations? Have at it! Do you want to secretly conclude a treaty with a hostile power and backstab the members of your defensive league? Knock yourself out! The possibility of betrayal, with the resulting horrific cost to the safety of your citizens, will forever make you paranoid and looking over your shoulder. “Hey! Why is my radar station detecting Russian bombers over Alaska? Oh, wait, it’s okay---he’s an ally. Or…is he? Scramble the fighters!” You get the idea. The alliance system makes for a wonderful, extra dimension to already great gameplay.

Once the units are deployed, alliances are formed, and hostilities commence, the game becomes remarkably…engaging? Tense? Riveting? Shocking? Truth be told, it is all these things! Even though DEFCON could be dismissed as a mere “beer and pretzels” strategy game, the truth of the matter is that it plays out in a remarkably realistic fashion. It is simply fascinating to watch the world incrementally slide from conventional hostilities to nuclear Armageddon! Wars almost invariably begin with naval skirmishes that evolve into multi-fleet actions as players fight for control of the seas. If the battle moves close to a shoreline, land-based fighters and bombers will add their might to their carrier-based cousins. Enemy fighters will eventually start scouting the land for defense installations (silos, radar stations, air bases) that can be targeted with air-launched Short Range Ballistic Missiles, sub-launched Medium Ranged Ballistic Missiles or Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles. Soon, large air battles of deadly seriousness take place high over the continents...and then it happens. Defcon 1 is reached and somebody, either out of frustration or because of some perceived advantage, launches a nuclear weapon. It is here that DEFCON moves from intense wargame to the surreal game of survival. Nukes, via subs, bombers, or silos, start inching their way across the screen with nothing but air defense installations to stop them. As a player, you know that a single hit can easily kill millions of people (and cost you points as well!), or, with two or three strikes, kill an important strategic asset. It is no exaggeration to say that this portion of the game, which can last longer than you might expect (over an hour at 1X speed), will literally have you on the edge of your seat as enemy missiles burst from the ocean and descend from the sky. Horror will mix with rage as this endgame of endgames rages across your screen. When it is over, you will be both stunned by the destruction and satisfied by the gaming experience.

A wonderfully moody soundtrack enhances the powerful gameplay. Quiet, somber music plays in the background for most of the game, occasionally underscored by a distant, sobbing woman. At times, the music will stop and a strange, open-air electronic hum will fill your speakers, reminiscent of what one might here deep underground in a computer-filled war room. A rumble of far-off nuclear thunder, something I find superbly dreadful, indicates a successful strike. All in all, it is enough to give you the chills. I think it is a testimony to the cleverness of this audio presentation that I have yet to disable the sound!

DEFCON does suffer from a few odd decisions. First, and foremost in my mind, is the bizarre lack of a save game function! Now, I do suspect that the designers probably felt that the ability to save and restore a game would undo the tension that they so painstakingly attempted to create via the gameplay. No doubt, the designers probably also felt such an option was unnecessary as, with the ability to accelerate the gameplay by a factor of 20x, any session can be finished in minutes. But still! I have often found myself in intense solo battles that I was unable to complete do to pressing obligations---regrettably, I had to either abandon the game unfinished or let it play itself out without any further input from me. Terrible! Please, please give us the ability to take even a momentary breather!

Also weird is the decision not to include a manual with the download. Now, to be fair, the boxed version does come with a printed manual, and there is a link to download a PDF manual from the Introversion forum, but why, oh why, is not one just included with the demo? Since the manual is just over 2 MB, surely size is not a factor in this decision. Why then? I find this a shame as the manual is presented as a stylish Cold War-era survival pamphlet and does contain a number of interesting gameplay explanations. Manuals add value to any game and should to be included with all downloadable games.

Lastly, I find that fighter performance needs to be quickly tweaked as their legs are just too short. It is very difficult to accomplish anything with this unit without it becoming a one-way suicide mission (I could honestly say that about 40% of all my fighter fatalities are not due to combat, but smashing into the ground while trying to return to base for more fuel!). It would help if you are given some warning when a fighter is exceeding his operational radius but, alas, you are not and pilots often pay the price of this oversight.