Intruder

Overview

Intruder is a stealth-orientated multi-player first-person shooter for the PC. It has a focus on in-game communication between players, real-world tactics, and team cooperation.

It is currently in Early Access and can be purchased from the company's website.

Currently the game operates on dedicated servers which are hosted by the game's developers. Private servers are not available as of today's build.

Communication

Part of Intruder's core gameplay is based around in-game communication between players. Each player is given a radio which can be used to communicate with other members on their team. They can also chat in close-quarters using the game's spatial voice chat. Dead players are unable to communicate except with other dead players.

Spatial Voice Chat

By default the player may simply speak into the microphone for nearby players to hear him. The voice is added to the environment of the game to create a realistic communication experience. This means that the enemy team may also be able to hear you if they are close enough. The game also senses when you are speaking loud or quietly and will adjust the distance that your voice travels based on this (this can be viewed with a bar on the left side of the hud while talking).

Radio Communication

When a player is out of range of their teammates, they may take out a hand radio and use it to communicate with teammates Just like a real radio, the player must hold down the button (with left-click) to speak and then let go to hear a reply. The other teammates will hear the player's voice (with added radio static effects) whether they have their radio out or not, but must in-turn switch to their radio in order to reply. This can increase the tension as the player needs to put away their weapon temporarily when the radio is out. When talking into a radio, the spatial voice chat is still in effect. This means that enemies might hear the player while talking into the radio if the enemy is close by.

Objective

The objective of Intruder is different depending on the team you choose to play on. On each map (currently: 2) there are two briefcases which must be defended by the guards. The intruders must kill all of the guards or reach the suitcase and extract it safely to one of two extraction zones. The guards must kill all intruders in order to win the round. Currently there is no time limit for the intruders to take the package(s).

Intruder has only two maps at the moment, and the most played and furthest along in development is the 'Riverside' map. This map features 4 variations. A day map, a night map, and 2 alternate spawns for the intelligence briefcases and teams. In order to switch maps in-game you must join that map's corresponding server on the master server list. Maps currently do not change by themselves.

Combat, Physics and Gameplay Quirks

Intruder has a large array of weapons and gadgets for the player to choose from. Both the guards and intruders currently start with the same loadout at the beginning of each round, and there are a select-few weapons and items hidden around the map for players to pickup.

Opening Doors

Intruder's system for opening doors involves using the mouse-wheel while hovering over a door and scrolling to open. Doors can be opened fairly quickly by scrolling quickly, but this also allows players to scroll slowly so they can peek through the cracks of the door or avoid being heard and seen.

At the beginning of each round random doors around the level will be locked. This requires a player to use a lock-pick to open the door, which is one of the gadgets given to all players at the beginning of the game.

Balance, Energy, and HP

Intruder features a unique system for combat which utilizes three bars that the player can see on the bottom left of his screen.

The 'Balance' bar drains with movement and when firing a gun or being knocked down. The lower the balance, the easier it is to be knocked down by various forces, most commonly a gunshot or explosion. When knocked down the player goes into a ragdoll for a few seconds and must hit the jump key to get back up. The player may also, quite humorously, 'trip' over knee-high objects and go into a ragdoll as well. This normally occurs when trying to jump over a railing. If the player were to trip and then hit the floor with his head, that player most likely will die. Hitting any object, while in ragdoll, will cause damage to the player depending on the force of the impact.

The Energy bar ties into the player's Balance bar by draining when running too much, firing a gun too often, or jumping long distances. This bar can slow the player down but isn't as noticeable as a drained Balance or HP bar.

The HP bar simply shows the player's remaining health points. It's also an indicator of whether or not the player may be bleeding, which leaves blood stains on the map and could accidentally reveal their location.

Weapons

Every player starts with these two weapons and are able to use both.

The SMG

The primary weapon. Capable of 3 firing modes, semi-automatic, 3-round bursts, fully-automatic. Loud and unsuppressed, shots can be heard across the entire map and have visible tracers. The preferred weapon for Guards.

The Pistol

The secondary weapon. Suppressed and efficient, shots can only be heard in a close proximity. The preferred weapon for Intruders.

Gadgets

Each player starts with a select-few gadgets. These include a radio (see communication section), a camera arm, decoy placement, smoke grenade, confusion grenade, frag grenade, motion detector, small sticky bomb and a lock-pick.

Camera Stick

The camera stick is a semi-long pole with a camera on the end that can be used to check around corners, inside doors, or in small cracks. It creates a Picture-in-Picture in the top right corner of the screen which shows the camera's current view. Players mostly use this device to check for enemies around a corner without risking being shot or seen. Currently, other players do not see the camera fixture on the end of the pole which allows it to be concealed if used correctly.

Decoy Placement

The decoy placement can be used to deploy a cardboard cut-out of an intruder or guard (depending on player's current team) which can trick enemy players into shooting at it. It appears in-game as a standing player with the sniper rifle in a firing position.

Grenades

The smoke grenade creates a cloud of smoke which can conceal a semi-large area or offer a distraction. Players can not see while inside of the smoke and players outside of the smoke can not see into it. The gas grenade creates a small cloud of mist which, if walked into by an enemy player, blurs the player's screen and inverts his looking controls in order to throw off their aim. Leaving the area of the grenade will cause the effects to subside after a short period of time. The concussion grenade creates an explosion which can kill or knock a player down.

Motion Detector

The motion detector can be placed on a wall, ceiling or floor and will beep loudly for the player that set it if another player walks in front of it. Currently only players can set off the motion detector, which means opening doors or falling objects will not. Each player starts with three motion detectors and there is no indication for which motion detector is going off, so it is advised you place them all around the same area or you may be confused. It is also worth noting that both friendly and enemy players can set off your motion detector.

Remote Charge

The Remote Charge can be placed on walls or floors. Each player has 4 remote charges which can all be detonated simultaneously by right-clicking with the remote charge or camera stick equipped. The remote charges do not do much damage, but can be used to throw a player off balance or even across a room. Players will often place remote charges on one side of the map and then detonate them later as a decoy. They are rarely used to kill players due to their low amount of damage.

Lock-pick

The lock-pick is used to pick the locks on locked doors. Left-clicking on a locked door will open a small window with a view of the lock-keys which you must line up in order to unlock the door. This typically takes the average player around 5 to 15 seconds to complete, which can be an opportune time for an enemy to strike. Doors which are locked are random and usually affect a small percentage of doors each round. Doors which have items behind them or briefcases tend to lock the most often.

Pick-ups

There are items that players have to look around the map to use. The most useful pick-up is the sniper rifle.

Sniper

A weapon able to be picked up. Equipped with a scope. Loud and unsuppressed, shots can be heard across the entire map and have visible tracers. Deals hefty damage and knocks over upright targets.

Beanbag Shotgun

A weapon able to be picked up. Shoots non-lethal beanbags that knock over targets and deal minimal damage.

Binoculars

A tool used to spot enemies at a distance.

Riot Shield

Capable of deflecting bullets. Cannot be used while prone.

Red Dot Sights

An attachment for the SMG, useful for a wider view while aiming down sights.