Spec Ops: The Line

Overview

The game appears to place heavy emphasis on moral choices by placing players in difficult situations with difficult choices to make.

YAGER have said the game takes place in Dubai, UAE after a devastating series of sandstorms, which continue to alter the environment in unpredictable ways. The player, as Captain Martin Walker of the US Army, must infiltrate Colonel John Konrad, who stayed behind with his squad to help protect the helpless locals. Martin Walker will be voiced by the one and only Nolan North.

The game's premise is similar to Apocalypse Now, a film homage to the novel Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. In both stories, protagonists must travel deep into hostile territories to retrieve important figures who had gone insane and refused rescue. On the way, they witness horrifying scenes of human depravity, which YAGER allude to in their description of the game:

Players will experience 'The Line', that razor's edge known only to men who deal in war. It is the line they cross when death and duty become one and the same. It is the end -- of self and sanity -- when their duty is done and only they remain."

Gameplay & Multiplayer

Spec Ops: The Line is a cover based third-person shooter. The game features standard cover based combat as players choose one of two factions. Players can expect sandstorms to play a prominent role during multiplayer matches, blinding the player but also blinding their opponents. Players can choose from a multitude of classes that can be customized to the player's liking with various weapons available for use.

Marketing

At the 2009 Spike VGAs, Spec Ops: The Line was first revealed in an announcement trailer. The song used in that trailer is "Storm" by Bjork. At E3 2010, another trailer was released, showing some gameplay; the song used in this trailer is "Rooster" by Alice in Chains.

Delays & Beta

Spec Ops: The line was first announced in 2009 at the Spike VGA awards, but has since been delayed multiple times. First announced for a 2010 release, it has since been pushed back to 2011 and again until June 26, 2012. In 2010 beta invitations went out to fans around the world featuring several multiplayer maps and modes. The Multiplayer Only beta received an update midway through that added a few extra modes and various gameplay and graphics improvements. The beta has since been discontinued and simply gives an error message upon startup. The beta was an Xbox 360 exclusive, no PS3 or PC betas were offered.