Infantry

Overview

Infantry is a team-based online-only isometric shooter, originally developed by the team responsible for the top-down online space shooter SubSpace.

Game types and maps in Infantry are split into separate servers called "Zones". Each Zone has public rooms (called "arenas") for play but also support private arenas. Many game types support persistent character progression, but only within the public arenas.

Infantry has a fairly robust chat system for an action game. There are separate channels for public chat (only within the current arena), team chat, and private messages. There is also support for squads (similar to guilds or clans in other games), and each squad has its own chat that can be used across zones. In addition, anyone can create a private chat room that persists between play sessions.

Game Types

Infantry's editing tools have produced a multitude of different game types and maps, not only from developers themselves but also from ambitious players.

Capture the Flag (CTF)

Infantry's Capture the Flag is different from that of most first person shooters. Depending on the map, there can be 2 (as in Twin Peaks), 3 (as in Heinrich's Point), or even a virtually unlimited number of teams (as in CTF Extreme).

The game begins with a number of flags spread around the map. Each team starts in a drop ship which also serves as a shop and respawn point. The drop ship has a teleporter which spawns you ground-side. The objective of the game is to hold every flag for a set amount of time (depending on the map). Each map has a number of "bases" which are used by players to help defend the flags they've captured so far.

There are 7 classes in CTF, each with unique abilities and weapons. Each class has a certain amount of shields (called "energy") and heatlh. Energy reduces the amount of health damage taken by a certain percentage, and recharges over time. Health can only be restored by a Medic or by using stim packs.

Infantry: Your basic ground soldier. They use Assault Rifles, Shotguns, and Flamethrowers, and have the best damage reduction capabilities from armor. Infantry are the key to any good offense or defense.

Medic: Medics are an invaluable part of base defense. They have area of effect healing abilities. Their primary weapons are sub-machine guns, and can use tranquilizer darts (and its energy-based counterpart, the "stunner") to freeze enemies in place for a few seconds. The medic also has the ability to summon other players to his position, and can prevent the enemy's use of teleportation or summoning abilities in a small radius.

Engineer : Engineers construct automatic turrets, which are the backbone of any well-defended base. There are four types of turrets. The fast-firing MG turret can deal a good amount of damage in a short time to single targets. The Rocket turret shoots much slower, but deals massive damage in a small radius and can even one-shot lesser armored targets such as Infiltrators. The Plasma turret fires a multitude of energy-draining projectiles that bounce off walls. The last is the Sentry, which doesn't have any offensive capability but instead warns you of incoming enemies and prevents use of teleportation and summoning abilities.

Heavy Weapons: Heavies are who you call when you need to do a lot of splash damage or kill enemy turrets. Moving slower and having less armor than the Infantry, the heavy isn't suited to one-on-one skirmishes, but with a proper backing force can tear through the enemy's defenses with ease.

Jump Trooper: The Jump Trooper is the most agile of the seven classes. They use Assault Rifles and Grenade Launchers. On foot they strafe and run faster than the Infantry, but are not as heavily armored. Jump Troopers have specialized armor that reduces damage done to their energy. Jump Troopers have access to two vehicles that no other class does: The Drop Pack and the Deathboard. While on a Deathboard, the Jump Trooper can't strafe, but has incredible speed and a deadly melee attack that bypasses shields. The Drop Pack is more maneuverable than the Deathboard but not as fast, and is equipped with dual plasma rifles which quickly drain the enemy's energy.

Infiltrator : The Infiltrator is CTF's stealth class. Equipped with a stealth field generator, the Infiltrator can only be seen at range by turrets, or players with Enhanced Sensors. However, the Infiltrator has little to no armor and is easily dispatched if care isn't taken to remain out of the enemy's crosshairs. All of the Infiltrator's weapons take energy to use, which make them an even more vulnerable target in small skirmishes. The Infiltrator also has access to the Blink Generator: Using it once to sets a beacon at that point, then using it a second time instantly teleports the Infiltrator back to that spot.

Squad Leader: The Squad Leader is the second-best armored class after the Infantry, but doesn't have the same access to weaponry, limited to slow-firing rifles and a flamethrower. The Squad Leader has a summoning ability like the Medic, but it is much faster and costs much less energy to use. The Squad Leader is useful for staking out a position near (or inside) the enemy's base and summoning in a constant flow of reinforcements.

Skirmish (SK)

Skirmish is similar to CTF in that the objective is to hold flags, however the flags on a Skirmish map are static. The game is won by whichever team can hold all the flags at once for 20 seconds, or whichever team holds the most number of flags when time expires.

The biggest difference between Skirmish and CTF is the speed of weapon projectiles: In CTF, projectiles move much more slowly than most action games which supports the more close-quarters nature of CTF maps. In Skirmish, the maps are much more open and projectiles move much faster. In addition, energy is only used by support classes such as Medics and Squad Leaders to power their abilities and doesn't reduce health damage taken. The result is that battles in Skirmish are longer-range, and a one-on-one duel will end much sooner than it might in CTF.

The other difference is in the load out for each class: In CTF, your load-out is completely customizable. There is a store from which you can buy all manner of weapons, armor, ammo, and limited use items such as stim packs or grenades -- you are only limited by weight capacity. In Skirmish there is no store. You start out with a full stock of ammo and a few grenades, and the only way to replenish these is by picking up drops from dead players.

GravBall (GB)

GravBall is a soccer-like game played on hoverbikes. The objective is to move the ball down the field, picking up special weapons and taking out members of the opposing team along the way. GravBall maps are almost maze-like. Impassable walls can funnel a team through a deadly choke point, while shorter walls can be jumped over to create detours or break-away plays. When carrying the ball, the player can either perform a ground pass or a lob, and only has a limited amount of time before it is automatically ejected.

GravBall is completely different than the previous two game types mentioned, and is more akin to SubSpace in terms of gameplay. There are no classes -- each bike starts out with a Pulse Gun, Fusion Bomb, AP Mine, Hopper, Battle Warp, one Repel, and one Panic Disruptor. There is also no health in GravBall. Every bike has 600 energy, and once it reaches 0 the player dies. In addition, the standard weapons and abilities costs energy to fire. Accuracy and judging your opponent's energy level is the key to life or death.

Basic Weapons/Abilities

These are the weapons and abilities that every bike starts out with.

Pulse Gun: A fast firing but lightly-hitting energy weapon, best used at close range. It can bounce off a wall once.

Fusion Bomb: Fusion Bombs (or just "bombs") are slow-firing but deal a good amount of damage, and explode for splash damage. Replaced by the RF Bomb power up, which increases its rate of fire. Like the Pulse Gun this weapon can bounce off a wall one time.

AP Mine: Deals splash damage in a small radius and persists for 25 seconds. Best placed behind walls on defense as the enemy approaches. Splash damage from both the AP Mine and Fusion Bomb can damage friendly players.

Battle Warp: Warps you to a defensive position, but drains nearly all of your energy in the process.

Hopper: Drains some energy to jump into the air. A well-timed second jump after landing (called a "double jump") will allow you to jump over medium-height walls.

Special Weapons

These are one-time use weapons that can be found scattered throughout the field. Strategic use of these weapons can mean the difference between winning and losing. Each bike starts with one Repel and one Panic Disruptor upon entering the game or respawning after a death.

RF Bomb: Upgrades the Fusion Bomb, increasing its rate of fire.

Repel: Repels all enemy players and projectiles in a small radius around the bike. Projectiles will usually be sent flying, but it has a lesser effect on other players. Does not affect friendly players or projectiles.

Panic Disruptor: Similar to the Repel, but in projectile form. It has a wide proximity radius, but does not affect projectiles. This weapon falls into the "easy to use, difficult to master" category. A skilled player might use a Panic Disruptor after shooting a bomb to propel an opposing player into it, or forcing a pursuing enemy off course.

Jammer: This weapon is slow-moving and fires from the rear of the bike, and prevents the victim from using any weapons or abilities for a few seconds.

Immobilizer: A fast-moving weapon that can shoot through walls, this disables the engine of the victim and anyone near him for a few seconds.

Stunner: This weapon has two functions: If the person it hits is carrying the ball, it reduces the allowed carry time by a few seconds. If the person is not carrying the ball, it instead prevents that person from being able to pick up the ball for a few seconds. Proper use of the Stunner can lead to impressive and frustrating (for the opposing team) defensive plays.

Chucker: Only usable when you have the ball, this throws the ball forward with incredible speed and height. Picking up two Chucker power-ups gives you the Hucker, further increasing the speed and height of the throw.

Octane: Upgrades your bike, increasing your speed and maneuverability. This is one of the rarest and most valuable power-ups in the game.

Rocket Rain: Even more rare than the Octane, the Rocket Rain shoots out a trio of fast-moving rockets in a wide pattern from the front of your bike, dealing massive damage. Best used when a group of enemies is clustered close together.

Soccer Brawl

Soccer Brawl is a ball game like GravBall, but is much closer to traditional soccer. Players play as soldiers instead of hoverbikes, there are no walls on the field, and the only weapon is a "check" ability which deals some damage and knocks the victim back.

Organized Play

There are five major player-run leagues in Infantry: Infantry GravBall League, CTF Player's League, Skirmish League, Unified Skirmish League, and Soccer Brawl League.