| Stargate SG-1: The Alliance | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Perception Pty |
| Artist | Jason Morris |
| Writer | Ben Lenzo |
| Composers | Scott Cairns Alex Wallbank |
| Engine | Unreal Engine 2.5[1] |
| Platforms | Xbox,PS2,Windows |
| Release | Cancelled |
| Genre | First-person shooter |
| Modes | Single-player,Multiplayer |
Stargate SG-1: The Alliance is a cancelledfirst andthird person shootervideo game based around the television seriesStargate SG-1. The game had been intended for release onXbox,PlayStation 2 andWindows. Set during theeighth season ofStargate SG-1, players would have taken control of the four original characters from the television series; GeneralJack O'Neill, ColonelSamantha Carter, Dr.Daniel Jackson andTeal'c.
MGM awardeddeveloper Perception Pty theStargate license in 2003. Perception selectedJoWooD Productions Software AG to distribute the title and in 2005 JoWood broughtNamco on board to publish the game in theUnited States. Perception and JoWood ended their relationship in August 2005 due to disputes regarding payment, quality of the game and failure to meet deadlines. Perception continued to develop the game until January 2006 when they were forced to cancel after MGM failed to approve a new publisher. Perception and JoWood were embroiled in multiple lengthy legal disputes regarding ownership of the game license, money owed as well as accusations of libel.
By the time development ceased, the game had reached thealpha build stage of development, with much of the game in a playable state. Different builds of the project have bothleaked online or been given to specific individuals.
Stargate SG-1: The Alliance was to be shootervideo game which would allow players to choose eitherfirst orthird-person.[2] In the main campaign, at the start of each mission the player is assigned either GeneralJack O'Neill, ColonelSamantha Carter,Teal'c or Dr.Daniel Jackson, with each of the characters having their own unique abilities.[3][2] O'Neill would be able to use asniper rifle, Carter a Goa'uld ribbon device as well as hack enemy computers, Jackson would have ahand-of-light weapon as well as translate alien text to help solve puzzles within the game and Teal'c would have amelee attack.[4][5][6] As the player progresses through the story this would have opened up "new skills and possibilities".[7]
Players would be able to play through the campaign in either single player, withAI assuming control of the other 3 members of SG-1 orcooperatively with up-to three other players usingsplit screen or online.[8][2][9] A command system would allow the player to issue commands to the rest of SG-1, such as attacking specific enemies or taking cover.[6][10][8] The player would also be responsible for keeping their teammates alive, reviving them if they became incapacitated during combat.[11] During missions and combat the members of SG-1 talk to each other as well as delivering dialog relevant to the story.[12] In each mission the player must reach checkpoints to save their progress.[11]
SG-1 and the player would be equipped with anAsgardenergy shield allowing them to sustain a small amount of fire before needing to recharge as well as a personnelcloaking device.[11][13] Between 25 and 30 weapons would have featured in the game, including many from the television series such as theP90, Zat'nik'tel and Staff Weapon.[10] The Zat's power had to be reduced from the television series.[5] Players would be able to pick up additional weapons and equipment during the missions.[7][6]
The game would have put SG-1 up against a wide range of enemies from the television series, includingGoa'uldJaffa andKull Warriors,Replicators, Reetou as well as introducing a new enemy, the Haaken.[6] Allies includedThor, GeneralGeorge Hammond,Oma Desala, Shifu, theTok'ra includingJacob Carter and the Langarans includingJonas Quinn.[6] The player would be able to drive and operate a number of land vehicles such as militaryhumvee as well as a Goa'uld Semekhet.[14] SG-1 would come up against a number of enemy spacecraft such as Goa'uld Death Gliders, Al'Kesh, Tel'tak and Ha'tak.[7][5]
Multiplayer would have included a number of different modes includingcapture the flag,death match and supported up to 16 players online.[15][8] Other multiplayer modes would have included Jaffa, Enslave and Last Man Standing.[16][17] Both Stargate Command and the alien planet Abydos would have been amongst the multiplayer maps.[18][19] A map editor was also planned, although may have been a post-launch addition to the game.[4][20][16]
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The Alliance takes place towards the end ofseason eight ofStargate SG-1.[2][3] Two of earth's enemies,Anubis and theReplicators are at large and SG-1 work with a number of allies such as the Tok'ra, Ancients, Reetou and Asgard to stop them.[3]
The game follows the actions of SG-1 which is led by GeneralJack O'Neill, second in command is ColonelSamantha Carter and they are joined by Dr.Daniel Jackson andTeal'c. They are voiced byRichard Dean Anderson,Amanda Tapping,Michael Shanks andChristopher Judge who portray the characters inStargate SG-1.[21][22][23]
Throughout the story, SG-1 interact with a number of other characters fromStargate SG-1, including GeneralGeorge Hammond,Jonas Quinn,Jacob Carter,Anubis,Walter Harriman andSiler voiced byDon S. Davis,Corin Nemec,Carmen Argenziano,David Palffy,Gary Jones andDan Shea.[21][24][25][26]Thor, voiced by Shanks, as well as Oma and Shifu also feature.[3]
Thor has travelled toStargate Command to enlist the help of GeneralJack O'Neill, Dr.Daniel Jackson, ColonelSamantha Carter andTeal'c. He tells them that theGoa'uldAnubis has laid waste to several worlds seemingly searching for an artefact and theAsgard have been unable to stop him.[27] Thor provides the location of a world designated P3C-796 which being targeted by Anubis' forces and SG-1 and SG-2 travel there in the hope of uncovering what it is he's doing. Whilst exploring the planet, SG-1 uncover a number ofrunes being excavated by Anubis' forces with contain Stargate symbols on them as well as discovering an artefact, which SG-1 take back to Stargate Command for further study.[28][29]
Examining the artefacts recovered, Daniel believes the language belongs to theAncients and soon experiences a vision of a highly technologically advanced race revelling in slaughtering another race. Meanwhile, SG-2 and SG-12 are sent to the gate-address that SG-1 recovered from P3C-796. At a mission briefing, Daniel has another vision, this time it is ofShifu who explains to Daniel that Anubis is attempting to unleash something that had originally been imprisoned by the Ancients. Shifu goes on to tell Daniel thatOma Desala will wait for him at Kheb.[14][30] Anubis' forces have arrived at the planet that SG-2 and SG-12 are on. Unable to escape to the Stargate, SG-1 have been sent to rescue them. O'Neill and Daniel work around an abandoned city whilst Carter and Teal'c drive thehumvee in to rescue the stranded and injured SG personnel, with Major Grey Coulder having secured a second artefact. All the SG teams escape through the Stargate except Daniel and Jack, who struggle to evade Anubis' forces untilJacob Carter arrives in a Cargo Ship having been tipped off by Thor. On the 6 day journey back to Earth, GeneralGeorge Hammond assumes temporary command of Stargate Command, with General Jack O'Neill taking temporary command of SG-1.[31][25]
SG-1 are sent to another world where SG-2 have gone missing whilst searching for a third part of the artefact. The team make their way through an abandoned city which has been occupied by Anubis' forces and soon locate Coulder and Burnett of SG-2. Coulder tells O'Neill that the rest of their team were killed and that he hid the third artefact so that Anubis' forces would be unable to find it. SG-1 go with Coulder to retrieve the artefact but are ambushed. Burnett is executed and Coulder, along with the artefact are captured. Back on Earth, SG-1 and Hammond believe Anubis may try to attack them and steal their 2 pieces of the artefact. SG-1 travels to Kheb in order to meet with Oma. She explains to Daniel that Anubis has unleashed a race called the Haaken who had been imprisoned by the Ancients thousands of years ago after they used Ancient technology to relentlessly attack the Ancients,Asgard,Nox andFurlings. She tells SG-1 that there are three pieces of the artefact and that it was originally created by the Ancients to bind the Haaken away, and that Anubis seeks it in order to control the Haaken. She also believes that the artefact could be used against the Ancients.[32]
On board the Earth spaceshipPrometheus, SG-1 and heading to the beta-site when they are diverted to Langara as it is under attack from Anubis once more. Once on the surface, they must recueJonas Quinn who has been captured. Upon freeing Jonas he tells them that Anubis has come to take their supply of Naquadria, a powerful mineral, and is heading to a planet in the Lamora system.[33] In the Lamora system, SG-1 infiltrate a shipyard controlled by Anubis where he is using the technology of the Haaken along with the Naquadria to build a new type of Death Glider space fighter craft which would be impervious to their current weapons. SG-1 destroy the plans and escape in a Goa'uld Cargo Ship. They learn that Anubis plans to attack aTok'ra base where an anti-supersoldier weapon is being worked on, so decide to go there to warn them.[34]
On the Tok'ra base they meet Jacob Carter and begin evacuating the Tok'ra as Anubis arrives. SG-1 along with Jacob work their way around the base to secure the anti-kull weapon and head back to Earth. Daniel has another vision of a planet which Oma previously showed him, but this time he sees Coulder being held there by Anubis and the Haaken.[35] SG-1 along with their Reetou allies arrive on the planet from Daniel's vision and soon encounter the Haaken. On the mission, the Reetou explain to Daniel that the Haaken nearly wiped their race out thousands of years ago. Oma uses her powers to attack the Haaken, forcing SG-1 into a temple where they are attacked by the Haaken's leader. She tells Daniel that it was in fact her that showed him Coulder in a vision in order to lure SG-1 to the planet.[36] Stargate Command locate Coulder on board a Goa'uld moon base and SG-1 are sent to extract him.[37] Once back at Stargate Command they receive word that Anubis is attacking their beta site. SG-1 are sent to the planet and assist in the evacuation, helping to defend the base and extract a group of scientists back to Stargate Command.[38][39]
The Iris protecting Earth's Stargate malfunctions and Anubis' forces breach the base in search of pieces of the artefact. Daniel discovers that the piece that Coulder recovered is a fake which has been engineered by Anubis to disable the Stargate Command Iris and SG-1 work their way through the base battling Anubis' forces in order to destroy it. In the process Anubis' forces are able to retrieve the two real pieces. It transpires that Coulder has been brainwashed by Anubis and SG-1 have to kill him as he attempts to destroy Stargate Command. who has been brainwashed by Anubis. SG-1 defeat Coulder who attempts to destroy the base.[40] Thor takes SG-1 to Anubis' base of operations on Tartarus where the team infiltrate the base, destroying the shield protecting the Tartarus Stargate allowing Stargate Command personnel to launch an all out attack on Anubis' fortress. SG-1 search the base for the artefacts but soon the Haaken arrive in orbit and also attack Anubis, who retreats. The Haaken retrieve the completed artefact, an amulet, and SG-1 transport up to the Haaken mothership in order to retrieve it. They defeat the Haaken leader and are able to bind the Haaken away once more.
Australian video game developer Perception Pty began development in January 2003.[41][2] The company had been looking "for a license with which to develop a game on" and were exploring a number of options, but as Perceptionchief executive officer Ben Lenzo and a number of the staff "lovedStargate", they ultimately approachedMGM, believing theStargate franchise was a "perfect fit for video games".[42][2][10] According to Lenzo,MGM awarded Perception the license after showing them a prototype of a game they were working on and because of their passion forStargate.[43] Perception and MGM initially had a "couple of false starts" before eventually arriving at what would be developed intoStargate SG-1: The Alliance.[44][45]
As part of growing Perception,chief executive officer Ben Lenzo intended to invest inAustrianvideo game publisherJoWooD Productions Software, aPublic company, and on September 10, 2003, the two companies announced that they were entering a "strategic alliance" together.[46][47][48] The agreement that was announced included Perception acquiring "a strategic stake in JoWooD", which Lenzo later revealed would have been in the region ofEUR 9 million.[47][45] According to JoWood's announcement, the deal also included "the publishing rights for a top international license from a world-leading film studio", with the statement going on to detail that as part of the agreement "Perception, as the licensor, will entrust JoWooD with the global publishing of the title".[47] On November 17, 2003, JoWood announced that newstocks would be made available in order to generate capital to fund new projects, going on to announce that they would be publishing aStargate game that was being developed by Perception.[49]Stargate SG-1: The Alliance was officially announced by Perception on March 22, 2004.[50][51]MGM announced in May 2004 thatMGM Interactive Inc. and Perception PTY would work "closely" with theUnited States Air Force "to ensure the authenticity found in the hitStargate SG-1 television series is carried into the much-awaited videogame based on the show".[52]
Ben Lenzo and the team at Perception came up with the story.[45] Perception were given complete access to all of the episodes ofStargate SG-1, as well as photographs and blueprints of all the shows sets and props.[12][2][53][54][55] TheStargate SG-1 creative team were not involved on a day-to-day basis, however the team at Perception would consult with them regarding the story and dialog.[12] Writer, producer & directorPeter DeLuise directed the main dialog recording sessions with theStargate SG-1 cast. DeLuise also served as story editor.[56][11][57]
In creatingThe Alliance, Lenzo was keen that the game appeal to not only fans ofStargate SG-1, but also be accessible to those that hadn't seen the show.[44] One of the ways he planned on implementing this was by "taking some of the major themes that have been in the show for the last few years and tying our storyline into that", but at the same time creating an entirely new enemy that the game would focus around - the Haaken.[44][2] The Haaken came about from Perception's "desire to add something to theStargate lore, to have some memorable impact on it" and were imagined by Perception as having been imprisoned thousands of years ago by theAncients.[2][12] According to lead artist Jason Morris the Haaken "needed to be scary, fast and intelligent looking".[53] Character concept artist Alison Bond originally imagined the Haaken as a morereptilian-looking and beast like, however as it progressed they wanted the race to look more intelligent, so began adding in human features.[5] The games titleThe Alliance was chosen in reference to Anubis' alliance with the Haaken.[45] The game also introduced another race called the Extrenites, imagined as a "doe-like", passive race, who are destroyed by the Haaken.[53][5]
In order to make each of the playable characters unique, their abilities from the television series were drawn and often expanded upon.[2] This included giving O'Neill asniper rifle, Carter a Goa'uld ribbon device, Teal'c a melee attack and Jackson a "hand-of-light" ability. Jackson's abilities were altered a number of times based upon feedback from the shows writers, with his power originally setting enemies on fire, before being changed so that he could instead harness the power the Ancients and send enemies "to a different plain".[12] Another objective which the Perception team were keen to meet was in capturing the humour of the television series and translate it into the game, both during missions and in cutscenes.[2][5]
The game was built using a "heavily modified and graphically enhanced"Unreal engine 2.5.[58] The actors underwent a facialscanning process so that their likeness could be recreated in the game.[5][56] The number ofpolygons was then altered dependent on the platform, with each character being between 2500 and 3500 polygons.[53] The Perception team responsible forThe Alliance was made up of between 50 and 60 people working out ofSydney, as well as around 12 external contractors.[2] Work on the campaign missions was largely divided amongst 3 different teams, with each team working on a number of missions. Teams consisted of a team lead, three artists, a level designer and a coder.[59]
The game would not feature any of score fromStargate SG-1.[11] Instead, the score was composed specifically for the game by Scott Cairns and Alex Wallbank.[60][11] David Anthony and Aldo Sampaio at Perception developed a dynamic audio system that allowed the audio to cross fade between different score, dependant on what was happening in the game.[45] Perception were given access to all of the sound effects from the television series.[11]
According to Viljar Sommerback, the game had just passed thealpha stage of development and the game was "playable most of the way" but there were however "a lot of polish and bug fixing left to be done".[56] The PC version was furthest along in development, followed by the Xbox version, whilst the PS2 was slightly behind that, with Lenzo commenting "The Unreal Engine was difficult to work with on the PS2. James Steele, our PS2 Lead, is still ripping his hair out about".[45] Perception knew that they would miss their initial September 2005 finish date and before their dispute with JoWood had expected to move the release to February 2006.[45]
The game was originally slated for release in late2005 and would have been released on theXbox,PlayStation 2 andPC.[15][16][61] The first preview of the game was given in theStargate SG-1 season eight episode "Avatar", which was broadcast in August 2004. In the episode,Teal'c becomes trapped in a simulation, with Perception creating the graphics in the style of the video game to represent the simulation.[62][63] Perception launched the games official website in November 2004, offering the first screenshots from the game.[64][65][66] In December 2004 MGM offered the opportunity for fans to bid to have their likeness used as within the game.[67][68][69]
The first teaser trailer for the game was released on March 5, 2005.[70][71] The game was first shown atE3 in May 2005, with attendees able to play a level from game in both the Namco and JoWood booths.[72]Stargate SG-1 starRichard Dean Anderson appeared at the event in order to promote the game.[73][74][75] The full trailer released was released at E3 and made available online days after the event.[76][77] Afeaturette which included footage of the game and interviews with the Perception team was included on theStargate SG-1Season 8 Volume 43DVD, first released in July 2005.[5] In order to tie the video game into the show, the shows producers planned to either show or mention the encounter with the Haaken in an episode.[12][45][56]
Perception were developing a secondStargate game which would have been arole-playing video game. The game would have had ties toStargate Atlantis and allowed players to create a character that was either good or evil.[56][11] Their concept also included players controllingAnubis and gameplay would have allowed the character to takepossession of other beings in order to gain their abilities.[56][45]
On May 10, 2005, publisher JoWood announced the closing of a distribution agreement with Nobilis IBERICA, that would give Noilis distribution rights of JoWood titles, includingStargate SG-1: The Alliance, in Portugal and Spain.[78][79] The following week, JoWood also announced its partnership withNamco, who would release the game in the USA.[80][81][82][83] According to Lenzo, all sub-licensing of the game had to be approved by Perception, and chiefly by MGM. JoWood mistakenly sent both Perception and MGM a copy of the contract which had been "signed a month before" by Namco, instead of a draft contract. This now meant that Perception had unknowingly breached their contract with MGM by letting JoWood sub-license, with Lenzo claiming that "shit hit the fan" but that ultimately they went forward with Namco.[45] After meeting members of the Namco team atE3 in May 2005, Lenzo then learnt that Namco had been told by JoWood that it was them who held the rights to theStargate game and had the relationship with MGM, not Perception.[45]
In July 2005, Lenzo traveled to Austria to meet with JoWood, who had not been paying Perception and had been in breach of their contract since December 2004.[45][84] JoWood, had been restructuring for some time, with their founder Andreas Tobler being replaced by Dr. Albert Seidl in January 2005 due to "the clear failure to meet the sales targets in 2004".[85] In their meeting, Lenzo alleged that he was told by Seidl that JoWood "would have gone under" had Perception pulled the contract from them. Lenzo "didn't want to be held responsible for 30 people losing their jobs" so gave them until August 5, 2005, to pay, else Perception would terminate their contract.[45]
On the August 5 deadline JoWood announced that they had been "forced to cancel the development agreement with Perception, the Australian developer currently responsible for theStargate SG-1: The Alliance".[86][87] With the game scheduled to be released that October and Seidl claimed that in its current form it did not "satisfy neither our quality requirements nor the fans expectations", going on to state that JoWood had lost confidence in Perception's ability to finish the game "in time and sufficient quality".[88] In JoWood's statement, they announced their expectation of "repayment of their investment in development and further expenses" and that rights to the title and game assets would be transferred to JoWood where they would review the possibility of continuing work with another developer.[89][90][91]
The following week on August 12, 2005, Perception put out their own press release stating that as the licensee, they were continuing development of the game writing "any suggestion that JoWooD has rights toStargate SG-1: The Alliance upon termination of the contract is incorrect and not based on commercial or legal fact".[92][93][94][95] They went on to announce that they would take legal action against JoWood CEO Albert Seidl and the companies chairman of the supervisory board, Andreas Rudas forlibel.[84][96][97]
On August 29, 2005, thehearing began in the regional court of Leoben,Austria, with Perception seeking to have JoWood declaredbankrupt.[98] JoWood CEO Dr. Albert Seidl meanwhile countered he had the right to terminate the contract and that Perception owed them EUR 5.5 million for the development of the game.[99][100] The motion to have JoWood declared bankrupt was rejected by the judge on September 7, 2005.[101][102] JoWood announced that they had filed a fraud report against Perception on October 3, 2005, and were seeking to reclaim the EUR 5.5 million they had invested in the game, citing that Perception had been unable to delivered the game to the desired quality in the agreed time frame.[103]
According to Lenzo, Namco had still been happy with distribute the game in the United States until JoWood continued to claim ownership over the game which lead Namco to cut all ties.[45] Perception then had 3 publishers interested in taking over, but Lenzo commented that MGM wouldn't approve them.[45] In January 2006 Perception ceased development ofStargate SG-1: The Alliance having run out of money and been unable to have MGM approve a new publisher.[104][105][106]
Perception then filed another lawsuit against JoWood in November 2007 for damages of EUR 8 million.[107][108][109][110] In the private prosecution of Albert Seidl and Andreas Rudas for alleged credit-damaging statements, the Vienna Regional Court found Perception's allegations to be inaccurate in June 2008, although this was not final.[111]
Reviewing the preview presented at E3 2005, Kelly Heckman for Gamers Info praised the developers for recreating elements from the series in "painstaking detail" believing that it would find its core audience from fans of the show as well as appealing to fans of tactical shooters.[20] Also reviewing the preview at E3, Ivan Sulic forIGN commented that whilst the TV series was more about adventures and exploring, the game was "all about the shooting", praising the game's physics and graphic detail, but felt that the game would need a "fair bit of work" before launching.[72]
Discussing the gamePlayStation Official Magazine – Australia wrote "You immediately feel like you're in the Stargate universe the second the menu screen appears".[112] Reviewing an unfinished PC build of the game, The Gaming Liberty called it "the game Stargate fans were hoping for" describing the story as "wonderful".[6]
PtoPOnline has extensively covered the game over, providing campaign playthrough videos on both YouTube and their website.[113][114] In 2012 The Gaming Liberty ran a number of features showcasing videos, screenshots and interviews from the cancelled game.[115][116] White Pointer Gaming, who worked on the game at Perception gave a mission playthrough onYouTube in 2020.[13] In 2021 Alex Walker forKotaku bemoaned the lack ofStargate SG-1 video games, comparing the cancelledAlliance video game to the 2005 titleStar Wars: Republic Commando, writing that "had all the quips, sounds and referencesStargate fans would appreciate".[1]
