Strident

Sometimes written without the "The"...

Strident: The Shadow Front is an Oni-like game that was in development by the Korean studio Phantagram, along with Duality.
Scheduled for release in 2002 on Xbox, with a PC port and multiplayer in mind, it was eventually cancelled (also like Duality).

[about Oni] Hell, here's a game I would have loved working on !

(Need someone for Oni 2 ? Or is it already called STRIDENT ?...)_{Pierre Terdiman, @codercorner.com}

At a glance

(MORE PICTURES??? HERE!!!)

DivX trailer, 37.7 MB, 720x486 (720x388)	WMV trailer, 5.18 MB, 320x240 (320x171)

Plot

(from IGN preview)

The story of Strident reads like your typical post-apocalyptic techno-thriller. The lead character is a female operative in the UN's peace keeping force known as FIST. She and her teammates have been missing in action for six months somewhere in the Middle East. When a rowdy band of mercenaries knocks over this cyborg research facility in Israel, our heroine escapes as the last living member of her FIST team and she's got a story to tell. There's a conspiracy brewing and she has to tell the world about it.

(from TeamXbox preview)

Strident is a mission based action game set in a futuristic world, devastated by long years at war. Hardly any military organizations still have the proper technology and strength to keep the planet organized. This is where the player comes in, through the form of a super powered female agent, without a single drop of memory except for the fact that she is codenamed "Strident". Her life is now threatened by the people she considered as being friends. When it comes to combat, she is unchallenged, but therefore not the brightest light on the Christmas tree. The only way to survive will be to use her utterly amazing battle abilities and to trust nobody. The main goal for this super female power-house will be to find out her purpose of existence on the planet.

Gameplay (adapted from IGN and TeamXbox)

...or as The Strident: Shadow Front.

Melee/gunplay balance

• When the heroine doesn't have any weapons she can use conventional punches, kicks and throws because she is at her quickest and most nimble.
  With her hands free she can stick to walls, use enemies as shields and as platforms for leaping.
• When she picks up one-handed weapons --which we can only imagine to be pistols-- she's obviously not as physical because she has added firepower.
• Likewise with two-handed weapons --again we're thinking bazookas or something-- she's at her slowest and less physically aggressive.

Vehicles

• The female lead will also be able to choose from a variety of power suits and vehicles.
• Power suits come in basically small, medium and large with the larger sizes offering more armament and less mobility.
• Flying and aquatic vehicles will likely be provided in the level where they're necessary, but different power suits can be earned throughout the game.

Environment interaction

• Without weapons, she can climb walls, maneuver objects and use opponents as shields.
• In Strident, players are gifted the opportunity of using their visually sticking environment, counting objects, in order to hammer themselves throughout the game’s missions.
• The player can jump, shoot and kick himself past enemies via the interesting items in the backdrop.

Objectives

• Task modes include infiltration, sabotage, espionage, platoon-scale combat, escort and frontal assault, whereas your mission types are aerial combat, ground combat and undersea operations.
• Enemies are also varied; players will encounter cyborgs, super soldiers, mutants, robots, walking tanks, flying fortresses and many more unique military forces.
• The AI actions are unpredictable as each of the enemies features his very own skills, behaviors, and equipments.

Online resources

TeamXbox

• Mini-preview
• Preview

IGN

• Mini-preview
• Preview

YouTube

• Hi-Res Trailer (same as linked to under "At a glance")