I like a good shooter as much as the next guy and I enjoy leading hordes of
little units into battle, but I must also admit that it's nice to see a game
come along every once in a while where the object is to save lives instead of to
take them. Emergency Fire Response is one of these games. Emergency Fire
Response is a real-time strategy
game that puts you in charge of a company of firefighters that must face some
very dangerous, but very real, disaster situations. There are no
kitten-stuck-in-tree rescues or trash bin fires here - industrial arson, hostage
situations, and nuclear power plant fires are just a few of the emergencies that
you will face.
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| Water cannons are a fireman's friend. |
Each mission begins with a brief background of the events leading to the
emergency and then provides you with your goals for the mission. While it is
always your goal to put out the fires caused by the disaster, each mission has
its own unique set of objectives which can include determining the cause of a
fire, preserving criminal evidence, and preventing damage to goods, files, and
data. You'll also often encounter people trapped by fire and it will be a high
priority to get them out before they succumb to the flames. Some goals are
mandatory for mission success, others will be used to determine your efficiency
when rating your performance after a mission's completion (you can retry any
mission to try to improve your performance). The missions also take place in
phases, so after completing a set of goals you may be presented with a new set
of tasks.
The game is played from an isometric overhead camera view that is standard
for many strategy games. You are given a group of firemen at the beginning of a
mission and usually some support as well in the form of specialists, medical
vehicles, or special equipment such as a water cannon or ladder truck. Also,
additional firefighters or equipment may arrive as reinforcements during a
mission. You control your firemen with a point and click interface that will be
familiar to strategy game players - click to select one or more firemen and then
right click on the location to which you want them to move or on the object with
which they will interact. The right click orders are context sensitive, so
clicking on a fire will cause the fireman to spray it with water while clicking
on a door will cause him to break it down with his ax. The game provides a
tutorial to help get you up to speed on issuing orders. The interface works well
and the firemen behave intelligently while carrying out your orders. They'll
also work to put out nearby fires while waiting for their next order instead of
idly standing around. One thing I did have an issue with was that sometimes the
hotspot for an action can be hard to pinpoint. For example, it can be tough to
find the right spot to place the cursor to break down a small door when the door
is obscured by smoke and fire.
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