m0_p_01_intruders
Assigned by: PILOT (offscreen)
Start Location: Engine 3 Control
End Location: Engine 2 Control
NIS-2: Fade up from the intro FMV to show Aliens killing evacuees
[Reused dialog from Vargas to explain the mission]
The Armstrong has been boarded by the aliens responsible for the destruction of Earth. Defeat as many of them as possible.
In order to network the Armstrong's engines, a wireless transponder must be affixed to each engine control. Locate two unused transponders.
To escape the Aliens, the Armstrong must have at least two of its engines networked. Attach the transponder to the main Ares control console to sync it to the Flash engine.
The Armstrong's engines must be completely synchronized in order to perform the 200% over-burn. Affix the transponder to the Flash control console to complete the network.
The AI will engage the networked burn in less than a minute. Find a room that will block out the deadly radiation before that happens.
m0_p_02_refuge
Assigned by: PILOT (offscreen)
Start Location: Engine 2 Control
End Location: Engine 2 Control (transit car)
[Reused dialog from PILOT to explain the mission]
First Sergeant Jacob Henderson was instrumental to the success of the engines' networked burn. Reconnect with him at the Engine Room backup lift controls.
In minutes, PILOT will release nerve gas into every area of the ship to destroy the Alien threat. Every human on board must retreat to the safety of the Coldsleep pods to survive.
NIS-2: Jake's legs are crushed / rendered useless
First Sergeant Jacob Henderson has sustained significant damage to his legs. Help him into the next transit car to save his life.
The next transit car should arrive in a few minutes. This group of survivors must be protected until it is here.
NIS-2: Seth gets into his Coldsleep pod
m1_p_01_awake
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Crew Quarters B
End Location: Crew Recreation
NIS-2: Seth gets out of his Coldsleep pod
[Reused dialog from Seth to explain the mission]
After an indeterminate length of time, the Life Support system has detected negligible traces of nerve gas residue and resuscitated the Coldsleep occupants. Now that it is safe, investigate the area for any survivors.
NIS-4: Crew Quarters flyby
NIS-2: Gina is under attack by cybers
A crew member of the Armstrong is under attack by unrecognizable assailants. Save her.
m1_p_02_home
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Crew Recreation
End Location: Medical Center Delta
[Reused dialog from Gina to explain the mission]
With its supply stores and narrow exits, MedCenter Delta is the best two-person defensible position nearby. Escort SCS Reynolds to the MedCenter network terminal.
NIS-4: Medical Center flyby
NIS-2: Seth and Gina arrive in MCD
MedCenter Delta appears to be deserted. With the appropriate weaponry, this location should be relatively safe. Bring back enough defenses to guard both exits.
[Here, the player finds a deprogrammed HR-V, and must go back to already explored areas to find the following four items.]
NIS-2: Robot buddy assembly
[Now the defenses are set up, but we need to combine Jake's weapons knowledge and Seth's robotics knowledge to make them work properly. This will suggest to the player that going after Jake is the next step, but he can rescue DeSoto first if he likes.]
m1_p_03_surgeon
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Medical Center Delta
NIS-3: Hydroponics flyby
NIS-2: DeSoto is under attack by cybers
[Due to the increased oxygen level in the Atrium, there are fires all over the place – but the sprinkler system isn't kicking on because the temperature sensors are malfunctioning. So the only solution is to make MORE fire, by blowing up canisters of chemicals that are next to the existing fire.]
NIS-3: DeSoto is freed from his safe spot
m1_p_04_squadmate
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Medical Center Delta
[On the way to Jake, the player should run into a bunch of stairs and other things that are relatively easy for a biped to navigate, but someone in a wheelchair can't do it. We also need to establish (through dialog) that we can't just carry Jake to safety, because there are enemies along the way. On the way back, we'll have to navigate through broken cold-sleep pods (and their debilitating effects) to open up wheelchair-accessible paths for Jake.]
m1_p_05_mechanic
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Hydroponics: Atrium
[If players have installed the cybernetic eye enhancement, they can easily bypass the series of retinal scanners to reach Frank. However, if players take the pure path, they must use a substantial amount of energy to "hack" the retinal scanners.]
NIS-4: Life Support flyby
[When the player gets into LSH2O, Frank is trying to repair a damaged water treatment pipe. He was able to seal the door using his vast knowledge of the ship, but thanks to the player's destruction, the aliens can easily get into the area. The player must alternate between holding off the occasional alien who makes it through the door, and helping Frank control the pipe so it doesn't burst and flood the area. This is training for the much more hectic "defend Frank" task that is to come.]
m1_p_06_departures
Assigned by: Frank
Start Location: Hydroponics: Atrium
End Location: Hydroponics: Atrium
Some of the aliens that attack Frank use flash grenades, causing the entire screen to go almost pure white for a few seconds. The cybernetic eye enhancement will cause this effect to go away almost completely.
NIS-4: Transport Center flyby
NIS-3: PILOT contacts Seth
m1_p_07_containment
Assigned by: PILOT
Start Location: Transport Center
End Location: Colonist Living Quarters
NIS-4: Colonist Living Quarters flyby
If the player has installed the cybernetic hand upgrade, then he can hack these doors shut with little difficulty. It requires entering seventeen 20-digit codes in less than ten seconds, which is easy for a cybernetically-sped up hand.
m1_p_08_voltage
Assigned by: PILOT
Start Location: Transport Center
End Location: Life Support: Water Treatment
[The first four tasks require the cybernetic hand upgrade to bypass palmprint security. If the player does not have this upgrade, he must blow up several water tanks, which has ramifications (here and here) later in the game.]
NIS-2: LS(H2O) is flooded
NIS-1: Aliens are electrocuted
m1_p_09_fumigation
Assigned by: PILOT
Start Location: Transport Center
End Location: Colonist Coldsleep B
NIS-4: Colonist Coldsleep flyby
[Here, we have to establish that the aliens are smashing Coldsleep pods wherever they can and killing hundreds. There are too many of them, so we've got to gas the area.]
[There should be three or four of these things to keep the pacing right.]
[Before the player can do this, Gina contacts him and tells him there are still people in there. Maybe techie girl disabled the tracking devices, which is why we didn't see them before?]
[The security system in this area has overreacted to the present situation. Because of this, infrared laser grids have blinked into existence, which trigger security bots to attack. With the cybernetic eye enhancement, these can be seen and avoided.]
[This should be the last thing the player does in this area, since it should effective end the zone as a playable area in Act 1. Also, it needs to be done from a airtight location so the player doesn't get caught in the nerve gas himself.]
NIS-2: Nerve gas kills every living thing in the area
m1_p_10_severed
Assigned by: PILOT
Start Location: Transport Center
End Location: Colonist Coldsleep A
[Here, we again have to establish that the aliens are smashing Coldsleep pods wherever they can and killing hundreds. There are too many aliens, and too many people to rescue. They're safe in their pods as long as aliens don't come along and smash them. So gassing them (or overloading coldsleep so the entire area is frozen) is the best course of action. This should be a really difficult moment for Seth.]
NIS-2: Big reveal of cybers fighting Hunters
m1_p_11_answers
Assigned by: DeSoto
Start Location: Colonist Coldsleep A
End Location: Medical Center Delta
[The first four CPU's that the player finds should be unusable, and the fifth one should be the one that works. This gives us an excuse to have the player go back to previously visited areas and kick some ass with his new abilities.]
NIS-2: PILOT's treachery is finally revealed
NIS-1: Tensions run high and Seth steps up to deliver the plan
m2_p_01_source
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine Maintenance
[The coldsleep pods in this area are malfunctioning – the composition of the freezing gas has been polluted by nerve gas residue. The broken pods in this area will occasionally cause nerve damage to the player, temporarily paralyzing his legs (stopping movement) or arms (stopping actions). Installing the cybernetic spine upgrade will prevent this from happening.]
[Note that this task technically "succeeds", but we never actually destroy the assembly line – it's already inoperative]
NIS-4: Maintenance flyby
NIS-3: Engine Maintenance is cold and silent
m2_p_02_command
Assigned by: Lieutenant Larsen
Start Location: Engine Maintenance
End Location: Crew Quarters A
Vargas has manually locked (and damaged) the door leading to the officer's wing of the crew quarters. If the player has installed the cybernetic arm upgrade, opening the door to Vargas's room is as simple as clicking it to open. If not, the player will have to use his FlexArmor to fix it – at the cost of his max energy being drained for the next few minutes.
NIS-2: Vargas's big reveal
m2_p_03_control
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Crew Quarters A
End Location: Bridge
NIS-4: Bridge flyby
NIS-4: Astrogation flyby
NIS-2: Seth is captured
NIS-1: Seth is taken to Interior Maintenance for interrogation
m2_p_04_escape
(note that this one might take place entirely in a NIS)
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Interior Maintenance
End Location: Medical Center Delta
[During this section, we'll control HR-V for a brief section as he knocks down a door to create a distraction while the player escapes. So the "break free" task will likely already be completed by the time the player regains control. Specs for controlling HR-V during this sequence are located in Appendix 3.1 - Robot Companions]
[Note that the hero will recover his gear before the player regains control of him]
[Note that this task fails when the player finds the transit system inoperative]
NIS-4: Hold flyby
NIS-4: Cargo Transport flyby
m2_p_05_defense
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Medical Center Delta
NIS-0: Seth arrives back at MCD to find the survivors battling PILOT's army
NIS-1: The Hybrids (cybernetic aliens) arrive and swarm over PILOT's army
NIS-3: Seth stands alone in a room full of dead cybers, robots, and Hybrids
m2_p_06_evacuation
Assigned by: "Others" leader
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Shuttle Bay
NIS-4: Shuttle bay flyby
[In the Shuttle Bay, all the shuttles and freighters are firmly docked in their moorings; but the player isn't as lucky. During this sequence, this area is repeatedly depressurizing due to the Hybrids' attacks. This forces the player to frantically kill the Hybrids while the area is preparing to depressurize, retreat to the safety of the freighter while the area is actually depressurized, and then repeat the cycle. In the middle of this, the player must also squeeze in the evacuation of three (small) groups of survivors.
Some ideas for the different "stages": different times in between depressurizations; Hybrids coming from more doors; different lengths of depressurizations; slower-moving rescuees; and so on.]
NIS-2: Seth blows up the freighter
m2_p_07_payback
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Exterior Maintenance
If the player has the cybernetic spine upgrade, then this stretch proceeds normally. If not, proximity to the alien's pod causes sporadic nervous system spasms – the player will occasionally lose control of movement and actions.
NIS-2: Alien factory blows up
NIS-2: Reveal of alien warlord
[We'll want to let the player know here that he's going to have to depressurize SEM – so if he wants to go shopping before hitting the exterior, he'd better do it now.]
If the player has the hand, spine, arm, leg, and chest upgrades, then he can get back into SEM after it's been depressurized. He can find a secret, cool weapon if he does so.
NIS-1: SEM depressurizes, Alien pod and Aliens are sucked into space
m3_p_01_weightless
Assigned by: Gina (offscreen)
Start Location: Exterior Maintenance
End Location: Medical Center Delta
NIS-3: Reveal of the ship's exterior
If the player has the cybernetic chest upgrade, then he can survive without breath for the entire trip on the outside of the hull. If not, he must stop every few minutes to "charge up" the oxygen tanks by standing still without moving or shooting.
NIS-3: Seth gets back into the ship
NIS-2: Joyous reunion in MCD
m3_p_02_silence
Assigned by: Frank
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Shuttle Docking Gantry
NIS-4: Shuttle Gantry flyby
If the player has the cybernetic chest upgrade, then he can survive without breath for the entire trip on the outside of the hull. If not, he must stop every few minutes to "charge up" the oxygen tanks by standing still without moving or shooting.
NIS-0: Reveal of Jake with legs, Jake explains the new plan (cut to the engines to show it?), Seth attacks Jake and gets knocked backwards
m3_p_03_good_liberation
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine 3
NIS-3: Engineering flyby ("good" version)
[This means completely emptying the area of all enemies. Once that is done, Frank will take the survivors to MCD off-screen the next time the player uses a "teleporter".]
m3_p_04_good_emancipation
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine 2
If the player has the cybernetic eye upgrade, then this fight behaves normally. If not, the extreme heat from the nearby engines causes the whole screen to blur.
[This means completely emptying the area of all enemies. Once that is done, Gina will take the survivors to MCD off-screen the next time the player uses a "teleporter".]
m3_p_05_good_salvation
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Gina or Frank
End Location: Engine 1 Control
[This means completely emptying the area of all enemies.]
[Here we reveal that due to the engines' significantly damaged cores, the bomb will only stay active if someone stays behind to protect it from several unstoppable robots who want to reset it. DeSoto sacrifices himself.]
NIS-0: DeSoto guards the EMP bomb until it detonates
m3_p_06_good_fratricide
Assigned by: Gina
Start Location: Engine 1 Control
End Location: Shuttle Control
m3_p_07_good_reboot
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Central Computing
End Location: Central Computing
NIS-1: "Perfect" ending
NIS-1: "Good" ending
m3_p_03_bad_disposal
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine 3
NIS-3: Engineering flyby ("bad" version)
m3_p_04_bad_extinguish
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine 2
If the player has the cybernetic eye upgrade, then this fight behaves normally. If not, the extreme heat from the nearby engines causes the whole screen to blur.
m3_p_05_bad_purge
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Medical Center Delta
End Location: Engine 1
m3_p_06_bad_insurrection
Assigned by: PILOT (offscreen)
Start Location: Engine 1
End Location: Central Computing
NIS-3: Central Computing flyby
m3_p_07_bad_reformat
Assigned by: [automatically assigned]
Start Location: Central Computing
End Location: Central Computing
NIS-1: "Bad" ending