Total Assault: Ultimate Conflict

Total Assault: Ultimate Conflict also known as Total Assault, Total Assault 1, TA, and TA:UC, is a revolutionary science-fiction / fantasy First Person / Third Person shooter created by Epic Games and developed and produced by SPiN Games. It was released for the Xbox 360 and PS3 on May 3, 2014. Halo 4 outranked it by a mere .02 points upon its release. It is the 4th best selling video game in the world, its sales rivaled only by its sequels and Halo 3, the second best selling game, where as the Best Selling Video Game on Earth is Total Assault 3.

Main Characters
* Davian

* Ivy

* Nathan

* Cody

* Jon

* Captain Grigg

* Commander Steinburg

Other Characters
* Sergeant Amber Hayes

* The Metatron

* Adrean

* Triton

* Trenton

*  James Kyle Wilson

Summary
Total Assault's gameplay has multiple elements that set it apart from other FPS's at its time.

* Storyline Execution: Total Assault's gameplay and storyline are tightly interwoven, and sometimes even over lap, with some storyline moments actually being compatible with gameplay.

 * Vehicular Control: Unlike games like Halo, a majority of Total Assault's gameplay takes place in vehicles, where third person is forced, unlike on foot. Like Halo, the player has free control of the vehicles, yet unlike Halo, the vehicles are very different from one another, there are no real counterparts.

 * Weapons System: The Weapons of Total Assault are divided into 2 sub categories: Human and Zodiac weaponry. The Player is only allowed to carry 2 weapons at a time, much like Halo, must swap out weapons for others. Each weapon has a secondary function further diversing the attack range of the player with only 2 weapons, which most of the time is Grenade throwing, but occasionally zooming, or an extra shield for melee weapons.

 * Artifical Intelligence: The AI of the game is very sophisticated. Enemies will pull out bigger guns if the Player is controlling a vehicle, and Snipers will flee in terror if the player stumbles upon them equipped with a powerful melee weapon. Enemies can communicate to other team-mates, and the player's allies will plot against them. These are only some of the elements that set TA apart from other great franchises.

Levels of Difficulty
There are little summaries that tell of the difficulties.

 * Bronze - Take out your anger on your foes or sit back and enjoy the storyline.

 * Steel - Higher than Bronze, your foes will fight back, and will fight to the death.

 * Gold - Higher than Steel, your foes are defiant until the end, they will overwhelm you with extreme numbers, the unwitty will not survive.

 * Platinum - Higher than Gold, your foes will test even the morale of veteran players. The Elite will not survive, this is for veteran players.

Damage System
* Shield Belt: The Player assumes the role of Davian, who possesses the almighty Shield Belt. This Belt projects a second suit of regenerating armor made out of Energy. Displayed on the HUD is the Belt meter, when the belt is damaged, the Player must take cover until it can replenish itself and give you back your shield, then you can draw your sword, and leap into battle yet again.

 * Health Bar: While there is no Health meter on the HUD, it is still there. The player will be able to take several hits, four to five, before they die. This bar is not activated until after the Shields are fully depleted. If the player is still alive, their health will regenerate, along with their Shields.

Powerups
There are several Powerups in TA.

* Cloaking - This is dropped by Purist Hunters. It takes the form of a small blue orb, and when walked over, the Player will become invisible for a mere 20 seconds.

 * Ammo - Ammo takes the form of many different weapons lying on the ground. If the weapon you already have equipped is running low on ammo or fuel, and there is another weapon of the same type you are carrying lying on the ground, simply walk over it to pick up some fresh ammo, and let the killing commense.

* Grenades - Weapons that have the secondary act as a grenade toss, keep in mind, there are 2 types of Grenades in Total Assault. The good ol' Fragmentation Grenade, and the unfamiliar Chrystaline Shard Grenade. The Player is able to carry one type at a time, and up to 5 Grenades, choose wisely.

Enemies
The A.I. in Total Assault was superior to many other games at the time because the A.I. was sophisticated enough to attack other enemies in the vicinity, not just Davian. If there is another faction in the area, the A.I. will engage it in the same way as they would fight Davian.

Three factions of Enemies are encountered in the game.

* The Zodiac : This covenant of sinister alien races are responsible for endangering the Human race. They work cohesively as one whole faction and will die for one another. They are currently under command of Avisto, a Purist High Inquisitor who leads the attack on Haven. The races in this game include: The Drones,  The Banshees ,  The Purists , and  The Ravagers. This is another feature that makes TA diverse is the fact that is has an alien alliance, which allows for a more diverse group of enemies than most other games. They also make use of different vehicles.

* The Spawn : A demonic entity which was contained with in the Haven itself. This entity can spread parasitically via infecting hosts and replicating itself. They are encountered in several forms: Seed Spawn, Warrior Spawn , and Mega Spawn , and are all stages of its lifecycle. By using this cycle The Spawn can destroy entire galaxies, The Harbingers called them, And because of the high amount of threat that they pose they must be contained at all costs.

*  The Servers : The Servers are a strain of robotic attack drones which are controlled by a sophisticated Super-AI known as The Metatron. The Metatron can control them as well as speak through it, in a way, all of The Servers and The Metatron himself are all technically one collective entity.

Allies
* The United Embassies Military Strikers: These elite soldiers will help out Davian and his team mates during the battle. They come in one main form: dressed in desert camo attire with goggle lenses and a face covering, aswell as thick helmets which resemble a mix of US Marine helmets and Roman Legionnaire helmets. They also weild a diverse range of weaponry and operate a diverse range of turrets and vehicles.

Storyline
's storyline is linear; there is only one ending (in contrast to other first person shooters such as Deus Ex). It is presented to the player through an instruction manual, scripted events and conversations during the game, and a number of cut-scenes rendered using the game's graphics engine. This method of storyline delivery is common among modern video games. The 360 and PS3 version of allows one player to play the campaign alone, as well as allow two players to play through the campaign in split screen. The PC version of Total Assault allows only one player to play through the campaign.

Click on the below Total Assault: Ultimate Conflict Campaign Missions to read a nearly spoiler free walkthrough.

*  Gnashbone Fury

*  Edge of The Universe

*  Vast Expanse

*  Triton and Trenton

*  Valley of The Shadow of Death

*  At Haven's Apex

*  The Eye

Brief Summary
Total Assault: Ultimate Conflict is a reference to the book that started it all ''A Total Assault. ''The massive planetoid is called Haven, and was discovered by the UEM Gnashbone Fury with MSWG mercenaries aboard, one of which is last of the Titan 1s Davian - Number 9. Little do they know, The Zodiac wants Haven for themselves. Now, it is up to Davian and the MSWG to lead the UEM in the defense of Haven. In the end, one shall remain, Humanity must not fail.

Reception
Total Assault: Ultimate Conflict almost got Game of the Year for 2014 had it not been for Halo 4 beating it by .02 points, however, it did sell more copies than Halo 4 as Halo 4 did not even get into the top 5 games, it was ranked number 7 (how ironic). To this day TA:UC has sold over 40 million copies and counting, and is the 4th best selling video game on Earth.

Trivia
* The points shave between Halo 4 and TA:UC is considered the closest game shave in history, although it is likely there were closest ones.

* TA:UC is considered the first real 'Halo-Killer'.