Breached: First Contact

Breached: First Contact is a first-person shooter developed by Hoodlum Softworks and published by GT Interactive Software. Released in 1995 for MS-DOS, Classic Mac OS, PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Nintendo 64 (under the name Breached 64). It was initially released as a shareware demo months before the full version.

The game utilizes id Software's id Tech 1, the same engine that was used in the monumental first-person shooter Doom, as well as other FPS games of the times such as Heretic, Hexen and Strife: Quest for the Sigil. The game itself takes huge inspiration from sci-fi horror films of the time such as the Alien series.

In 1996, an expansion pack for the game was released, entitled Breached: Close Encounter, which added new episodes and maps, as well as additional secrets within the existing levels.

In 2021, a remaster of the game for modern systems, entitled Breached: Re-Infested, was released by Night Dive Studios. Released for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and Nintendo Switch.

Gameplay
Breached's gameplay plays similar to other first-person shooters of the time, in particular Doom, whom it shares an engine with. Throughout the game, the player control an unnamed member of the Galactic Corps, traversing through a series of levels set inside alien-infested landscapes. The player must traverse through the area to reach a marked exit. Levels are grouped together into named episodes, with the final level focusing on a boss fight against a large and powerful enemy. Levels are often designed like a labyrinth, and a full screen automap is available which shows the areas explored up to that point.

While navigating through the levels, the player must fight a variety of enemies, mostly consisting of aliens known as "Xenos", while managing supplies of ammunition, health, and armor. Enemies often appear in large groups, and possess simple behavior, consisting of either moving toward their opponent, or attacking by biting, clawing or spitting acidic mucus. The game features five difficulty levels which increase the quantity and damage done by enemies, with enemies respawning upon death and moving faster than normal on the hardest difficulty setting.

Among the obstacles scattered throughout the environment are pits of toxic waste, ceilings that lower and crush everything within its vicinity, and locked doors that require a keycard or a remote switch. Also scattered around each level are secret areas that house rare and powerful items, each with their own specific and obscure way to reveal and gain access to them. Unlike in Doom and Heretic (and like in Hexen and the later Strife), players are able to jump, which allows them to reach higher ledges within the map and sometimes reveals secret areas.

The player can find weapons and ammunition throughout the game, either by traversing through the levels or by collecting them from dead enemies. Some of these power-up items include health nodes, armor chips, first aid kits, armor vests, ammo paks that increase the player's ammo capacity, various bodysuits that each grants the player a specific powerup, serums that maximize health or grant invulnerability and power pills ("protein" in the N64 version) that increase melee strength. Some of the more powerful weapons and items in the game can only be found within the aforementioned secret areas.

The main campaign mode is a single-player mode, in an episodic succession of missions. Two multiplayer modes are playable over a local area network: Co-Op, in which two to four players team up to complete the main campaign, and Deathmatch, in which two to four players compete against one another. The game also includes cheat codes that give the player instant super powers including invulnerability, all weapons, and walking through walls, among other things.

Weapons

 * Bionic Fist

Max Ammo: Infinite

A punch to the face using a steel bionic arm. Default melee weapon.


 * Lazer Saw

Max Ammo: Infinite

A laser saw attached directly to the bionic arm. Alternate melee weapon.


 * Pistol

Max Ammo: 200 (400 w/ Ammo Pak)

A pistol that is low on firepower but quick on recoil and firing rate. Uses pistol rounds.


 * Shotgun

Max Ammo: 100 (200 w/ Ammo Pak)

A shotgun that possesses strong close range scatter damage. Uses shotgun shells.


 * Machine Gun

Max Ammo: 200 (400 w/ Ammo Pak)

A machine gun that shoots bullets in an incredibly rapid firing rate. Uses pistol rounds.


 * Rocket Launcher

Max Ammo: 100 (200 w/ Ammo Pak)

A rocket launcher that fires powerful rockets with explosive damage. Uses rockets.


 * Tesla Rifle

Max Ammo: 300 (600 w/ Ammo Pak)

A heavily modified rifle that discharges powerful streams of electricity. Uses batteries.


 * Atomic Destroyer

Max Ammo: 300 (600 w/ Ammo Pak)

A highly experimental weapon that launches miniature nuclear bombs. Uses batteries.

Items

 * Health Node / Armor Chip

Increases the player's health or armor level to 1% upon pickup.


 * First Aid

Heals sustained damage caused by the enemy. Comes in Small, Medium or Large variants.


 * Bullets

Charges up the many weapons in the game. Each weapon has its own bullet pickup.


 * Armor Vest

Decreases the damage that the player can take. Comes in Normal and Super variants.


 * Ammo Pak

Doubles the players maximum ammo capacity. Remains until death or end of episode.


 * Map Scanner

Allows the player to see the entire level's map in automap mode.


 * N.V. Goggles

Grants the player night vision, covering the screen with a greenish tint.


 * Hazmat Suit

Protects the player from toxic waste damage for a brief period of time.


 * Gravity Suit

Increases the height of the player's jump arc for a brief period of time.


 * Cloaking Suit

Makes the player invisible to enemies for a brief period of time.


 * Power Pills / Protein

Increases movement speed and powers up melee attacks. Melee buff lasts the entire level.


 * Rejuvenation Serum

Increases maximum health to 200% and heals all damage. Can be picked up multiple times.


 * Invincibility Serum

Negates all damage recieved from enemies for a brief period of time. Colors on the screen are inverted.

Story
The space station Antares has been overrun by malevolent aliens, known as the Xenos. All of the scientists have been killed and used as breeding material to hose their vile offspring. Now, the Xenos overrun the place and it seems all hope is lost.

You, a member of the Galactic Corps with a bionic arm and an array of weaponry, arrive on the Antares space station, with one simple task: rid the place of the Xenos as well as gather intel to uncover the events that happened in the space station prior.

In the expansion pack, Close Encounter, you are given a new task to investigate an abandoned moon base and extract vital information from it. However, as it turns out, the base had already been overrun by the Xenos, turning the task into another fight for survival.

Episodes
The shareware version of the game comes with only the first episode, "The First Encounter", with the other two episodes available only available by buying the full game through either mail order or on stores.

The full/retail version of the game comes with three episodes, each of which contain 8 maps to explore, with each episode featuring a secret level. In total, the game features 30 maps (including the secret levels).


 * The First Encounter
 * Spawn of the Unknown
 * Uncharted Territory

Expansion Pack
In 1996, an expansion pack for the game was released, entitled Breached: Close Encounter, which added two new episodes, each with 8 brand-new maps, plus two other secret maps, increasing the overall map count to 48, as well as new enemies.

New Episodes

 * Operation Extraction
 * Into the Xeno's Nest

Cancelled Sequel
A sequel to the game, Breached II: Metamorphic, was originally slated or a 1998 release. It was to use id Software's id Tech 2, marking the game's shift into full 3D, as opposed to the original's 2.5D graphics. The game suffered through a tumultuous development cycle and multiple delays before its cancellation.

In 1999, following a full company restructuring, Hoodlum Softworks shifted their focus onto console game development for third party publishers. In 2006, Japanese game publishing company ACS would acquire Hoodlum Softworks, eventually renaming the studio to ACS Production Studios San Jose later in 2007. The studio would later dissolve in 2009.

Remaster
In February 26, 2021, Night Dive Studios released a remaster of the game made to run better on modern systems, entitled Breached: Re-Infested.

The updated version featured compatibility with modern operating systems and native support for monitor resolutions up to 4K UltraHD, as well as graphical improvements like antialiasing, ambient occlusion and interpolation, among others.

All three episodes from the original retail version, plus the two extra episodes from the Close Encounter expansion pack were included in this remaster. The multiplayer modes have also been optimized in order to accommodate modern online play standards.

Source Ports
As the game is built on top of the Doom engine, Breached is playable on most modern Doom source ports such as ZDoom (and its derivatives GZDoom, QZDoom and LZDoom), Skulltag/Zandronum, Chocolate Doom and PrBoom, among many others. A Brutal Doom-style mod for Breached, entitled Brutal Breached, is currently being developed as of 2020.

Trivia

 * Just like most other first person shooters of the time, Breached's difficulty levels are listed as descriptive quotes.
 * I Don't Wanna Die…
 * How Do I Shoot?
 * Show No Mercy
 * Kill or Be Killed
 * Death to All Xenos!
 * Hoodlum Softworks was initially formed by a group of former id Software employeed who had previously worked with them on several titles. Originally based in Richardson, Texas, several blocks away from id's headquarters, they would relocate to San Jose, California shortly after the cancellation of Breached II.
 * A prototype build of Breached speculated to be from around 1994-1995 was leaked onto the Internet in 2013, known among fans as "Breached v0.6". It featured many changes from the final build, including cut levels and weapons.
 * The PlayStation, Saturn and Nintendo 64 ports of Breached were each developed by different publishers. The PSX version was developed by Eurocom Entertainment Software, the Saturn version by Lobotomy Software and the N64 version was developed by Software Creations.
 * The N64 version of Breached, known as Breached 64, was censored in accordance to Nintendo's censoring policies. Some of the changes include:
 * By default, all blood in the game is recolored to green. The blood color can be changed back to red via a secret option in the Options menu.
 * The Power Pills item was renamed into "Protein", in order to avoid drug references. The pills on the item's sprite were also removed, making the item look more like a bottle of protein powder.