For a very long time since the 80s, director and Tron-creator Steven Lisberger had been trying to launch a sequel to his beloved cult movie. But since the series had never really been a big mainstream hit, a sequel never was on Disney's top priorities. That is, until recently.
Lisberger pitched many, many screenplays these last decades.
On top of these were mostly stories featuring either the son of Alan Bradley or the son of Kevin Flynn, in case the original actors were starting to get older for the roles and/or wouldn't manage to be part of the new movie.
This game is about the plot following the former protagonist.
Most of these scripts were either called Tron 2.0 or Tron Legacy - which are in my opinion, quite catchy names and fitting for this universe.
Let's check out the sequel called Tron 2.0~
VGR: Tron 2.0 From Monolith Productions/Buena Vista Interactive
Played on PC
Also available on Mac & Xbox or as an entirely different game on Game Boy AdvanceType FPS
Year 2003
Tron.
Just thinking about Tron always bring a smile to me.
I'm a big fan of the classic movie. Love the mythology behind Tron.
In the early 2000s, after a decade of trying to make a sequel out of a Steven Lisberger screenplay, Disney finally agreed, but decided to make a videogame out of it instead.
The task was given to Monolith Productions, a great developer known to fans of the FPS genre, responsible for such hits as Blood, No One Lives Forever, AVP2 or more recently the Condemned and F.E.A.R. series.
The early 2000s was in the middle of its FPS-craze (which quite never really ended since then, just evolved).
The genre had known a new revival since consoles success like Halo: Combat Evolved.
More than a simple movie adaptation, Tron was finally given a sort expanded universe.
Meet Jet. A.k.a. Tron 2.0 (or Alan-2).
Tron 2.0 starts Jet. More precisely, Jethro Bradley son of the original Tron's Alan Bradley,
The story is played through in the Grid, the digital universe from the original movie, but some of the cutscenes are played outside, in the real world and most of the game's backstory can be discovered through hacked E-mail in the digital world.
Here's how it goes:
(in detail synopsis, because I love this universe so much, and in case you decide to skip the original movie)
In the 1970s, the small engineering company called ENCOM introduced new revolutionary softwares, which changed the way data was transfered amongst networks and such. Behind all that, Kevin Flynn, a young promising developer. But it really was Ed Dillinger who stole this technology and used it to lead ENCOM to new horizons. Dillinger started to absorb these kind of programs and original codes into his own thanks to his very own Master Control Program. In 1981, Flynn was able to strike back while the MCP captured him inside the computers thanks to a prototype laser. Aided by his friend Alan Bradley's security program Tron, Flynn was able to defeat the MCP, gain proof enough and dirt on Dillinger from within the computer world.
Flynn got Dillinger indicted, he then took over ENCOM himself as the new CEO.
After a successful sequel to ENCOM's classic videogame Space Paranoid called Tron and based on Flynn's own digital adventures from the first movie (which would be in our real life the arcade game by Midway I guess), ENCOM was able to regain some marketing shares and income (action figures, movies...a whole line of product based on Flynn's actual adventure!).
Flynn grew a bit distant, lost in his own secret project we would never learn off in this game. (sequel material?)
Then in the middle of the 80s, Flynn disappeared suddenly.
Meanwhile, Alan and his wife Lora worked on reproducing the original digitization process that was lost in the absence of the MCP. Sadly, an accident involving cost Lora Bradley's life so it never went further on.
The Grid's ON!
Years later, Alan and Lora's son Jet was himself enrolled at ENCOM as lead game designer (it is a software company afterall). Jet and Alan never had a great relationship due to Lora's mysterious demise.
Alan had been working on a new governing program called Ma3a to help move forward the digitization laser...
That's when a new rival company started trying to acquire ENCOM, Future Control Industries (fCon).
fCon is slowly working its way over ENCOM's main grid, behind the scenes.
Things go bad, Alan gets kidnapped, Ma3a calls Jet on this by scanning him into the computer, fCon moves forward on its acquisition.
The first half of the game is spent as Jet tries to find the TRON Legacy code Alan was working on to protect its network. They face Thorne, an executive from fCon who was improperly digitized and is now spreading a corruption like a virus. The Kernel is after Jet thinking he is the one responsible for the infection.
Jets moves to the internet to find a compiler to help with the copy of the Tron Legacy program, an update to the original Tron program written by Alan Bradley to protect Ma3a. Then Ma3a goes "bad" and while the corruption and fCon spread over the Grid, Jets runs away.
Then the second half is the way back in, strucking against fCon, its digital agents the Datawraiths, digitized human hackers and putting an end to this assimilation. Alan and Jet break into fCon's server.
Alongside Jet is the hi-tech gaming AI program Mercury helping him out, be it against the pirate software or the viruses.
DEREZZED!!
Ok, I might have gone a bit overload with that description above. But I just love the plot!
Tron 2.0 seems like such a logical continuation of the series.
It's pretty close to the classic movie's story and expands on concepts and elements.
But what about the gameplay you might ask?
Well it is an FPS. Simple to get your hands on.
There are various modes.
The main campaign takes place entirely in the Grid. The objective in the game is mostly to collect different access to open and allow access to the continuation and next levels.
You can access and carry a dozen weapons or so and heal yourself thanks to the fact you are a "program".
It's a game where you control your "progress" and adapt to your gameplay. In that regards it's not that far from games like Deus Ex. You can level your stats in a sort of RPG-ysh way.
During your playthrough you'll find lots of software you can "install" on Jet (making him level from Jet 1.0 to Jet 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, etc..). The softwares you can have will be divided into defense programs, ability programs and weapon/attack programs.
That way the game feels really customizable despite its real linear and straightforward level design.
Also, similar to the classic Midway tie-in TRON game, the game establishes other type of gameplays.
No Tron-Tanks this time sadly. (apart as enemies at some point).
The Light Cycle sequences are back as very fun (though difficult) segments and a separate game mode.
The Cycles play as you'de expect (from a third or first person view you can switch between). As first it's kinda difficult to get you hands on, but you'll learn to play either with the arena's settings or the various power ups you'll grab.
You will also be able to upgrade the Light Cycle to a more hi-tech upgraded version at some point (and select between those two in the Light Cycle mode).
The goal is like in the movie, to destroy the opponents by driving around and crashing them into the jetwalls.
There's also an online mode but it isn't that much frequented nowadays so we'll pass it.
The Heroic journey of "Alan 2".
The game is fun.
It's an experience similar that what you'd find in games like Half-life or Bioshock rather than Unreal and co.
There's a lot to explore and to do around here.
The leveling is pretty smart, upgrading the version of the softwares your running. Like the movie Tron it's all about bringing to life abstract notions such as codes and viruses.
You have to play with the available memory, the free space you have, trying to keep your programs virus free, formatting, porting...
Viruses will infect you, "subroutines" need fragmentation... Each new level you'll be asked to equip yourself depending on the environment.
It's also great to have some talent back. Bruce Boxleitner returns in the role of Alan Bradley's voice. At some point, Alan will be digitized and wearing Tron's classic costume - great nostalgic moment.
Cindy Morgan who played Lora Bradley is also back though since the character died, she now plays Ma3a.
Also, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos plays Mercury.
(I originally played the game in french though, but the voice acting was particulary well done as well here)
As for the music, let's not forget to mention it either!
The tunes are great, kinda what I'd expect from a Tron sequel if one had been done in more modern times.
The main theme from Wendy Carlos plays regulary here and most of the scores sounds pretty close though modernized.
Guy Whirmore composed Tron 2.0's score in a similar electronic fashion. There's some electric guitars, some rockin' and some more techno bits, but it's all good.
Overall, it's close to the original movie spirit.
The visuals are beautiful and colored, similar to how the Grid ended like at the end of Tron.
The art-style keeps if from truly aging like others from the same era.
The plot is unique and interesting, highly replayable.
It plays great with the original movie's concept. It's like exploring a familiar universe, yet unfamiliar.
Unlike most movie-to-games adaptation, there's a great sense of genuine fantasy.
Usually they tend to fall back on the original material, linking up the authentic characters, places and elements, but here Monolith seems to go around, explore and play a bit with the content.
The Tron universe is also great, metaphorical where computer operations find a new context as people, places, etc...
The Progress Bat where off-duty programs hang out, corruption acting as a viral biologic infection, permissions replacing FPS classic keys, etc..
I just love Tron's mythology, very well used in context in Tron 2.0.
The game was also ported to Xbox under the name Tron 2.0 Killer App. (little bit of trivia, early in production this game was supposed to be called Tron: Killer App anyway!)
It's basically the same game.
There is more platforming elements in the campaign mode, gameplay was simplified for the console pad. The multiplayer however was expanded upon, with 16-players modes, disc arenas added, more light cycles options and levels, an overRide modes for systemlink (an FPS deathmatch mode).
And a second "Killer App" port was released on Game Boy Advence but it ended up being a completely different game with a unique story.
Finally, a little sidenote.
But I still think this game would have been better out under the name Tron Legacy (context-wise). Since one of the primary objectives was getting that code and then afterwards using this "legacy" to clean up and save the Grid...
I give it:
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