EA’s thrown another game on the On the House pile over on Origin. Last time it was Theme Hospital, and it’s plucked another Bullfrog classic out of its catalogue: Syndicate. It’s over 20 years old, and it looks it, but underneath its crusty exterior is a violent, clever, disturbingly liberating game where you can do anything to get the job done.
The product description on Origin sounds like it was taken from an EA job listing:
“You are an ambitious marketing director in the Syndicate, hand-picked to lead a team of cyborg mercenaries. You work in the problem-solving department and you are damn good at “taking care” of problems. Some might say that violence is not the answer but you know better. There here are hardly any problems that you can’t solve with a well-placed bullet. Collateral damage in the local population and infrastructure during the “negotiations” is, as always, acceptable. After all, what would you expect form [sic] the dystopian futuristic world run by mega-corporations?”
If you would rather not muddle through a 20-year-old interface, you might want to consider Satellite Reign, which is very much a spiritual successor. Take a gander at my Satellite Reign Early Access review to see if it’s your cup of cyberpunk tea. It’s already ticking a lot of the Syndicate boxes, and gosh is it beautiful, all neon reflections on rain-soaked streets. I’d recommend waiting for more content, though.
You can grab Syndicate on Origin right now for free, and keep it.