Did anyone else feel like they were playing StarShip troopers

[Feath]

http://www.kentaurus.com/troopers.htm

This quote from that page highlights the major concept difference between the book and the film:

The second scene takes place sometime later. Zim and the recruits are practicing with throwing knives, when one of the recruits asks "what possible use" is learning how to use throwing knives when "one professor type can do so much more just by pushing a button?" In the book, Zim responds (in part):

"If you wanted to teach a baby a lesson, would you cut its head off? Of course not. You'd paddle it. There can be circumstances when it's just as foolish to hit an enemy city with an H-bomb as it would be to spank a baby with an axe. War is not violence and killing, pure and simple; war is controlled violence, for a purpose. The purpose of war is to support your government's decisions by force. The purpose is never to kill the enemy just to be killing him...but to make him do what you want to do. Not killing...but controlled and purposeful violence. But it's not your business or mine to decide the purpose of the control. It's never a soldier's business to decide when or where or how -- or why -- he fights; that belongs to the statesmen and the generals. The statesmen decide why and how much; the generals take it from there and tell us where and when and how. We supply the violence; other people -- 'older and wiser heads,' as they say -- supply the control. Which is as it should be." [Heinlein 1959:63, emphasis and ellipses in original]

Notice the salient points of Zim's response: While surprised that the recruit doesn't know the answer at this stage in his training, he does not discourage the recruit from asking questions or thinking -- he treats it as a serious and reasonable question, which deserves a comprehensive, thoughtful, and respectful response about the role of civilian control of the military, and the necessity for the military to train for something less than all-out high-tech warfare.

In Paul Verhoeven's Starship Troopers, on the other hand, Zim tells the recruit to put his hand flat against a nearby vertical surface, and with a deft throw of the knife pins the recruit's hand in place. While the recruit is screaming with pain, the knife sticking out of the back of his hand, Zim laughs and says something to the effect of "because that professor type can't push that button if there is a knife sticking out of it!"

 

[el Chi]

They did, in a number of may/june issues with previews and such, I remember the swedish version of PCGamer stated that Gabe said they were pilotable vehicles.

Nope. This is all a befuddlement caused by crossed wires. Striders are biomechanical entities unto themselves. Valve said that they had played around with making them pilotable separate from the SP game as a bit of fun for themselves. Similar to the way that they created HL DM:Classic as a bit of fun for temselves and then released it as a free mod.

Personally I'd love to see a StriderMatch in MP - it'd be great fun.

All of that said, I don't actually have a link to any quote and it could have changed by now, but I'm positive that's what they said.

 

[schaf]

I think I read somewhere, that a Starship Troopers Mod Team already exists and they are already working on it.
Forgotten about it ...

 

[Brian Damage]

Nope. This is all a befuddlement caused by crossed wires. Striders are biomechanical entities unto themselves. Valve said that they had played around with making them pilotable separate from the SP game as a bit of fun for themselves. Similar to the way that they created HL DM:Classic as a bit of fun for temselves and then released it as a free mod.

Personally I'd love to see a StriderMatch in MP - it'd be great fun.

All of that said, I don't actually have a link to any quote and it could have changed by now, but I'm positive that's what they said.

Yup, PC Gamer seems to have read the eMail from VALVe on this very site about their fiddling with Strider-control to test the vehicle system, or whatever it was, and misinterpreted it completely.

PC Gamer seems to get a lot of the facts wrong, like calling the Vortigaunts "Vortigons" and saying we'll be able to play as Alyx in HL2/expansions/HL3...

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Actually, Valve said they may release a kind of prequel/expansion where you play as Alyx, exploring her backstory.

 

[Chris D]

Actually, Valve said they may release a kind of prequel/expansion where you play as Alyx, exploring her backstory.

I so didn't read that as "backstory"

 

[el Chi]

Yup, PC Gamer seems to have read the eMail from VALVe on this very site about their fiddling with Strider-control to test the vehicle system, or whatever it was, and misinterpreted it completely.

PC Gamer seems to get a lot of the facts wrong, like calling the Vortigaunts "Vortigons" and saying we'll be able to play as Alyx in HL2/expansions/HL3...

Yeah - those were all from the Swedish PCG, weren't they? Hmmm...
But I wouldn't rule out playing Alyx in an expansion... <Crosses fingers>
Although switching to her mid-game (a la Max to Mona in MaxPayne2) would be rubbish and totally interrupt and ruin the experience.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

I so didn't read that as "backstory"

You've spent too much time around ComradePornstar.

 

[Flyingdebris]

i see there is still fallout from that email i sent gabe about whether or not giant robots could be done in hl2's engine

and yes, most of you are very much correct. he said they had been made pilotable for their own enjoyment and not for the game.

 

[falconwind]

The Starship Troopers movie would have been better had they been more faithful to the book. Where are the mechs?

This is supposed to take place in the future, but they're attacking entire worlds with mostly infantry, minimal air support, and no armor or mechanized units whatsoever.

I mean, one Huey with a Minigun could do more damage than all of the Roughnecks combined. As far as content goes, I rank it just above Zombie movies.

Though the starships were really cool. Me likes.

Oh, and a Starship Troopers Mod for HL2 would totally rock.

 

[falconwind]

Sure... but Zerg / starship & HL2 are very simalar.. and i cant stop thinking about Starcraft..

Starcraft itself is a ripoff of Warhammer 40K. Blizzard had to pay Games Workshop.

 

[^Ben]

Wow never knew that.

 

[Brian Damage]

I didn't mean to post that bit about the expansions... was thinking about OP4, and "Expansions" just slipped in there... I meant HL2/HL3...

 

[Fishlore]

Yeah there is a big difference. The Starship Trooper bugs actually look cool.

 

[BetaMaster]

Yeah there is a big difference. The Starship Trooper bugs actually look cool.

and the HL2 antlions dont?

 

[Annihilator_91]

Starcraft itself is a ripoff of Warhammer 40K. Blizzard had to pay Games Workshop.

THEY DID NOOOOOT! STARCRAFT OWNS WH:40K! Warhammer sucks nuuuutz....

 

[Cyber$nake]

Starship Troopers was a rip off of a brilliant book. Robert Heinlein must have spun in his grave (except for the fact he was cremated) when it came out.

did you ever see the ST show too? I think it was called Rough Necks but I dont really remember...kind of wierd too, but interesting.

Edit: Yep roughnecks, somtin mentioned about it in an above post.