Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon (2001 video game)
The first entry in the Ghost Recon tactical shooter series.
Red Storm Entertainment created and Ubi Soft published Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, a tactical shooter that launched on Windows in 2001 as the series' debut. Unlike Clancy's Rainbow Six, this game was not based on a novel but written by Clancy himself. Alongside Rainbow Six, SWAT 3, and Operation Flashpoint, it helped shape the tactical shooter genre.
Quick Facts
- Producer
- Darren Chukitus
- Designer
- Brian Upton
- Programmer
- Clark Gibson
- Artist
- Eric Armstrong
- Travis Getz
- Mike Haynes
- John Sonedecker
- Writer
- Tom Clancy (idea)
- Composer
- Bill Brown
- Platforms
- Windows
- Mac OS
- Xbox
- PlayStation 2
- GameCube
- Genre
- Tactical shooter
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The player commands the Ghosts, a fictional squad of United States Special Operations Forces soldiers from Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group. They are organized into three fireteams (Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie) using the NATO phonetic alphabet, with space for three soldiers per team; the Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube versions lack a Charlie team. Only six soldiers can be selected per mission. The player issues maneuver commands and rules of engagement for each fireteam through a command map. Three difficulty levels exist: Recruit, Veteran, and Elite. Recruit provides unlimited ammo for some weapons, and difficulty corresponds to AI responsiveness and training. Soldiers are divided into four character classes, each carrying a primary and secondary weapon organized into kits. Riflemen use the M16 assault rifle as primary, with secondaries including the M203 grenade launcher, M9 pistol, spare magazines, or binoculars (later replaced by deployable sensors). Support soldiers carry the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon and more armor, with secondaries such as the M9 (suppressed), M67 fragmentation grenades, or additional magazines. Demolitions personnel use the M4 carbine and can equip demolition charges, grenades, extra magazines, Claymore mines, or the M136 AT4 anti-tank rocket. Snipers wear ghillie suits, use the M24 rifle, and may carry the standard or silenced M9, extra magazines, or grenades.
Plot
In April 2008, Russia is taken over by ultranationalists led by Dmitri Arbatov, who annex Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan to form the Russian Democratic Union (RDU). The Ghosts battle South Ossetian separatists in Georgia. The RDU complains to the United Nations, and Russian forces invade Georgia; the Ghosts support Georgian defenders and U.S. reinforcements. The Russian numerical advantage overwhelms Georgia, prompting the U.S. to evacuate Americans and foreign nationals. Russian forces capture Tbilisi, and the RDU proclaims annexation of Georgia; the Ghosts withdraw, and the Georgian government sets up a government-in-exile in Geneva. The RDU invades the Baltic states three days ahead of NATO estimates. The Ghosts slow the invasion, and NATO forces defeat the Russians in Latvia and Lithuania. Ghosts deploy into RDU territory to rescue American and Russian prisoners. The RDU blames Arbatov for losses, places him under house arrest, and executes him in a coup. His death causes loss of domestic support and an anti-RDU insurgency, while Ghosts attack Russian military facilities in Murmansk and Arkhangelsk.
Expansion packs and related games
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Desert Siege, a 2002 expansion pack for Microsoft Windows, can be unlocked as a new campaign in the PlayStation 2 version. It adds two multiplayer game types (Domination and Siege), five multiplayer maps, new weapons, and an eight-mission single player campaign that unlocks a specialist soldier (Jodit Haile). In the PlayStation 2 version, finishing the Ghost Recon campaign first retains soldiers and their statistics. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Island Thunder, released in late 2002 for Windows and as a standalone Xbox game, contains eight single player missions, 12 new weapons, five multiplayer maps, and three multiplayer modes (Cat and Mouse, Defend, and Behemoth). The Xbox version has five additional missions and twelve multiplayer maps. Island Thunder was not released for PlayStation 2; its content was combined with eight new Colombia-set missions and additional maps and released as Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Jungle Storm in 2004. The active modding scene has produced over 1,000 mods as of January 2013, including popular free expansions such as Frostbite, CENTCOM, Heroes Unleashed, and Year of the Monkey.
Reception
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon saw a split in critical reception depending on the platform. According to Metacritic, the PlayStation 2 and GameCube versions earned "mixed or average" reviews, while the PC and Xbox versions were met with "generally positive" scores. Commercially, the game performed strongly. The computer version sold 430,000 units by the close of 2001, and total series sales had exceeded 760,000 copies by March 2002. In the United States, the computer version moved 240,000 units and generated $10.1 million by August 2006, with Edge magazine ranking it the 83rd best-selling computer game in the country for the period from January 2000 to August 2006. Combined sales of all Ghost Recon computer games in the U.S. during that span reached 620,000 copies. The computer version also earned a "Silver" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association, indicating at least 100,000 units sold in the United Kingdom. By June 2003, sales of the Xbox and PlayStation 2 versions had surpassed 2 million copies, helping Ubisoft achieve record revenues in its first quarter of fiscal 2003/2004. In the U.S., the PlayStation 2 version alone sold 1.1 million copies and earned $39 million by July 2006, with Next Generation ranking it the 46th highest-selling game for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, or GameCube between January 2000 and July 2006. PC Gamer US awarded Ghost Recon its 2001 "Best Sound" and overall "Game of the Year" honors, while IGN named it Best Game of the Year for 2001. Wargamer gave it three bronze awards in "Game of the Year," named Red Storm "Game Developer of the Year," and Ubisoft "Game Publisher of the Year." The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated the game for "Online Gameplay" and "Sound Design" at its 5th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards. The Xbox version won GameSpot's 2002 "Best Sound on Xbox" award and was nominated for "Best Online Game on Xbox" and "Best Shooter on Xbox." At the 6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, it received a nomination for "Console First-Person Action Game of the Year."
Frequently Asked Questions
What platforms is Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon (2001 video game) available on?
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon was released for Windows, Mac OS, Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube.
Who designed Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon (2001 video game)?
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon was designed by Brian Upton.
Who composed the music for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon (2001 video game)?
The music for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon was composed by Bill Brown.
More in Ubisoft Games
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced