Single player
SWAT 4 features a single-player campaign in which the player has to lead their SWAT element through 13 missions. The missions are not related and there is no overarching storyline. The game aims to have gameplay similar to real SWAT experience. For example, it encourages the use of non-lethal force to subdue and arrest subjects rather than incapacitating or killing them. In addition, players must follow strict protocol to ensure proper use of force. Players may not fire on suspects with lethal weapons unless the suspect points their firearm at a fellow officer or a civilian. Penalties are given for unauthorized use of force, injuries to hostages, officer incapacitation, and personal injury. On the higher difficulty levels, more points are required to pass the mission, with 100 being perfect. On the most difficult level, Elite, players need a 95/100 to pass, and will fail for killing even a single suspect, losing more than two team members without committing an infraction, or committing any infraction in addition to being injured,
The player is the leader in a five-man SWAT element made up of the leader and four other men that are divided into two pairs, called "teams". The teams are assigned colors, "red" or "blue". The player does not assume direct control over the other officers. However, orders can be issued from an order selection menu, ranging from clearing a room to covering an area and handcuffing a compliant person. Additionally, a video camera is mounted on each police officer's helmet. This allows the leader to see what other members of the element see, and to issue appropriate orders to a team that is in another location.
All missions start with a pre-mission briefing which describes the situation and gives whatever details are available on the suspects and/or hostages. For some missions, a 911 call is heard, which can give a clue on what to expect, and what equipment should be chosen for that situation. The briefing identifies mission goals, which consists of bringing order to chaos by arresting or neutralizing all suspects, and rescue all hostages or other civilians. Sniper support may also be provided, but the snipers' views are limited to static parts of the map, often covering a single window. Different objectives may include the capture of a specific suspect, finding out the fate of an undercover officer, or defusing explosives. After the briefing, the player can choose equipment for themselves and the other four officers. Some mission maps also provide for multiple entry points.
A perfect score may be gained in a campaign by arresting all suspects and rescuing all civilians, securing all weapons, reporting all status updates, not suffering any losses to the team, and not receiving injury. The missions progress from poorly armed suspects to well-equipped soldiers with weaponry such as AK-47s. Suspects may also obtain gas masks, helmets, and body armor. Suspects who cannot be arrested or who will not cooperate when verbally challenged must be neutralized according to SWAT protocol.
SWAT 4 uses the concept of authorized and unauthorized use of weapons. Most situations require the officers to give the suspect a warning to give them the chance to surrender. Shooting without warning is considered unauthorized use of force or deadly force, depending on whether the player kills the suspect. A non-compliant suspect that does not point his weapon at another person may not be lawfully shot. A single unauthorized use of force deducts 5 points, while deadly force deducts 10 points—in addition to the loss of score because of not taking suspects alive. Shooting without warning is allowed if the suspect is pointing their weapon at a hostage or a SWAT team member or if they open fire. Suspect reactions to warnings differ—some may attempt to hide and set up an ambush, some immediately surrender, others will flee and some will open fire. Some suspects may also pretend to surrender and open fire or run. If a hostage is killed, the mission is automatically deemed a failure.
The characters in SWAT 4 are easily injured. Even though all members of the element are equipped with armor, they can be incapacitated quickly. If the player is incapacitated, then the mission ends in failure. Lightly wounded players suffer gameplay penalties depending on injury locations. Leg injuries result in a limp, and arm injuries result in loss of accuracy.
Multiplayer
SWAT 4 also features several multiplayer game modes, all of which are team-based: SWAT versus suspects. The multiplayer modes are:
- Barricaded Suspects. Teams gain points by arresting or killing members of the other team. The team which hits the score limit first or has the highest score when the round time ends wins.
- VIP Escort. A random member of the SWAT team is selected to be the VIP. The suspects must arrest the VIP, hold him for two minutes and then execute him. The SWAT team must escort the VIP to an extraction point on the map. If the suspects kill the VIP without holding him for two minutes, SWAT wins. If a SWAT team member kills the VIP, suspects win.
- Rapid Deployment. Three to five bombs are placed throughout the map. The SWAT team must locate and disable them all within a time limit, if they fail to do so, suspects win.
- Co-op. This allows the player to play through the single-player missions with up to four other people taking the place of computer-controlled SWAT officers. In the expansion, Co-op can run on custom missions and with up to ten players per game, which can further be split into two completely separate teams (red and blue) with a leader each. This is not similar to single player teams where an element leader controls both teams.
A major factor in SWAT 4 is selecting appropriate equipment to use for the mission. Several firearms are available for use. For most guns, it is possible to choose between standard hollow point ammunition (which is better suited for those enemies in light armor or with no armor as it has good stopping power and can cause the most damage to unarmored targets), and full metal jacket ammunition, which provides better penetration and is advised for use against heavily armored targets. In addition, the player can choose a loadout of less-than-lethal weapons, which do not have the capacity to incapacitate or kill, and other pieces of tactical equipment. There are 2 primary weapons that are non-lethal and one secondary. The primary ones are the non-lethal shotgun, which fires beanbags at a high muzzle velocity, which causes disorientation and intense pain, and the oc- pepperball gun, which is essentially a heavy duty paintball gun that fires paintballs filled with cs gas. The only available secondary weapon that is not lethal is the taser. In the Stetchkov Syndicate, more nonlethal weapons are introduced, such as the grenade launcher, which can fire batons, flashbangs, cs gas, and stingers. The other is the cobra stun gun, which fires either one or two taser shots at once and can be used as a contact taser as well.
When playing online, the player has an added protections tab in the equipment selection. The player has to choose between a gas mask or helmet, and thus even the SWAT team can be affected by CS gas if the helmet is selected. When choosing the gas mask, the player's vision is partly blocked and the player's head is more vulnerable. The player must also choose between heavy or light armor.
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