Brian Upton

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Lore & Background

Brian Upton served as the lead designer for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, a tactical shooter developed by Red Storm Entertainment and published by Ubi Soft in 2001 for Microsoft Windows. The game was in development as early as November 20th, 2000. Motion capture was used for character animation. Upton's design work contributed to a game that industry experts credit with defining and refining the tactical shooter genre, alongside Rainbow Six, SWAT 3, and Operation Flashpoint. The game's single-player campaign puts the player in charge of the Ghosts, a fictional squad of U.S. Special Operations Forces soldiers. Players issue maneuver commands and rules of engagement through a command map. Soldiers are organized into four character classes: Rifleman, Support, Demolitions, and Sniper. For every completed mission, surviving soldiers gain one Combat Point to upgrade attributes: Weapon, Stealth, Endurance, and Leadership. The game also features specialists from NATO or allied countries, unlocked by completing extra mission objectives. The soundtrack was composed by Bill Brown.

In Their Own Story

The plot of Ghost Recon begins in April 2008, when 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 first battle South Ossetian separatists in Georgia, then face the Russian Armed Forces as they invade Georgia. After the RDU captures Tbilisi and annexes Georgia, the Ghosts withdraw. The RDU then invades the Baltic states three days ahead of NATO intelligence estimates. NATO forces defeat the Russians in Latvia and Lithuania, and the Ghosts deploy into RDU territory to rescue prisoners. The RDU government places Arbatov under house arrest and eventually executes him in a coup. The RDU detonates a nuclear weapon during a battle north of Moscow, prompting international condemnation and a civil war. NATO forces enter Russia, and the Ghosts launch a final assault on the Kremlin, capturing it on November 10, 2008, forcing the ultranationalists to surrender.

Reader's Guide

Ghost Recon was developed by Red Storm Entertainment and published by Ubi Soft in 2001 for Microsoft Windows. It was ported to Mac OS, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 in 2002, and to the GameCube in 2003. Ports for N-Gage and Game Boy Advance were planned but canceled. The game features three difficulties: Recruit, Veteran, and Elite. Recruit offers unlimited ammo for some weapons. The game supports up to 36 players in multiplayer over internet or LAN. The expansion pack Desert Siege was released in 2002 for Windows, adding 2 new multiplayer game types (Domination and Siege), 5 new multiplayer maps, and new weapons. It can be unlocked as a new campaign in the PlayStation 2 version and is bundled with the Mac port. The soundtrack was composed by Bill Brown.

Did You Know?

• Brian Upton was the lead designer of Ghost Recon, which was in development as early as November 20th, 2000.
• Motion capture was used for character animation in Ghost Recon.
• The game's soundtrack was composed by Bill Brown.
• Ghost Recon is not based on any of Tom Clancy's books; instead, Clancy wrote the game himself.
• The expansion pack Desert Siege was released in 2002 and added two new multiplayer game types: Domination and Siege.