As part of its big 10th Anniversary Showcase this month, THQ Nordic unveiled several games with long histories behind them, including Jagged Alliance 3. Outcast 2: A New Beginning is a sequel that originally started development right after the 1999 original. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake is the yellow mascot's return to platforming after six years away. However, for all the nostalgic comebacks in THQ Nordic's arsenal, perhaps none are as potent as Jagged Alliance 3. The strategy series has suffered multiple poorly received reimaginings and false starts, to the point where it seemed fruitless to hope for a proper new entry. If THQ Nordic's first decade proves anything, though, it's that even the most niche titles deserve another chance in the spotlight.
Despite years of new releases attempting to recapture the Jagged Alliance magic, the continued love for the series among its hardcore fans emanates from the first two games. Released in 1995 and 1999, these strategy classics combined turn-based combat with elements of 4X and in-depth character work. Jagged Alliance created a formula that still feels distinct from contemporaries like XCOM today, which is why so many fans are still eager to create new experiences with its framework. Just like other PC classics like DOOM, a multitude of mods and other fan updates continue to release on a regular basis, proving that there's still a core audience hungry for another round of mercenaries and guerrilla tactics.
Unfortunately, while those first two games were well received, the developers and publishers behind the releases kept changing. Whether because of mergers, acquisitions, or companies closing down entirely, the franchise changed hands repeatedly even in the early days. Around the time of Jagged Alliance 2's expansions, the series landed in the hands of Canadian publisher Strategy First, known for putting out everything from the original Desperados game to the notorious Bad Rats. Subsequently, the quality of each new release began to dip. There was the snafu with the developer behind Jagged Alliance 2: Wildfire, leading to a pay dispute and a release under another publisher. Supposed graphical update Jagged Alliance: Back in Action made major changes to the game's mechanics and fell flat with fans. All of this came before the first time a publisher announced Jagged Alliance 3.
Originally showcased as part of the annual E3 expo in 2007, Strategy First's Jagged Alliance 3 was once part of a two-game deal with Russian developer MiST Land South. The game would have attempted to bring forward the strategy mechanics of the original with 3D graphics in much the same way as Jagged Alliance: Back in Action, all while hopefully learning from that game's mistakes. Several outlets got a hands-off demo of the game at the time, and the previews that came from that described the experience as rough. History would prove these opinions correct, as Strategy First would eventually withdraw the license from the team and condemn both Jagged Alliance continuations to development hell.
This wasn't the last attempt at a new sequel either. Rumblings about a new version of Jagged Alliance 3 erupted from publisher bitComposer Interactive around 2010, but the project also fell silent there after about a year of work. Nordic Games saw an opportunity in 2015 and picked up the rights to the series alongside several other properties from bitComposer. At the time, the company described Jagged Alliance as the prized gem of the deal, saying that the acquisition of the strategy series was a "no-brainer" for the publisher. Six years later, the publisher now known as THQ Nordic is ready for its revival.
With Tropico 5 and Surviving Mars developer Haemimont Games at the helm and THQ Nordic providing the financials, things once again look promising on the Jagged Alliance 3 front. Just like Desperados, Destroy All Humans, Outcast 2, and others, THQ Nordic will hopefully give fans a true continuation of a series from a different era. The publisher has a consistent track record of picking the right team for the job, and the long wait between IP acquisition and game announcement shows that the company isn't rushing into anything. Here's hoping that the end result of this tactical take on game development is worth the wait.
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