It is the not too distant future, and governments are puppets to the massive corporate and criminal syndicates that exist. You are the head of one of these syndicates, and with your team of agents, you must complete a series of missions to gain dominance over certain regions for your final aim of world domination.
So the story line could use some work, but this game is one of bullfrog's finest. It was one of the earlier games to use such an intelligent AI, which leads to a greater challenge than the majority of games dating to the early 90's.
Also, at the time the game came out, the controls and graphics were paramount.
Of course, the greatest part of the game is the variety of weapons to choose from in the missions. The laser is the obvious pick, and of course the most expensive, but an experienced player will typically choose from the other more specialized weaponry in order to reduce cost, collateral damage, and the possibility of accidental mission failure due to the laser's ability to kill anyone in the line of fire over an infinite length. The flamethrower is the best for close encounters with multiple enemies, and definitely is the coolest graphic-wise, but I find that a mix of snipers and mini-guns typically works the best.
The plethora of missions
arise around 4 or 5 different general themes, which is better than the 2 or 3 of most games. You may need to assassinate, persuade, recover an item, wipe out multiple agents, or secure an area. But the variety in terrain makes each mission quite unique. Some of the reviews I read when the game first came out claimed that its AI could adapt to your playing style to make the game more challenging as it nears the end. I don't know if I agree that it does, but the last level was nearly impossible.
Syndicate gave rise to a series of games, including the popular "Syndicate Wars." I have never played them, but have heard good things.
All in all, if you like the Bullfrog games and you have always dreamed of a futuristic rather than medieval approach, this is it. Syndicate is easy to learn, and challenging to beat. Everything one came to expect from Bullfrog at the time.
