Emergency is most likely the first title gamers think of when it comes to firefighting – and for a very good reason. It is a real-time strategy game, where the player commands many different units from 4 branches (fire department, medical services, police and technical units) trying to resolve accidents of different kinds. Emergency was certainly a big inspiration for our game but also not the only one. Here are some more:
Burn
A 2012 documentary film about Detroit’s firefighters. The city has been in severe decline in recent decades and by many, it’s been written off as dead. Many of the abandoned decaying buildings catch fire, turning into a more and more concerning problem. This film tells a story through the eyes of the personnel of the Detroit Fire Department, about their lives and their taxing battle on the front lines. They face constant emergencies, their budgets are shrinking, and the task is truly thankless. And yet, they preserve, determined to save the city at all costs.
Benjamin Franklin
Yes, that Benjamin Franklin. Surprised? Did you know that in 1736 he co-founded the Union Fire Company, the first formally organized all-volunteer fire company in the colonies? That he did. It was the first fire company dedicated to protecting the entire community and later served as an example for other such companies. In 1730 a fire started on a ship and consumed all warehouses in the harbour and three neighbouring houses. Seeing the damage caused by fire, Franklin started advocating for community service to help extinguish fires to protect citizens’ properties. In 1733 he wrote an article in the Pennsylvania Gazette about how the colonies needed an organised group of citizens dedicated to fighting with fire. And so the first Fire Company was founded.
The games of our youth
And there were many. The old close combat games, the first RTSs. The games we know and love. Who didn’t play StarCraft, slacked-jawed and awed about it then? Then more strategy RTS games came, management came in. More studios decided to make games about the police, firefighters, and so on. And they’ve stuck with us, so for certain, some of them became our inspiration, consciously or not.
These are some of our inspirations for Fire Commander. There are more, of course, as there is a lot of fantastic books, games and films about firefighters. What comes to your mind when you think about these heroes?