Gamers have been locked and loaded for the return of this storied franchise since the reveal of the teaser trailer at last year’s Gamescom. Twenty-five+ years after the debut of the original Delta Force, the special ops crew is ready to launch its latest mission—the Delta Force Global Open Beta drops on December 5inci. Join Intel Gaming Access for a super stealthy advance briefing from Team Jade’s Game Director, the appropriately named Shadow.
Like many gamers eagerly awaiting this latest installment, Shadow fell for the original Delta Force hard when the game brought military simulation realness to the emerging tactical shooter genre. “Back in the 90s,” Shadow recalls, “when most Chinese gamers accessed video games through internet cafes, Delta Force was a major hit.” Those are some big, army-issue boots to fill, but Team Jade have been preparing for this moment. “[We’ve been] creating shooter games for over a decade, with our most recent project being Call of Duty: Mobile. For many developers at Team Jade, working on a title from their childhood favorite is both an incredible privilege and a huge source of motivation.”
For those who have never played the original, or returning fans, what do they have to look forward to? “Our goal with Delta Force is to create a game that offers deep strategic choices and an unparalleled sense of immersion,” Shadow explains. “Players step into the role of a special ops operative, taking on varied, challenging, and fun missions. There are three strong and captivating gameplay modes, each designed to deliver a unique and fun experience. Warfare is a modern take on the franchise’s iconic battleground simulation. Players can look forward to a variety of maps, including the return of classic Delta Force maps like Cracked and Trench Lines. The mode offers a perfect blend of fun, chaos, and strategy, with diverse vehicles to choose from and customize.”
Delta Force also revisits 2003’s Black Hawk Down campaign in a faithful reboot, while Operations mode includes Raids and Hazards. “Raid is a brand-new PvE feature debuting in the open beta—no spoilers for now,” Shadow warns. “Hazard Operations merges Delta Force with the extraction shooter genre, providing an accessible yet challenging PvEvP experience. Players traverse multiple maps; each run featuring different events, enemy configurations, and loot distribution.”
In a crowded genre—one that the original played no small part in populating—what’s setting this latest Delta Force apart? “I think it’s how we approach building and running a live-service game,” Shadow says. “It’s deeply rooted in our team’s culture that players should always come first. Take Warfare as an example: during the Alpha test, we initially included bots to shorten matchmaking times and offer a smoother learning curve. However, we quickly realized that players had differing preferences—some needed bots for practice, while others preferred combat against real players. As a result, we are offering bot-free multiplayer matches as well as all-bot practice games for Warfare in the Open Beta. This is just one of many ways we actively listen to our community and strive to build a game truly for the players.”
That even includes putting back a glitch that got fixed. “We used to have a really weird but funny animation bug in the game where a truck would suddenly appear during the post-game scoreboard, crashing into player characters still walking proudly on the screen. Players found it so hilarious that they were very vocal about missing it after the fix, so we ended up undoing it.” Now that’s fan service.
The dedication of Team Jade to the players meant that optimizing Delta Force for a seamless experience across devices was a top priority. “Our belief is simple,” Shadow says. “Everyone deserves to enjoy quality gaming, no matter what hardware they use. In shooter games, performance is critical; a sudden stutter or unexpected lag can mean the difference between victory and defeat.” This is where Intel joins the squad. “Force is our first project to ship with support for Intel® XeSS systems,” Shadow notes. “The team is truly impressed by how capable yet efficient XeSS is, offering significant performance improvements without compromising the game’s graphics. The Intel team has been incredibly supportive, providing valuable insights and guidelines on tools and best practices.”
December 5inci approaches, and what comes after the Global Open Beta for Team Jade? “Our focus is on building a game that evolves and grows alongside its community for years,” Shadow affirms. “The content has nearly doubled since the August Alpha test, with exciting additions like new operators, maps, firearms, and more. But this is just the beginning. There’s a lot more incredible content lined up, and we are really pumped to keep expanding and polishing Delta Force for the players. We can’t wait to share this journey with our community!”
Wishlist Delta Force on Steam