Police Quest: SWAT 2

Last updated: January 10, 2026

Overview

Police Quest: SWAT 2 is a real-time tactics game released on July 11, 1998, developed by Yosemite Entertainment and published by Sierra FX.¹ Representing a dramatic departure from its predecessor’s full-motion video interactive movie format, the game adopted an isometric view with squad-level tactical gameplay, allowing players to command individual combatants during typical SWAT crisis situations.² The game was the sixth installment in the Police Quest series and the second entry in the SWAT subseries, though it would be the last title to carry the Police Quest name before the series continued simply as SWAT.³

The game distinguished itself by offering dual campaigns—players could take command of an LAPD SWAT team or, unusually for the genre, lead a left-wing domestic terrorist organization called Five Eyes.¹ This feature made SWAT 2 notable for being one of the only games to offer a full terrorist campaign playable from start to finish.⁴ The title blended strategic planning with chaotic real-time action, featuring deep unit customization with pools of over 100 officers and 100 terrorists to build teams from.⁵

Created with the assistance of former Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates—the originator of real-life SWAT teams—the game emphasized authentic police procedures and realistic tactical situations.⁶ Many missions were based on actual LAPD cases, including scenarios inspired by the infamous North Hollywood shootout of February 1997 and events paralleling the 1992 Los Angeles riots.¹ The game shipped with a substantial 206-page manual containing an extensive database on SWAT tactics and procedures, reflecting its commitment to authenticity.³

Game Info

Developer: Yosemite Entertainment¹ Designer: Susan Frischer¹ Publisher: Sierra FX¹ Engine: Proprietary Platforms: Windows¹ Release Year: 1998 Series: Police Quest / SWAT Protagonist: SWAT Commander / Dante Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

Set in the near future of 1999, Los Angeles faces an unprecedented threat from Five Eyes, a left-wing domestic terrorist group led by the mysterious Basho and his right-hand man Dante.⁷ The organization conducts increasingly bold criminal operations throughout the city, from bank robberies to hostage situations, challenging the resources and capabilities of the LAPD’s elite SWAT division. Players experience this conflict from either side of the law, with each campaign offering a distinct narrative perspective on the escalating urban crisis.²

In the SWAT campaign, players serve as commander of the tactical unit, working under Police Chief De Souza to neutralize terrorist threats while protecting civilian lives. The game emphasizes the moral weight of police work, with the chief reminding officers that “even a newsperson is worthy of our protection” after civilian casualties.² The campaign follows a progression of increasingly dangerous callups, from training exercises to major incidents involving armed suspects, hostage situations, and direct confrontations with Five Eyes operatives.⁸

The terrorist campaign follows Dante as he leads Five Eyes operations, recruiting members from college campuses and executing criminal schemes to fund the organization’s agenda.² The narrative explores the internal dynamics of the terrorist cell, including ideological conflicts and tactical decisions. In one possible conclusion to the terrorist campaign, Dante renounces Basho’s criminal ways as unviable, disbands Five Eyes, and retires with his faction to “the nearest tropical island that doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the U.S.”¹

The dual campaign structure allows players to experience both sides of the conflict, with missions that often mirror each other from opposing perspectives. Key characters include Sergeants Markossian and Alvarez on the SWAT side, with Basho and various cell leaders on the terrorist side. The storyline incorporates real-world tensions between law enforcement and city government, with Mayor Preston’s character possibly inspired by the historical conflicts between Chief Gates and real LA Mayor Tom Bradley during the 1992 riots.⁹

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

SWAT 2 employs a diagonal-down isometric perspective, presenting a tile-based world where players issue orders from a three-quarter overhead view.⁹ The interface relies heavily on mouse control for selecting units and issuing commands, though the system received significant criticism for being clunky and poorly explained.¹⁰ Players must manage multiple officers simultaneously, issuing movement commands, coordinating entries, and directing tactical responses in real-time.¹¹

The command system allows players to select individual units or groups and assign them specific actions including movement, cover positions, breach orders, and rules of engagement.¹² However, many reviewers noted that officers rarely follow proper police procedure automatically, requiring constant micromanagement.¹¹ SWAT officers notably would not automatically open doors unlike terrorists, and selected officers would sometimes fail to move when under fire without specific player commands.⁹

Structure and Progression

The game features 30 scenarios total, divided equally between the SWAT and terrorist campaigns with 15 missions each.¹¹ Each campaign includes training missions followed by increasingly complex real assignments:¹²

• Training Missions: Introduction to basic commands, movement, and engagement rules
• Standard Callups: Hostage situations, armed suspects, domestic disputes
• Major Incidents: Bank robberies, riots, coordinated terrorist attacks
• Final Operations: Large-scale confrontations with primary antagonists

Missions are relatively brief, with average scenarios taking 1-5 minutes, some extending to 8-9 minutes, and the entire game completable in under 3 hours.¹¹ The game features a sophisticated AI that changes behavior in each mission, meaning “no mission is alike and AI changes in each mission, sometimes you may be able to resolve the mission peacefully whereas sometimes there may be a huge firefight with significant casualties.”⁸

Between missions, players manage their roster by selecting team members from a pool of over 100 available characters per faction.⁵ Budget management plays a role, with players earning or losing funds based on mission performance and spending on equipment and personnel. A notable exploit allowed players to sell the sidearms of unused avatars, generating nearly $50,000 and effectively bypassing the budgeting system entirely.¹

Puzzles and Mechanics

The tactical gameplay emphasizes authentic SWAT procedures, including coordinated entries, use of flashbang grenades, establishing perimeters, and managing rules of engagement.⁶ Players must balance the imperative to neutralize threats with the game’s emphasis on saving lives—the game rewards players for preserving lives rather than eliminating threats.¹³

Evidence collection affects mission outcomes and subsequent briefing details, encouraging thorough scene processing.⁸ However, missions end automatically when primary objectives complete, sometimes before players can gather all evidence.⁹ Equipment selection before missions proves critical, as some scenarios don’t inform players of special equipment needed until the scenario starts.¹¹

The SWAT campaign provides access to different equipment than the terrorist campaign, with SWAT teams using MP5 submachine guns as their primary weapon while terrorists employ LR 300 rifles.¹⁴ Gas masks, body armor, tactical tools, and various firearms can be equipped based on anticipated threats.

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Police Quest: SWAT 2 received mixed reviews upon release, with critics praising its unique premise while criticizing interface and AI issues. The game earned a GameRankings aggregate score of 70%, representing a significant improvement over the previous two games in the series.¹

GameSpot awarded the game 5.7/10, with reviewer Scott Krol stating that “SWAT 2 could have been filled with nail-biting intensity and adrenaline-pumping action; instead, it’s composed of a frustrating command system and messy gameplay.”¹¹ He concluded that “the designers of SWAT 2 really missed the boat by choosing to use real time. As a turn-based game it could have been a winner.”¹¹

IGN’s Jason Bates gave the game 7/10, offering a more balanced assessment: “At first glance, SWAT 2 looks like a pretty bad game. The graphics are dated, the characters on screen are miniscule and indistinct, and the control is clunky and poorly explained. But if you take the time to learn the interface, look past the dated graphics and get into the design of the game itself, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you find. SWAT 2 is a good little strategy game.”¹⁰

PC Gamer US was notably harsh, with Stephen Poole scoring the game at 52% in the November 1998 issue. He noted that “the real-life setting and emphasis on saving lives is undeniably a breath of fresh air” but that “numerous flaws ultimately keep it from being the compelling experience gamers were hoping for.”¹² He concluded that “with the excellent Rainbow Six now available, though, SWAT 2 is relegated to a second-place finish—and not even a close one at that.”¹²

GameRevolution provided one of the most positive reviews, with Nebojsa Radakovic praising the atmosphere: “Yosemite Entertainment did a great job creating the proper feel and atmosphere for this game… I cannot rave about this game enough!”¹⁵ The publication awarded an A- grade.¹

Game Informer scored the game 6/10 in July 1998.¹ PC Gamer UK gave 68% in 1999.¹ AllGame’s Peter Suciu praised the realism, claiming “it is so realistic that the game may be used as part of future SWAT training!”⁶

Modern Assessment

Modern assessments recognize SWAT 2 as an ambitious but flawed tactical game that was perhaps ahead of its time. MobyGames user Kasey Chang offered a retrospective view: “Too far ahead of its time to be fun, even with the simplified procedures… SWAT2 manage to wound itself with its sheer weight of SWAT authenticity. It is neither a game nor a simulation, but some sort of weird hybrid.”⁹

The game maintains a dedicated following among tactical gaming enthusiasts. Steam reviews show 78% positive ratings from 108 reviews as of the modern re-release.⁵ GOG.com users rate the game 3.6/5, with particular praise for the terrorist campaign’s uniqueness.⁴

Giant Bomb users rate the game 4.0/5 stars, with the site’s wiki noting that “the game was overall better received than Police Quest: SWAT, offering a new take on the franchise, but fell due to clunky unit management, glitchy AI and too short campaign.”³

Aggregate Scores:

• GameRankings: 70%¹
• MobyGames: 68% (24 critic ratings)⁹
• IMDb: 6.8/10 (39 ratings)⁷
• Metacritic: 6.8/10 user score (6 ratings)¹⁶
• Steam: 78% positive (108 reviews)⁵
• VGChartz Community: 7.3/10¹⁷
• Glitchwave: 2.71/5.0¹⁸

Development

Origins

The development of SWAT 2 represented a strategic pivot for the Police Quest franchise. The previous game, Police Quest: SWAT (1995), had been a full-motion video interactive movie that achieved significant commercial success, selling close to one million units.¹³ However, the FMV format limited gameplay possibilities and replayability. Yosemite Entertainment, Sierra’s development facility in Oakhurst, California, was tasked with reimagining the SWAT concept as a more traditional strategy game.¹⁹

The decision to create a real-time tactics game reflected Sierra’s broader strategy of diversifying the Police Quest brand. Development began at Yosemite Entertainment, which had taken over Police Quest development duties. The team drew inspiration from games like X-Com and Jagged Alliance while incorporating authentic LAPD procedures.¹⁴

Production

Lead designer Susan Frischer headed the development team, working closely with law enforcement consultants to ensure tactical authenticity.¹ The game featured extensive consultation from actual LAPD SWAT personnel, with Officer Bob Kain even lending his likeness to the default sniper character Mark Emmet.³ Kain would later become a runner-up on the Combat Missions reality television show.³

Former LAPD Chief Daryl F. Gates served as content consultant, providing in-game hints and guidance that appeared during gameplay.⁶ This continued his controversial involvement with the Police Quest series that had begun with Police Quest: Open Season in 1993. The collaboration with Gates drew criticism from civil rights organizations, with the President of the Los Angeles Urban League having previously stated that Gates “embodies all that is bad in law enforcement—the problems of the macho, racist, brutal police experience that we’re working hard to put behind us.”²⁰

The game went gold on July 4, 1998, and shipped July 11, 1998, becoming the first title released under Sierra’s new FX brand.¹⁹ The demo logged more than 150,000 downloads in its first three weeks, demonstrating strong consumer interest.¹⁹

Development Credits:²¹

• Lead Designer: Susan Frischer
• Content Consultant: Daryl F. Gates
• Producer: Rod Fung
• Composers: Jason Hayes, Chance Thomas
• Theme Song Vocalist: Randall “Randy” Porter
• Police Consultation: LAPD SWAT, Fresno PD SWAT
• Voice Direction: Various
• Officer Photography: Actual LAPD personnel provided likeness

The development team was substantial, with MobyGames crediting 545 people (510 developers, 35 thanks) for their contributions to the project.²¹

Cast and Voice Recording

An extensive voice cast brought the game’s characters to life, with actors recording at production facilities in Oakhurst, California outside Yosemite National Park.⁴ The cast trained with actual SWAT members from the Los Angeles Police Department to ensure authentic performances.⁴

One actor who worked on the project, credited as ScottyWixel, later recalled on GOG.com: “I was an Actor in this game… it was a blast working on this video game as an actor!!!” noting that he worked on the project “for over 2 months at S.A.G. scale.”⁴

Technical Achievements

The game’s AI system was designed to provide dynamic, unpredictable encounters. Unlike many strategy games with scripted enemy behavior, SWAT 2’s AI changed its responses based on player actions, ensuring no two playthroughs of the same mission would be identical.⁸ This sophisticated system, while occasionally producing erratic behavior, added significant replay value.

The isometric engine rendered detailed urban environments including banks, apartment buildings, warehouses, and outdoor areas. Multiplayer support was included for up to four players via LAN, modem, or TCP/IP connection, with a map editor allowing user-created scenarios.²²

Technical Specifications

System Requirements:¹²

• Minimum OS: Windows 95
• Minimum CPU: Pentium 133 MHz
• Minimum RAM: 16 MB
• Minimum Storage: 43.4 MB (90+ MB recommended)
• CD-ROM: 4X
• Video: Super VGA

Recommended:

• CPU: Pentium 200 MHz
• RAM: 32 MB
• Storage: 278 MB
• Video: 4 MB video memory

Modern Re-release Requirements:⁵

• OS: Windows XP / Vista
• CPU: 1.0 GHz
• RAM: 256 MB
• Graphics: DirectX 7 compatible
• Storage: 700 MB

Multiplayer:¹²

• Serial/null modem
• Modem
• IPX
• TCP/IP
• Maximum players: 4
• Free Internet service via www.won.net

Cut Content

Some content was removed or unused in the final release. TV Tropes documents “unused voice lines of chief giving venomous humorous insults for journalists,” suggesting a more satirical take on media relations was originally planned.²

Version History

Version	Date	Platform	Notes
1.0	July 11, 1998	Windows	Initial North American release1
PAL	1998	Windows	European release1
Japan	March 26, 1999	Windows	CyberFront release17
XP Compatible	2004	Windows	Updated for Windows XP23
Steam	April 18, 2017	Windows	Digital re-release24
GOG	2015	Windows	Digital re-release bundled with SWAT 14

Early releases were internally designated as Police Quest 6 (PQ6) in file names and folders, though this name does not appear on the title screen or cover art.¹

Technical Issues

The game suffered from numerous bugs and interface problems that hampered the experience:⁹¹¹¹²

• Officers sometimes walked through walls instead of navigating around them
• Terrorists and hostages could run to screen edges and disappear
• SWAT officers would not automatically open doors unlike terrorist units
• Selected officers failed to move when fired upon without explicit commands
• Missions ended automatically upon objective completion, sometimes before evidence collection
• Multi-story buildings could only have one floor occupied at a time
• Criminals would vanish upon reaching map exit points even with police nearby
• Audio and text reports played simultaneously, making them impossible to interpret
• Final SWAT mission contained an invisible exit from the building

Compatibility issues emerged on modern systems:²²

• Very low FPS (game coded to run slowly)
• Stability issues with high resolutions
• Sound issues on Windows 7
• Videos not viewable on Windows Vista (audio works)
• Uses deprecated serial modem connections for LAN play

Easter Eggs and Trivia

• Sonny Bonds: The protagonist of the original Police Quest series (1987-1991) appears as a selectable SWAT officer with excellent stats, providing a direct connection to the franchise’s adventure game roots.⁹
• Sierra Employee Photos: The Five Eyes terrorist roster used photographs of actual Sierra employees, including Lori and Corey Cole, creators of the Quest for Glory series.²
• SWAT Truck: The in-game SWAT vehicle was “bought from Department of Energy for single dollar with smiley face on battering ram.”²
• Theme Song: “Just Another Day in L.A.” includes clips of actual cross talk and police dispatch recorded during the 1997 Hollywood bank robbery.¹⁹
• Composer’s Driving Record: Chance Thomas reportedly received 13 traffic tickets in a single year while driving “a bright red Mitsubishi 3000 GT VR-4 Twin Turbo.”¹⁹
• Vocalist’s Day Job: Lead vocalist Randall Porter worked as a Probation Officer for the State of Utah.¹⁹
• Budget Exploit: Non-assigned officers carry fancy pistols that can be sold for $600each,allowingplayerstoraisetheirbudgetbynearly$50,000.¹²

Voice Cast

Character	Voice Actor
Chief De Souza	Ron Simons
Sgt. Markossian	Michael Shapiro
Dante	Scott Burns
Basho	Henry Dardenne
Mayor Preston	Sean G. Griffin
Sgt. Alvarez	Ernie Pino
Chopper Pilot	Stephan Weyte
Tank Driver	Ken Boynton
Dispatch	Lauren Tewes
Chadwick	David Scully
Tammany	John Patrick Lowrie
Various Officers	Chuck McQuary, Eric Mills, Robert Nadir, Chris Wicklund, Bob Wright, Rob Granlund
Child Hostage	Billy O’Sullivan
Terrorist	Arnie Stenseth

Source: IMDb and MobyGames credits⁷²¹

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

Police Quest: SWAT 2 achieved significant commercial success upon release. During its debut week of July 12-18, 1998, the game “shot past titles such as GT Interactive’s Unreal and Blizzard’s Diablo to debut in the number 4 slot” on the Top PC Games Sales list, earning “the honor of highest-ranking newcomer.”¹⁹

By late 1999, the game had surpassed 400,000 copies sold.¹ This built upon the strong foundation of the first Police Quest: SWAT, which had sold close to one million units.¹³ Combined sales helped justify continued development of the SWAT franchise, leading to SWAT 3: Close Quarters Battle (1999) and eventually SWAT 4 (2005).

Collections

The game has been bundled in several compilation releases:

• Police Quest: SWAT 1+2 – Digital bundle on GOG.com⁴
• SWAT Career Pack – Compilation release¹⁸
• Police Quest: SWAT Generation – 2004 Sierra Entertainment compilation²⁵

Fan Projects

The game’s distinctive soundtrack has inspired fan projects beyond the original game. A Steam Workshop mod for Door Kickers replaces that game’s OST with SWAT 2’s music, with the creator noting “it seemed fitting that the planning and intensity of the music from SWAT 2 would fit nicely with door kickers.”²⁶

Related Publications

• Official Game Manual: 206-page comprehensive manual containing extensive database on SWAT tactics and procedures, included with retail release³¹⁵
• Quick Reference Cards: 3 cheat cards/quick reference guides included with game¹⁵
• FAQ/Walkthrough: Community guide by SSJ_Gohan1, version 1.8, 39.3 KB²⁷

Critical Perspective

Police Quest: SWAT 2 occupies a curious position in gaming history. As a tactical game emphasizing realistic police procedures and the preservation of life, it offered a genuinely different perspective from most action-oriented titles of its era. The dual campaign structure—particularly the ability to play as terrorists—was remarkably bold for 1998 and remains unusual even decades later. As one GOG reviewer noted, “SWAT 2 is notable for being the only game I’m aware of with a full terrorist campaign.”⁴

The game’s emphasis on saving lives rather than taking them represented an ethical framework rarely seen in games. Producer Rod Fung emphasized that “you’re actually rewarded in the game for saving lives and not taking lives.”¹³ This philosophy would carry forward into SWAT 3 and SWAT 4, which would refine the tactical simulation concept with improved interfaces and technology.

However, SWAT 2’s ambitious design was undermined by technical limitations and interface problems that prevented it from achieving its full potential. The comparison to Rainbow Six, released the same year, was inevitable and unflattering—while both games offered tactical squad-based gameplay, Rainbow Six’s first-person perspective and more polished execution made it the definitive tactical shooter of the era.¹²

The game’s transition from the Police Quest adventure game format to real-time tactics marked a turning point for the franchise. After SWAT 2, the series dropped the Police Quest name entirely, continuing as SWAT 3 and beyond. This change reflected both the evolution of the gaming market and Sierra’s strategic repositioning of its brands following the Cendant Software acquisition.²⁸

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• GOG - Bundled with SWAT 1
• Steam

Manuals & Extras

• Sierra Chest – Music Files

Series Continuity

Police Quest: SWAT 2 represents the final game in the Police Quest lineage to bear that name, transitioning the franchise from its adventure game origins to tactical action. The game maintains connections to earlier entries through the inclusion of Sonny Bonds as a playable SWAT officer—the protagonist of Police Quest I-III who had been absent from the series since 1991.⁹ The involvement of Daryl Gates continued the controversial association that began with Police Quest: Open Season (1993).

The narrative and gameplay established patterns that would continue in SWAT 3: Close Quarters Battle (1999), including the focus on realistic LAPD procedures, emphasis on minimizing casualties, and authentic tactical equipment. SWAT 3 would return to first-person perspective while maintaining the series’ commitment to procedural authenticity.¹³

• Previous: 1995 - Police Quest SWAT
• Next: 1999 - SWAT 3 Close Quarters Battle

References

Footnotes

1. Wikipedia – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – release dates, developers, review scores, sales data, plot summary, version info ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹

2. TV Tropes – Police Quest SWAT 2 – gameplay description, easter eggs, trivia, cut content ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

3. Giant Bomb – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – voice cast, manual details, development trivia, reception summary ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

4. GOG.com – Police Quest: SWAT 1+2 – user reviews, actor account, development location, training details ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

5. Steam Store – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – system requirements, user ratings, game description ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

6. Internet Archive – AllGame Review – reviewer quotes, Gates involvement, realism claims ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

7. IMDb – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – voice cast, plot summary, user ratings ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. CheatCC – Strategy Guide – AI description, mission structure, real-life basis ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

9. MobyGames – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – credits, technical specs, player reviews, trivia ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹

10. IGN – SWAT 2 Review – Jason Bates review, score, gameplay critique ↩ ↩²

11. GameSpot – Police Quest: SWAT 2 Review – Scott Krol review, score, gameplay criticism, bug reports ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

12. Internet Archive – PC Gamer Review – Stephen Poole review, score, system requirements, multiplayer specs ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹

13. Internet Archive – IGN SWAT 3 Interview – Rod Fung quotes, sales data, development philosophy ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

14. Police Quest Fandom Wiki – gameplay details, weapon differences, character lists ↩ ↩²

15. GameRevolution – Police Quest: SWAT 2 Review – Nebojsa Radakovic review, manual details, game features ↩ ↩² ↩³

16. Metacritic – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – user score, rating breakdown ↩

17. VGChartz – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – sales data, multiple release dates, community score ↩ ↩²

18. Glitchwave – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – user ratings, genre tags, collection info ↩ ↩²

19. Internet Archive – Official SWAT 2 News Page (1998) – sales data, development dates, composer trivia, theme song details ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

20. The Digital Antiquarian – Gates controversy, Sierra history, critical context ↩

21. MobyGames – Police Quest: SWAT 2 Credits – full development credits, voice cast, police consultation ↩ ↩² ↩³

22. PCGamingWiki – Police Quest: SWAT 2 – technical specs, compatibility issues, system requirements ↩ ↩²

23. Amazon – Police Quest SWAT 2 XP – XP compatible version info ↩

24. Steam Search Results – Steam release date ↩

25. GameFAQs – Police Quest: SWAT Generation – compilation release info ↩

26. Steam Workshop – SWAT 2 Music Mod – fan project, user comments ↩

27. Neoseeker – SWAT 2 FAQs – walkthrough info, series listing ↩

28. GameSpot – Sierra Plans for the Future – Sierra FX brand, corporate restructuring ↩