This is war!

Back! This is going to be the war game post of the year probably. So, load your gun, aim and fire!

I have to mention, quickly, that I've finally finished playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 online. Forever! The screaming, teenage brat-fest, of a multiplayer experience is going down in my book as simply annoying. The back-to-basics gameplay of Call of Duty 4’s multiplayer has been turned into a knifing, perk overloaded and support aircraft hell of nightmarish proportions.

Each round has been a pain to complete, simply because there's so much going on, rather than actually shooting basic rifles at each other from a distance. Sad but true.

With that out of the way, let's take a look at a couple of others games.



Review

Played on: Xbox 360
Released: 2010

Thank goodness then, for Battlefield: Bad Company 2! Yes, it’s mine and I've completed the singleplayer!

Now, I'm enjoying it online and the fantastic Rush multiplayer mode. Which is, just like the first Bad Company, the mode where one team attacks and the other defends, only better! This encourages proper warfare and makes the battlefield feel more real, with two clear fronts attacking each other. Add the amount of vehicles, sheer destruction in the environment and we have ourselves a really dynamic and enjoyable multiplayer shooter!



So, the singleplayer then, how was it? In one word? Fantastic! A little short, but the time it lasted its right up there with the Call of Duty Modern Warfare games. Like I mentioned earlier, the amount of damage you can do on the environments makes the experience so random and varied. BC2, just like the first game, lets you take a more open ended approach to the world, so you can plan your attacks better.

It allows you to flank and find new routes to get to the enemy. You can even just blow holes in buildings to get through places! Even better still, you can even demolish whole buildings! One note though, the levels have a smaller scale to them than the previous BC, this is especially apparent on levels where you use tanks. A little minus there I'm afraid.

Over the course of the main campaign, you also get to try out some really heavy machinery. Like the M1 Abrahams tank and a drone helicopter! This adds variation and changes the pace in a cleverd way. One desert level even puts you in a completely free desert to explore, this level is unique as such and its open design could have been used for more of the levels.

New weapons can be found on the way, either by picking up the ones left by enemies or finding ammo deliveries, and you're rewarded for doing so.



The story in BC2 is more serious than the original and it has, sadly, toned down the humour. However, some of it remains and the Bad Company team of four soldiers each have great personalities and funny lines. Their voice overs are great and the dialogue feels casual and natural.

Speaking of sound, the first BC had fantastic sound, this game is no exception. BC1 and 2 are unrivalled in this department. Play the game on a surround system and you're in for a treat. The heavy pounding of .50 cal rounds, the grinding of metal from tanks and the rattle of a light machine pistols are simply beautiful tones in a concert of war! The way the game blends these sounds in relation to where the player is, if it’s a small room, under a bridge, in open space or suffering ear deafness after a grenade. It has to be heard to be appreciated.



I strongly recommend BC2 for fans of shooters, the story is good, the locations vary from icy mountains, to rainy jungles or dry deserts and the gameplay with its destructible environment is fantastic. Add in the great dialogue banter between your comrades and you’re in for a great journey!

This Swedish developed series can proudly stand tall next to the Modern Warfare series. That’s one hell of an achievement!



Review

Played on: PlayStation 3
Released: 2010

Let’s continue with my playthrough of Army of Two: The 40th Day, coop with a friend. We played the original together the same way in splitscreen, two years ago. It’s been an entertaining game, if not a very underwhelming end. The game starts rather epic, with the city of Shanghai under heavy terrorist attacks. The first part of the game is actually the strongest and the sheer size and amount of destruction around you, is amazing.

The controls and feeling of the game is instantly familiar from the first title and they work fine. They've also added the option of switching the shoulder the camera is looking from, so you can easily swap it over depending on where you are aiming. A nice touch and they have thankfully removed most of the annoying “back-to-back” scenes, there are still a couple of them in there, but far less.

New for this release are morale choices you need to take when meeting new characters. You also have to make the choice of trying to rescue civilians or take them down. These choices will effect cutscenes, and of course, the ending.

Like the first game, there is an extensive weapon customisation mode, which allows you to literally build your own guns with various parts from real weapons. Hard earned money gets quickly put into new and more powerful weaponry! However, the amount of variation, which clearly is in for show, does not add up to the fairly simple feeling of each weapon and thus they mostly feel the same. Each assault rifle is much like the other, and so on.

Sitting back, and letting the game sink in a while, I feel the original was better. It offered far more varied locations and it looked better for it. There's a lot of grey and red in 40th Day's visuals and all the levels blend together, failing to stand out from each other or being very original. Sure, you have some more memorable parts, the Zoo comes to mind, but it could have done with more locations.

Overall, it’s a solid coop experience and is, without doubt, a game to play with a friend, either online or splitscreen. However, I'd actually recommend the original over this and of course the Gears of War series, which not only is technically superior, but also offers a far better story.



That’s all for now folks, see you around!