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We, the PC gaming community, are living in
exhilarating times. The market is inundated with outstanding new releases demanding attention such as
Neverwinter Nights, Jedi Knight II, Dungeon Siege, Grand Theft Auto III, Medal of Honor and the
upcoming Warcraft III. New pentium 4 PC’s are dirt cheap, and the Geforce4 card is now available.
Times are indeed good.
However, in the midst of this veritable cornucopia of quality gaming choices, one has to be vigilant
not to overlook titles that receive less than their fair share of media hype, but may be as good as,
if not better than the games receiving far more accolades. “Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix” is
one such game.
One gripping element of SOF II is the plot, which could easily be ripped out of tomorrow’s |
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newspaper
headlines, and is especially eerie, haunting and relevant in this post 9/11 world
environment. The game begins with a simulated newscast
from CNN describing how terrorists
plan to use bio-chemical warfare against the United States, and that these same terrorist
have employed top scientists from the former Soviet Union to conduct, design and manufacture
these chemical weapons. The first mission of SOF II is for the games’ hero, John Mullins,
to extract one of these scientists (who has seen the error of his ways and wishes to defect)
from a terrorist safe house in Czechoslovakia.
To add to the realism of SOF II, John Mullins is a real life (retired) US army ranger who
participated in top-secret operations, ran clandestine missions deep into enemy territory in
North Vietnam Laos, and Cambodia at the height of the Vietnam war. He is not only the basis
for the game’s hero, but is also listed as a technical advisor in the credits of SOF II.
First and foremost, SOF II is a tactical FPS. Based on the Quake III Team Arena engine and
enhanced with the Ghoul 2 rendering system, graphics are uniformly excellent throughout.
Standout touches include the laser sighting on the pistol, night vision goggles, and authentic
recreations of indoor and exotic outdoor locales. The real claim to fame and calling card of
SOF II is the much-discussed and trumpeted realistic violence. The verdict: the violence is
extremely explicit. However, the graphical violence is an integral and important part of the
game, and not just an added effect to shock gamers. As SOF II is a game based in current times,
with current weapons and environments, the realistic portrayal of violence only enhances an
already immersive gaming experience. This is not to say that sticking a shotgun in the face
of a terrorist and pulling the trigger and watching the results does not have its gruesome appeal
either.
The Ghoul 2 system allows for area specific damage reactions, meaning if an enemy is shot in
the shoulder, he will drop his weapon and grab his shoulder. If shot in the stomach, the enemy
will double over, if shot in the head, well, suffice to say bad things happen. Also, the
artificial intelligence of the opponent is first rate. Enemy soldiers will pull such clever
maneuvers as picking up a grenade thrown by Mullins and throw it back, and use smoke grenades
to mask their entrance into buildings. Another “trick” the enemy will use is if soldiers are
killed on the first floor of a building, the troops on the second floor will take cover await
your arrival from behind doors and walls. These features certainly add to the realism of SOF II.
The game follows a somewhat linear route in tracking down the terrorists, though the stops along
the way more than make up for the straightforward path. Locales include the rain soaked streets
and alleyways of industrial prague, terrorists camps hidden in the jungles of columbia, the
snowy expanses of switzerland and the streets of hong kong.
Weapons are full gear military issue, ranging from pistols with laser sighting and silencers,
to 12 gauge shotguns, m3-a1 and ak-47 machine guns, sniper rifle, night vision & infrared goggles,
flash, smoke and regular grenades, and m-4 machine gun with grenade launcher. Also available is
the revered m-60 machine gun, which with a firing rate of 25 rounds / second, clears out a room
faster than gallagher at a mensa convention. All weapons require their own specific ammunition,
which can be in short supply depending the level of difficulty selected.
One innovative feature of SOF II is that the number of saved games available per level is dependent
on the degree of difficulty selected for the game. For example, 5 saves per level are allowed on
the “gun for hire” setting, while only 3 saves per level are allowed on the “consultant” setting.
As levels can be quite long and involved, judicious use of the allotted saved game slots becomes
paramount to success. The difficulty level affects other factors such as the accuracy of opponents
fire, maximum number of guns allowed and ammunition allowed per weapon. Safe to say that the
“consultant” setting would be challenging to even the most grizzled of FPS players.
Of course, no game is perfect, and SOF II is not without its minor flaws. Most irksome is that direct
fire by a machine gun in the jungles of Columbia can not, for some inexplicable reason, penetrate a
palm leaf. Any enemy crouching amongst the ground foliage of the jungle is somehow immune from harm.
The best plan is to wait for the enemy to take a standing position, then go for the headshot, else lob
a few grenade in the general direction. I offer neither explanation nor justification for this “palm
defense”, but safe to say be glad this was not the case during the actual fighting of WWII, else we
would all be using chopsticks for dinner tonight.
Another minor criticism is that when launching grenades, what appears to be a clear line of site is
often not the case. A tree trunk or building corner that would never in million years appear to
interfere with the shot often causes the grenade to explode in the players face. I’m quite certain
that the hero of SOF II would have difficulty getting a clean shot off around such obstacles as Kate
Moss, Mini-Me or Calista Flockhart.
All in all, SOF II is a game not to overlook in this current crop of new releases. The relevant theme,
excellent graphics, standout AI reaction and overall playability distinguish SOF II as a game worth
hard earned dollars. Still don’t believe? Download the free multiplayer demo and check it out.
Sliceboy's Rating:
4 out of 5 Planets
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Soldier of Fortune 2: Double Helix>> |
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