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| | Title:
Ghost Recon Advanced Warfigher
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System:
Xbox 360
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Genre:
First Person Shooter
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Publisher:
Ubisoft
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Developer:
Red Storm Entertainment
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Release:
3/7/2006
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Online:
Yes
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ESRB:
Teen
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Xbox 360 owners finally have a reason to turn on their systems again and venture onto Xbox Live. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter is an incredible breath of fresh air for those who have been waiting since November for another good game. It is no secret that the rate of next-gen titles has been slow at best, which have led many Xbox 360 owners--including myself--to wonder whether they bought the system too early. Well, all our concerns can be promptly put away. Even though it was delayed numerous times, G.R.A.W. is now in the hands of Xbox 360 owners. Better yet, the game kicks ass. Whether it’s the story, visuals, sound or game play, G.R.A.W. as a whole is one of those rare games that hardly falters in any of the areas.
Something Beyond The Pretty Face
For the first time, gamers are not going to notice only the graphics when they pop a multi-platform game into their Xbox 360. Of course, the graphics are an amazing feat (which we will get to in a minute). But first, I’d like to take a moment to talk about the single player story and gameplay which has been refined into an enjoyable experience.
Players assume the role of the poster boy for Ghost Recon, Captain Scott Mitchell. It seems that some Mexican Rebels are not very happy over a new agreement signed by the Canadian, Mexican and American governments which focuses on cracking down on terror. This leads into the first level of the single player mode, and if I were to say any more I would spoil a huge shocker. So if you want to find out more about the story in G.R.A.W., you’ll just have to play it yourself.
During the game, you will control Scott as he plays a pivotal role in resolving this situation. While the original Ghost Recon had its moments, everyone can pretty much agree that the gameplay was--at times--maddening. Whether it was the steep difficulty level or the apparent lack of brains the A.I. exhibited, a lot of gamers became frustrated with Ghost Recon. Ghost Recon 2 didn't help, either. Sure, it looked great, but the gameplay was even more disappointing (somehow the A.I. became even stupider, if that is possible).
Many were worried that G.R.A.W. would suffer the same fate. I'm here to say that this isn't the case. In fact, G.R.A.W. has completely done away with all the maddening aspects from the previous Ghost Recon games. There is only one aspect of G.R.A.W. that will madden gamers: during one of the later missions a glitch can occur which makes the mission unbeatable. Sadly, there’s been no word yet if the glitch is going to be fixed through a patch on Xbox Live or in a new version.
Controls
First up are the amazing controls. Now, I will warn veterans of the series that certain moves have been mapped to different buttons. For instance, changing from standing to crouched and then prone is now under the command of one of the thumbsticks (by clicking in) instead of the D-pad. Other new moves include hugging a wall, actually aiming the gun, sliding into cover (by clicking the left thumbstick as you run), and climbing over certain barriers. I admit it took me a mission or two to really get the handle on the new controls, but once I did they became second nature.
Gamers will be sliding into cover, switching their shooting side, and hugging walls with ease in no time; it felt like when I was learning how to play the original Halo. After a few hours, gamers will be wondering why they didn't pick up the controls any sooner. Better yet is how tightly the controls respond. Not once did I feel cheated out of being hit or discovered based on the game's control design. If I messed up it was my fault. No cheap deaths here, boys and girls.
Finally, Smart A.I.!
After refining the controls, Red Storm decided to tackle the biggest complaint gamers have had with the single player in past versions: the A.I. Honestly, I wondered if Red Storm would be able to pull it off. Guess what? They did. They didn't just scrape by either; the A.I. is GRAW is a huge improvement.
The moment the enemies know where the gamer is, they begin to unleash a furious assault. Try to flank them and they will take up better positions and then flank the gamer in return. Grenades and death charges are not out of the question either, so gamers are constantly going to have to keep an eye on the lookout for enemies. Don't worry, though, because eighty percent of the missions the player is going to be accompanied by three other Ghosts and they are just as smart as the enemies.
I can't express how many times my team saved me from a hidden assault that I missed. In missions where I am alone (there are several), the lack of support makes getting the job done much harder. Only once did I come across a situation where the A.I. screwed up and resulted in the death of my entire team (and me). Other than that, gamers are going to be happy to have their fellow Ghosts along side them.
Amazing Graphics
Visually, G.R.A.W. is a masterpiece. I didn’t think I would come across a game that would so quickly dethrone all of the other games, and become the best looking game on the 360. Guess I was wrong. G.R.A.W. is the perfect example Xbox 360 owners can use to show all the skeptics that Microsoft’s white box has a lot of power under its hood. There are just too many good things to say about the graphics, so for the sake of time I will limit myself to the most impressive.
First up is the lighting found in G.R.A.W. The game takes advantage of the newer lighting technology brought forth by Valve known as HDR (High Dynamic Range). This is a new form of lighting which uses between 16 and 32 bit values for lighting instead of the normal 8. When experienced in a game, HDR mimics how the eye would react to certain light. On the 360 the effects are impressive. Walk into a dark underground car garage after being out in the bright sun and it will take a few moments before you can see everything; Scott Mitchell’s “eyes” are adjusting. Peer up at the sun and the buildings in front of it become darker. Look at a reflexive surface with the sun beating off it and you become temporarily blinded. The HDR actually becomes a component of the gameplay since there are some areas where Mitchell will become blinded by the sun unless he is in the proper spot. As a whole, the HDR is one step beyond anything seen so far in the gaming world.
Complementing the HDR lighting is the visual recreation of Mexico City. The buildings, streets, ambient sounds, heat waves coming off the roads, HDR lighting and foliage create an immersive environment that is both foreboding and beautiful. Every building is rendered to scale and creates some truly impressive moments while fighting the Mexican rebels. One of these moments is the helicopter mission where gamers will gain control of the Black Hawk chain gun as they clear out a landing sight for the Ghost team. As the gamers fly into the drop off spot, Mexico City sits before them and then slowly the gamers are brought into the actual mission area. After clearing out the area, the Ghost team is dropped off. The effect of seeing Mexico City from the air and then stepping into it at ground level without a single loading screen or loss of detail and scale is enjoyable every time you experience it.
Rocking It Out: American Style
When it comes to sound, G.R.A.W. does not disappoint, either. While probably the least impressive aspect of the entire package, the sound still does its job when it needs too. The sounds of Mexico City add a great element of realism to the city whether it is the American government asking all of the citizens to stay indoors, or cars alarms that go off when an explosion happens near them. Bullets whiz by gamers’ heads, explosions rock the room and vehicles have grunting motors.
While it may take you a while to notice the music in the background, it is surprisingly very, very well done. Whether in the single player or multiplayer modes, the music does exactly what music should do: enhance the experience without getting in the way. Usually when a mission is at its peak or the player is pulling out of an area, a grand theme will strike up to give the gamers a true sense of American military power; it works. My favorite part about the music was actually the small clips of rock music that accompanied the Black Hawk mission briefings. It made me sit there for a moment and realize that I am taking control of an America solider. Too often I think game designers forget to make the players realize that they are controlling a “person.” The little touch of American rock that Scott Mitchell listens to makes gamers feel like heroes.
Online Heaven
Now we come to the multiplayer facet of G.R.A.W. which, in my opinion, has some of the best stuff found on Xbox Live (sorry PDZ). Finally, those people who waited hours in line for the 360 have reason to jump back into the online community. The first thing players are going to notice when they enter multiplayer is the wealth of options waiting for them. In a great nod to the fans, there is just as much Co-Op content as there is adversarial content. Whether gamers want to play with friends or against them, G.R.A.W. has it covered.
While both modes are a blast to play, the Co-Op game will probably win over gamers more often. Why? For starters, there is Co-Op Campaign, which lets up to sixteen players attempt custom missions built on the multiplayer maps. Red Storm also made sure these missions were not just slap on additions. With these missions come stories and unlockable gamerscore points. Playing with up to fifteen of your friends and working as one big force of Ghosts is something no game has ever pulled off in the console world.
Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube versions have nothing on this awesome experience. But let’s say objectives aren’t what the group of gamers are into right at the moment. What if they just want to battle against hordes of enemies on the maps? G.R.A.W. can do that too. The same amount of people (and a heck of a lot of enemies) litter the screen for some truly amazing chaos. The only downside is having fifteen other people makes taking on the enemies incredibly easy, especially when half the team is armed with sniper rifles or grenade launchers.
The above is just a sample of the Co-Op options available to gamers. In addition, there are also modes known as Co-Op Objectives (more stealth-oriented) and even Co-Op Territories (defend between one to five spots as enemies charge your position).
But even after awesome matches of working together with friends, gamers are going to want to blast the heck out of each other. Where there were plenty of options for the Co-Op there are even more (amazingly) for the adversarial modes. All the favorite game types from previous Ghost Recon games have returned in G.R.A.W.; Last Man Standing, Sharpshooter and Hamburger Hill are just some of the many option players will be able to choose from. The multiplayer experience, though, demands team work. No more lone wolf; it will just get you killed.
This is one part of the multiplayer experience that does get hurt. Unless you have a group of eight or nine friends who know how to work together, you are going to be on the losing team a lot. It is painfully obvious when a group of friends get on, because they absolutely dominate matches. If gamers want to get the best experience out of the multiplayer portion of this game they better start making friends.
Gameplay wise, the online portion of G.R.A.W. plays very similar to Ghost Recon 2. Many of the advanced maneuvers available to Scott in the single players were not moved over to the multiplayer portion. This is both good and bad. Good in the sense that gamers do not have to learn a whole new set of moves to master, but bad in that the gameplay is painfully similar to the previous Ghost Recon titles. The only two big differences are the addition of a drone and the ability to switch your shooting side. Also, camping is still a big gameplay exploit in this game. Sadly, I’m guilty of sitting in a single spot with my grenade launcher, and this also makes the game frustrating on some levels.
The multiplayer is not perfect though, and it is sad to see that G.R.A.W. is still plagued by problems even the original Ghost Recon (back in the early days of the Xbox) suffered from. The biggest problem is actually getting into a game. Far too often I would enter a game which was already in progress, or the slots would be full. At worst, I spent fifteen minutes searching for a game. Now here is my question: How hard is it to put a small icon next to the game name that means the game is in progress? There are four games to this franchise’s name, and still Red Storm cannot figure out a clear way to fix this problem. Even worse is when the quickmatch options sticks you into a game that is already in progress. It is frustrating and may make some gamers prematurely give up on trying.
Overall, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfigher is one hell of a game. Whether it is the lengthy single player or the robust multiplayer, gamers are going to have a heck of a lot to do with this title; replay value should not even be an issue. Don't worry about the glitch problem, either. I have complete faith that Ubisoft will fix this with a simple Xbox Live update. If you are the owner of an Xbox 360, do yourself a favor and go and buy this must have title.
| The Core Score |
Overall
9.8 |
| Fun |
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10 |
| Gameplay |
|
9.5 |
| Graphics |
|
10 |
| Audio |
|
9.5 |
| Replay |
|
9.5 |
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