Conflict Desert Storm (Xbox Classics)

Controlling a team of up to four soldiers, the emphasis is on placing troops tactically during a battle, shooting the enemy, working through map-based environments, (deserts, towns etc...) to achieve objectives. The four soldiers that are controlled get better as the game progresses which is the incentive to keep them alive. They all have different weapons and weapons handling abilities (e.g. one has a machine gun, another is a sniper etc...) which means that figuring out where to place them for maximum firepower in the skirmishes is as important as being able to aim and fire.

It is a thinking shoot-em-up in that if you go into a fight all-guns-blazing, 99% of the time you will get your butt kicked. Think about placement, fields of fire and tactics (e.g. watch out because the enemy is intelligent and will sneak up behind you), then you will do much better.

The upsides are that I really enjoy playing this game. This is the type of game where if you enjoy the genre (e.g. Rainbow 6) or shoot em ups with the emphasis on the tactical side, this is a great game. Maybe I am biased because I was desperately waiting for a game of this type on the XBox and thoroughly enjoying it. One point is the AI is much better than other games. This means that soldiers act relatively with a degree of autonomy which is critical in battle situations. e.g. if there is a machine gun lying around, they will pick it up and use it. Alternatively, if they are getting attacked from behind, they will turn around and react to the threat rather than sit there and take a pounding.

If you are into Tekken Tag or instant gratification beat-em-upswithout any tactics, then it would better renting to see if Desert Storm is your thing.

I should also note the drawbacks. The graphics are functional rather and there are the usual frustrations with games of this type (i.e. although the artificial intelligence of the combattants is good, sometimes you are left cursing the lack of intelligence of one your players). Also, the difficulty is too low for me, the playing areas are not as large as I would like and the weaponry and choice of combattants in the game should be better. The English accents are also funny (one of them is the spit of Michael Caine). This is a function of getting the game out before the competition and this is only to be expected and I would rather have this type of game today with a few limitations than have to wait another six months. I imagine that future titles in this genre will be much better but despite the limitations, I am very happy indeed with this game (especially because it was a present).

Basic premise is that you control a four-man squad of elite grunts (SAS or Delta) on various sandy missions. The controls are fairly intuitive and switching between each member of your squad is a quick process. This allows you to react quickly to any taxing situations.

Another good point is the way that you can add to each member of your squad's skill levels with certain weapons and equipment. Use the AK47 plenty and you'll find your skill and accuracy improve on the next mission. This allows you have weapons specialists within your squad. The difficulty factor is good and even on easy setting you can still get fragged pretty easily if you don't move quickly enough. On the Hard setting the game becomes a very different beast as you attempt to creep about without attracting enemy fire. Enemy AI is also deceptively good. It's not revolutionary but they do get attracted by the sound of gunfire and can give some nasty surprises if you're not looking.

The level designs are nice and big and the ambient sound FX are cool in 5.1 dolby. The pop-up can be a little annoying but on the whole it's the kind of easy style play that will keep you coming back. A lot of the next gen games these days attempt to be complex just for the sake of it but this keeps to the point; get in, blow up things and shoot stuff and get out.

The subject matter might be a little un PC at the moment but what the heck, I can remember playing Raid on Moscow when I was younger and it didn't turn me into an Capitalist nutter! It may get overshadowed by the raft of Sept-Oct releases but this may just find a place in your regular players just because of the gameplay.