Amazon.co.uk Review
Soldier of Fortune steers the first-person shooter genre away from the supernatural weaponry of
Unreal and
Quake and towards the realistic tactical combat of
Rainbow Six and
SWAT 3. In
Soldier of Fortune, stealth, caution, and cover carry as much importance as accuracy and firepower.
Players assume the role of John Mullins (also the name of the game's real-life mercenary consultant), a soldier for hire who accepts the most dangerous missions the US government offers, including recovering stolen nuclear warheads and infiltrating war-torn Kosovo. Hawk, a burly sidekick voiced by The Green Mile Oscar nominee Michael Clarke Duncan, accompanies Mullins primarily in scripted sequences that advance the grisly story. Solder of Fortune's single-player story line exceeds genre standards and rivals Valve's classic Half-Life for depth and excitement.
A first-person shooter wouldn't be complete without explosive weaponry--Soldier of Fortune certainly doesn't disappoint. The arsenal includes a knife, several pistols, a shotgun, a variety of machine guns, a rocket launcher, flamethrower, sniper rifle, grenades, and a futuristic microwave gun. Unlike most action shooters, players select new weapons before each mission--and you're restricted in how much armament John carries. For instance, you must make tough decisions between the larger weapons. Should you take the submachine gun for close-quarter combat or grab the sniper rifle for a stealthier strategy? Weapons also do much more damage than in typical first-person shooters. If you're unarmoured, a single shotgun blast could end your game. These elements give Soldier of Fortune an intensity not often seen in the genre.
Soldier of Fortune uses a heavily modified version of id Software's Quake 2 3-D engine, and the results are impressively realistic--perhaps even too realistic. Shoot an enemy in the foot with the pistol, and he'll clutch the wound and favour his good leg. Shoot him in the knee with the shotgun, and the limb will be explosively severed in a spray of gristle. If you're the type of person who thinks most action movies are fakey, you'll appreciate the accurate look, sound, and effect of Soldier of Fortune's real-world weaponry. But if you're the type of person who closed your eyes during the beach scene in Saving Private Ryan, you'll want to turn on the password-protected violence lockout option or buy Soldier of Fortune Tactical, which has the lock permanently active. --Doug Radcliffe
Pros:
- Heavily modified and very crisp Quake 2 graphics engine depicts the carnage with frightening realism
- Varied multiplayer modes provide frenetic online excitement with smooth action on a standard modem connection
- Over two dozen missions with multiple objectives and diverse locations, such as on a speeding train and at Kosovo
- Some of the best weapons and weapon sound effects ever used in a first-person shooter
- Ability to lock out the realistic gore
Cons: - In-your-face violence could disturb even the most hard-core shooter fans
- Limited enemy artificial intelligence
Product Description
(For Mature Audiences) You're the world's deadliest soldier of fortune and your mission is clear: survive. Track your prey across the globe in a series of secret missions to take down a fanatical terrorist organisation before it takes you down. Maintain your cover as a covert warrior in a startling variety of explosive missions, ranging from underhanded sabotage, to stealthy assassination, to full frontal assaults where skill marks the difference between the hunter and the hunted. Welcome to the secret world of the mercenary. Based on the popular magazine of the same name,
Soldier of Fortune is the all-new, explosive first-person shooter created by Raven Software. It delivers the most realistic, covert-operative themed shooter ever created. Like a blockbuster action-thriller,
Soldier of Fortune plunges players into the secret and deadly world of the modern-day gun-for-hire via dozens of real-to-life missions spanning five continents and innovative multiplayer modes.
