4/5 Pitchforks
Overly generic run-and-gun shooters like Call of Duty plague the gaming industry. They promote hasty annual releases, and a run-of-the-mill formula to rake in easy money. When I witnessed Ghost Recon: Future Soldier’s first released gameplay footage, it looked like Ubisoft strayed from the tactical scenario of the Ghost Recon franchise and had succumb to the stale shooter formula. Thankfully, I was wrong. Although Ghost Recon: Future Soldier does borrow heavily from features found in titles like Call of Duty or Battlefield, it improves upon the basic formula by transferring the ideas into a tactical shooter with a respectable plot, excellent flow and gameplay, a streamlined command system and invigorating multiplayer.
The biggest change to the Ghost Recon series is how commands are ordered. Ubisoft took the targeting system from Splinter Cell: Conviction and revamped it, allowing one button to issue focus fire commands on the fly. The game also includes a synchronization shot command where you’re able to target up to four enemies and kill them all at once, decreasing the likelihood of sounding an alarm. The system is really easy and for the most part works well. Teammates will actively target engaged enemies on their own, but the process of wiping out a hostile squad is much smoother when teammates are given a dedicated target to focus on.
Future Soldier’s plot is pretty basic, but flows better than previous Ghost Recon titles. The game opens with the death of the feature squad in Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, and you play as Kozak, a member of Ghost regiment assigned to seek revenge for the squad’s death. The plot quickly thickens with nuclear arms slipping into the hands of rogue terrorist groups, the Russian’s Bodark forces and a terrorist attack in Britain, which resembles Sept. 11, 2001. Things then escalate with a Russian coupe, and naturally, Ghost squad has to save the day.
Luckily for you, the Ghost team has the best gadgets available for their operations. The most significant new inclusion into your technology arsenal is active camouflage. When crouching or in prone, a camouflage that mirrors its surroundings activates and allows you to stealthily blend into the scenery, marking targets and performing the occasional stealth kill. At first the mechanism seems overpowered, but after a couple of missions and especially when Bodark forces begin using it, the active camouflage has just the right amount of gameplay influence.
Weapon customization has also taken a front-row seat. Every weapon in your arsenal can be completely customized with unlockable modifications. From simple things like paint color and sights, to more intricate alterations like the gas system, rail, stock and ammunition. With Kinect you can swap out parts with your hands, but it wasn’t much more effective than using a controller.
But the fun gadgets Future Soldier leaves at your disposal isn’t the game’s highlight, the pacing is what really makes the adventure shine. Future Soldier blends the chaotic action of the common-day shooter, with the stealth of Splinter Cell and creates a smoothie of awesome. In every mission there are segments where stealth is required and sounding an alarm will end in mission failure. But just when sneaking around begins to be tiring, the alarm ban is one, lifted, allowing you to rain death on hostiles. However, running around and playing the spray-and-pray method will only result in a hasty demise. Appropriately using cover is critical, for both stealth and combat sequences. The game improved its cover system as well, and now it is nearly identical to Gears of War’s. The transition between cover is fluid, and it’s stellar to see the concrete barricade you’re crouched behind being blasted apart, and hear the razor-like shards of concrete jingling alongside ricocheting bullets.
The biggest lag in the Future Soldier’s experience is the graphics and the occasional freeze. The graphics are not bad, but the game engine is showing its age in comparison to Gears of War 3 or even Halo: Reach. There are certain scenes where the background is absolutely beautiful, like the dust storm in Africa, but facial models and lip-synching in cut-scenes is pretty choppy. About five times in the nine-hour campaign I had to restart the checkpoint because the game froze or a teammate wouldn’t reach the rendezvous point. This isn’t a big deal, but it definitely is a hassle and draws me out of the moment.
In today’s market, multiplayer isn’t really an option like it used to be. Thankfully, Future Soldier’s multiplayer experience incorporates the game’s tactical atmosphere pretty well. With four different modes in competitive combat that force teamwork, the play style is instantly familiar but pleasantly unique. There is also Guerilla mode, inspired from Gears of War’s Horde that pits a team of up to four against waves of increasingly stronger enemies. It isn’t as seamless as Gears’ Horde, or even Call of Duty’s Zombies, but it serves as a nice distraction and unlocks certain weapon modifications.
Reach the reporter at tdmcknig@asu.edu
