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Review: Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier

Just off the bat, we’re going to refer to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier as just Future Soldier from now on. Writing Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier a few times could get pretty old, although maybe the word count would be beneficial? I digress.

Announced to be in development as early back as January, 2009, Future Soldier is the latest installment in the long running military strategy series. The footage and gameplay shown at E3 2010 was worrying – the game had gone from a well paced strategy shooter to a Call of Duty-esque action fest – however Ubisoft Paris have reigned in their creative horses and brought the series back to its well imbued roots.

Future Soldier is an incredibly strategic game, allowing the player to sneak past enemies if they choose to do so, but also allowing the player the pinpoint precision to take enemies out in synchronised and ordered chaos. Often times, the best route to take is not the most obvious, and the incredibly well designed levels and set pieces allow you to navigate unhindered in order to find the best option to take, ensuring that you and your digital comrades get home in one piece.

This is also made easier thanks to the near future technology and military hardware that your team of Ghosts have access to, because just like the games’ marketing said, “Fighting fair just isn’t an option.”

Combat is hectic, cover and terrain breaking apart as bullets whip over your head, the yells and constant situation updates from your Ghosts keeping you informed. Many times I would hear my squad leader yell out “Enemies flanking to the right!” and catch them just before they surely enough took advantage of my weakened flank. This is perhaps one of the best sounding console games on a 5.1 system, and I’d say it ties heavily with Battlefield 3’s incredible sound mixing.

It would be hard to mention sound without acknowledging the amazing visuals. I seriously do not know how modern developers are still milking our aged consoles and making games look as detailed as they do. Admittedly, some of the up close facial animations are quite poor, however the engine rendered cut scenes, smooth animation, and amazing UI make this a flaw you really have to try to notice.

Throughout the 10-12+ hour long campaign you’ll use a plethora of sophisticated gadgets including adaptive camouflage that allows you to seamlessly blend into your surroundings, and a not-so-sneaky Warhound; a robotic beast that acts as a roving center of destruction and portable artillery.

Despite the option to go loud, you’ll always want to throw the most useful piece of gear into the air: the low noise drone. Part RC car, part flying scout, the drone is your bird’s-eyes on the battlefield, allowing you to spot and monitor enemy movements, giving you the element of control. This seamlessly ties in with Future Soldier‘s new and improved tagging system, allowing you to mark up to four enemy combatants, and then take them out simultaneously with your team.

All of the equipment is simple to use, but lethally effective, and despite the overwhelming enemy numbers, you always feel in control of the situation. Ubisoft has managed to balance the AI perfectly; the game never feels so challenging as to incite rage or anger, but it presents enough of a challenge that passing difficult areas feels rewarding and worthwhile.

When you’re done playing through the fleshed-out singleplayer element, you’ll most likely want to dive right into the equally sizable multiplayer portion of the game. You and your team can play four game modes, from a straight-forward deathmatch mode, or the more team orientated Decoy mode, where each team fights for three objectives. Only one of them is the real objective though, hence the name.

Finally, we have Guerilla mode, a new take on the classic Horde mode that many argue Gears of War nailed. Future Soldier, however, changes it up by placing a central objective into each map which your team of four (online or split-screen) Ghosts then have to protect. It’s a small change, but it works well, and gives you something to sink your teeth in as a casual mode when you’re too impatient for multiplayer.

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier (I said it again!) is a refined experience, and the culmination of a number of different parts that on their own are great, but together are amazing. The story is fast paced, the action is dynamic and memorable, and the experiences are worth reliving over and over again.

Future Soldier effortlessly stands up there as one of the most impressive releases in the recent years, and firmly plants the prestigious Ghost Recon flag into the ground once again.

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