UBI Soft Tom Clancys Ghost Recon X Box Strategy Review

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Price Paid:  $50.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
When reviewing live enabled games you have to look at both the offline and on. The single player mode vs AI is pretty good. Good challenge, but you have to put some time into learning the strategy of what to do. I did not expect to get wiped out on the recruit mode so easily in the first mission. Truth be told I shelved the game for a good 3 months from there, considering the allure of Mech Assault on live at the time.
Recently I picked up Wolfenstein and my preference is Recon, due to the intense nature of more realistic chance of dying. Bottom line is strategy is necessary, vs fast trigger fingers and health meters etc. Again a matter of taste, I like Wolf fine, but at this point Recon is more of a skill game to me.
If you take abit of time to familiarize yourself with the style and control Recon will have you hooked. Also for beginners, you should run quick missions to unlock the better weapons as this will definitely enhance your game play experience, both off and online.
There's nothing like the sneak and peek nature of this game. If you get tired of certain features, kit restrictions online allow you to customize the match. As a bonus you can boot from your room any obnoxius gamers; what annoying kid that can't stop using obscenities? ha ha.
The major drawback was the lobby interface, compared to all the other online enabled, this has to be the worst I've played, compared to Mech and Wolf and Unreal.
When the release of the GR new missions comes out, hopefully the address the lobby, and the various "gliches".
Excellent overall play hands down a winner.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

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5.00 of 5,
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Summary:
I went to the local EB looking for a a good FPS and the guy talked me into buying Ghost Recon. Got home, did the training and kicked off a campaign and... got wiped out in a few minutes - had two teams pinned down by Georgian spetsnaz. It was a bloodbath! "Huh", I thought. "What's the deal here? What a dud game!" But I was totally wrong - I went from considering a return and exchange to concluding that this is really a superb, immersive gaming experience that rewards the thoughtful tactician while offering some ass-puckering combat thrills.

I soon realised that I was going to have to take it slowly and really absorb the command and control elements of the game. Once the penny dropped I was totally hooked. The deal is that this is a very realistic simulation of a modern combat environment with you managing small SF squads with skill and weapon specialisations. This game is like chess for the bloodthirsty!

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Summary:
A tarnished dictatorship was thought to be estinguished and replaced with a peaceful country after the Soviet Union collapsed and Russia became an official country. Unfortunately, "President" Arbatov and a chaotic mass of Ultranationalists find it their duty to reestablish the communist regime of the former land and have taken extreme measures and strong vows to do so. This is where the elite clandestine unit of trained American soldiers come into the picture -- The Ghosts.

As a member of the Ghosts it will be your sole duty to protect your teammates and their orders are the same. Venturing through a labyrinth of blood-stained grassy fields and tunnels in the Caves hunting down a communist official and overruning, or rather "liberating" a heavily guarded and armor-filled Vilnius while being a convoy for American tanks are just a couple of the various and detailed missions you will be required to confront and complete to overtake Arbatov and his regime. But what will you be blowing heads off with?

Well, you initiate with a rather mediocre arsenal -- M16s equipped with grenade launchers, M249 SAWS(Squad-Automatic Weapon), the M29 Sniper Rifle, frag grenades, binoculars, etc. Standard equipment. With each level completion you will gradually or quickly(depending on your level of skill and time spent on gaming) unlock new characters with brand spankin' new weapons and higher stats(consulting your dossier will tell you the requirements for unlocking various weapons, maps, games, and cheats.) With the new soldiers and weapons you will want to storm the battlefield(although you will want to be careful because once your soldier dies they are gone for the rest of the campaign) and conquer what the Ultranationalists thrived for. But what exactly will the battlefield be like?

Literally, the actual map titled "Battlefield" is full of Russian artillery and bombs seem to pour like milk on cereal, but I won't get into that as it could be a spoiler. As for the battlefield(graphically and soundly), it is an excellent production. Swaying trees and grass, crackling brushes as you stealthily move through them trying to avoid bring seen, rowdy and unbalanced gunfire in swarms of three-round burst and then fully automatic and back to single shot resonant through the environments, and of course the traditional ambient military score that brings you that certain patriotic pleasure. But honestly, graphic-wise designs could've been a bit more dated and slick. The engulfing snow filling Red Square is just a bit "dry," but that's one of the few examples I can really think of that seem to stand out in my mind.

Now, what about after the Ultranationalists are kaput? Does the game just conclude are the completion of fifteen grisly levels of gameplay? Not by a longshot. Once again one must refer back to the Dossier. In here you'll find a slew of unlockables. Recalling the characters you should've previously unlocked in the campaign, there will be over a dozen locked weapons just waiting to be cracked -- Among the arsenal is the 7.62 AR(personal favorite), 7.62 Sniper, M98 Sniper, Silent Sniper(another favorite and one of the more difficult ones to unlock), and the 7.62 Carbine Rifle. These are just a few of goodies available, some of my favorites. But weapons aren't the only items available. Three extra maps will be in there for you to unlock by completing the campaign three times: once on Recruit, again on Veteran, and a final time on Elite. There are also numerous cheats available, as well as game modes like Domination and Siege. If you're a devoted gamer and enjoy plenty of replay value, this is the title for you. Many of these items(weapons and maps) come in handy if you have XBox Live as well. You'll have a ball with Siege on XBL if you're really tactical.

In the end, I had enjoyed playing Ghost Recon throughly and still play it nearly every single day on XBox Live(love Siege and Hamburger Hill.) Hopefully this review will aid you in making a decision about this game. For the mediocre gamers I would not recommend it because you probably won't get past M01 Caves on Veteran... as for the other type of gamer who enjoy the FPS, I must prompt you to purchase this game. It isn't up to par with Ubi Soft's Splinter Cell graphically, but nevertheless graphics aren't everything and it is a great game that will provide you with immense fun.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Price Paid:  $50.00 from Funcoland (Software Etc)

Summary:
Nothing comes closer to actual field exercise than this game. The weapons are done to the most accurate detail. The tactics used by the Russian opposition are justified. This could be the single largest off-line recruiting tool for the military next to an Air Show. Having gone on line with some collegues of mine that have prior military experience, we were impressed. I am salivating waiting for the next Clancy to come out. Ubisoft and EA Sports are the best on the X-Box. I have been playing videogames since pac man came out on Atari and nothing comes close. The sonds are incredible. Being able to walk up a cliff on a level and hear the windspeed change is highly commendable. Having the inability to be shot from behind, thanks to the ability to hear enemies coming thtough a door down the hall is crazy!! I love this game. Between watching out troops, working and playing this game I am ok with not being allowed to deploy to "Operation Iraq...Desert II". What would really be great would be having this game adapted to the current location and sites in Iraq. Now that would get the whole world on X-Box Live. The use of other Spec Ops transportaion could have been applied. This is "AS REAL AS IT GETS". Kudos to Red Strom.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Price Paid:  $49.00 from EB Games

Summary:
I bought this game back in January along with an xbox live kit. My absolute favorite things to do with this game are going on live and playing some siege with friends and unlocking new weapons and game modes with quick match. If you've ever wanted to be a special-ops, travel through the Middle East, or go on a mad killing spree, you have got to get some practice!