Wow Wow Wow
This game rocks!
The Chimeran Threat starts in Russia, possibly biological warfare. Soon the whole of Europe is decimated but England stands undefeated. Until the Chimera manage to burrow beneath the Channel. Within weeks England falls fate to the virus. The resistance is holed up in military bases around the country, trying to find a weakness in the Chimera. Late as usual the Americans turn up. This is where you come in.
All in all this game is excellent
Having their borders sealed, the Americans have no idea what is going on. The Chimera set a trap and manages to destroy the American army in an ambush. They all fall victim to the Chimera. All that is, except one. Sergeant Nathan Hale. (It would have been a short game if he didn’t).
As Nathan Hale has now been infected he can use the same method of gaining health as the Chimera do. Supping the amber nectar, a yellow liquid, found in jars at certain points throughout a level. Being able to do this helps a lot. Without wanting to spoil the plot, you have to go many different locations throughout the country, expelling the Chimera and freeing the trapped resistance. Help comes in different shapes and sizes and keeps the game-play interesting and fast paced.
The weapons are both excellent and varied. Starting with the human tools of destruction, we have things like the M5A2 Carbine assault rifle with grenade launcher, the Rossmore 236 Shotgun, the L23 Fareye sniper rifle and the L209 Laark (Light Anti Armour Rocket). Then on to the Chimeran and secret service weapons, which include the Bullseye, marks I and II, both with an auto targeting feature, the Auger, which can shoot through anything and deploys a force field thus protecting the shooter. The Reapers, a set of two weapons that can each track an individual target on screen and thus blast two things at once, very handy in the heat of a battle. The secret service weapons are the XR-005 Hailstorm and the XR-003 Sapper. These are both as bizarre as they are brilliant. The Hailstorm shoots subsonic bolts that can ricochet off any hard surface and has the ability to eject the remaining cartridge into the air and shoot nearby targets. Thus rendering you with no ammo and hopefully no enemies. Hmm. The Sapper fires a stream of organic sticky mines. These can adhere to most surfaces and can be detonated by pressing the L1 button. The range on this weapon is not that great. So a lot of care is required when using it.
There are only a few controllable vehicles in this game, the M-12 Sabretooth (tank), and the LU-P Lynx (jeep), plus one or two others. You get to play around in the Sabretooth early on in the game, which is very nice although short lived.
The graphics are indeed brilliant, just look at any screen shot. The game-play is both deep and enthralling, this game drags you in kicking and screaming. It has loads of checkpoints in a level that negates the need to redo half a stage when you get taken down by a headshot from that sniper behind the burnt out bus (again). This stops boredom and the feeling of hopelessness when you ?just can’t get passed that bit?.
The controls are easy to pick up and start to feel natural in a matter of minutes. Very smooth movement and atmospheric levels go to create a somewhat creepy feel to some parts of the game. The AI is amazing and the Chimera actually fight for their lives, taking cover and waiting for a clear shot of you, hiding from your bullets behind what they can. (That’s when the Auger comes in handy). The levels are both sprawling and diverse and include stages like a burnt out bus garage being used to stage an impromptu Alamo, to the guts of the Chimeran stronghold which is full of dark tunnels that require careful negotiation.
All in all this game is excellent. I cannot find a down point apart from when I finished it. It all seemed to go to quick. No matter though, this game has huge replay-ability. Not to mention the On-line and co-op modes. Both of which make sure that this game will go down as classic and carve itself a niche up there with the best of them.
This one is a must for anyones PS3 collection.
The Bad: ???
Gold Y Award