PROS:

Interactive, beautiful environment that allows you to explore and find an inconspicuous path.

Wide variety of weapons, some with secondary grenade launcher function. The sniper rifle is a godsend in some cases.

The ability to commandeer boats and vehicles, sometimes using them to wipe out a camp of enemies from afar.

Wonderful ambient, weapon and explosion sound effects. (Although the fact that all the CD players were playing the same dull drumbeat with no real music was unrealistic)

CONS:

Vehicle steering/control is horrible. There is no parking brake or transmission to hold the wheels in place, which is very fake in my opinion. So if you exit the vehicle on a hill, expect your transportation to drift away. Also the speedboats steer more like shopping carts than a vehicle with rudder controls.

The AI in your enemies is getting a mixed review from me. On one hand, it is refreshing to see opponents who actually take cover and utilize teamwork and resources (air support, etc.) It becomes stupid when you can lay down in the bushes a half- mile away and enemies still spot you after using the sniper rifle. Plus you can drop a mercenary and his buddies will remain in the open view without taking cover. The voiceovers used in this game are too cheesy and lame to be realistic. I know that in the heat of battle you would hear a lot of f&s bombs. Let's face it, if a live grenade lands at your feet unexpectedly, what would you say? With a Mature rating and the fact that you are dealing with mercs, the language in this game could have been more adult and more down to earth with a combat zone.

Finally, the game saving system can be frustrating. It utilizes checkpoints instead of being able to save your game anytime. This means after fighting the same people 200 times just to get to a new checkpoint, you may give up.

CONCLUSION:

Overall, this is a great game and it has high immersion value if you can overlook some of the flaws. The scenery and wide open environment make it worth a try. I would try to buy a cheap copy (bought it myself for $20 a year ago) just in case you don't like it or at least play it at a friend's house first. Good luck and happy gaming.

Learning Curve: Takes a second

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