There’s been a recent rash of war-themed video games released for the combat-oriented gamer.
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon 2 follows suit and delivers both squad-based gameplay as well as solo missions for those that don’t realize there’s no “I” in “TEAM.” Unfortunately, the squad-based elements are practically non-existent when it really comes down to the gameplay.
The missions in Ghost Recon 2 are actually relatively short, which is a shame because attempting to penetrate an enemy base can actually be quite fun. The reason for short missions, however, is that if you die, you’ll be required to start from scratch. There are no checkpoints in GR2. Complete the entire mission or die trying. Don’t forget to protect your squad-mates in the process, because points are awarded based on how accurate you are in killing the enemy as well as how protected your team was.
The great thing about Ghost Recon 2 lies in the controlling scheme and the natural feel of how you can make your commando perform precise actions on-screen. While the animations for crouching and lying on the ground don’t transition as smoothly as one would like, the ability to get into these positions is crucial. Using cover is your best friend, and the ability to peek around corners is vital to successfully infiltrating without taking a scratch. Unfortunately, this ability to shoot around corners doesn’t work as well as it should. It is actually possible to position yourself to where you can make shots while still remaining fully behind an object, easily taking out enemies without threat to yourself.
Along with the Campaign Mode, Ghost Recon 2 also allows players to get a feel for the game with Training Mode as well as Quick Missions that allow you to play regular Missions, Firefights (with a goal of eliminating all enemies), or Lone Wolf (solo) missions. And of course, GR2 can also get online with up to 16 people in multiple modes of play. The graphics just are not very good online, however, with very low poly-models and environments. The gameplay too changes drastically online with matches often coming down to flat-out firefights instead of covert missions.
As mentioned above, Ghost Recon 2 also allows the use of supported USB Headsets which is nearly essential while online in order to communicate your strikes and defenses. Offline, calling out commands to your team is much easier as well. Unfortunately, giving commands to your platoon really doesn’t do a whole lot. While it is possible to make your team stay back or lay down covering fire (among others), it is also quite possible to play missions without really knowing your team is even there, sans a few kills that they will help you out with. A team-based game like this should emphasize team play. Ghost Recon 2 just didn’t give me that feeling.
