The R6V2 Sausage Review
I want to hate Rainbow Six Vegas 2, I really do. It isn't a true sequel, but more like an update to the original; taking out certain issues and fixing some problems (though they don't fix everything). With that said I still find the game enjoyable and it is sure to please fans of the original.The single-player campaign has gone through a few changes. Now your created character is used in every single mode including the Story mode, which now has drop-in co-op. The co-op does seem to play better this time around, but you are now limited to 2 players instead of 4 and also I found the AI teammates to be a complete nuisance. Your AI partners will only listen to whoever is hosting the game and they also like to stand in front of you while you're shooting, that is so much fun! I love randomly shooting my mates in the head because they don't seem to understand that the bullets come out of that little barrel attached to the gun. I found myself leaving them in some corner and just calling them back when I needed a bomb defused or something similar. They make good dogs and this may possibly be the early workings of the Fable 2 dog AI! Other than that the game runs smooth online in co-op and it's definitely more fun with a friend. Also if you're curious if the game has a good story, or follows the previous game. I wouldn't know because the story(really?) was crap in the original and I didn't even try to pay attention to what was going on here. I bet I can sum it up pretty easily though; you are some badass special op who's job is killing terrorists and defusing bombs/saving hostages! Did I get it, did I win? Yay for more mindless shooters, I guess we can't seem to get enough.
The game looks good, though I can't say whether it looks better or worse than the original, but it's still a solid looking game. It doesn't seem to run as smooth, but it isn't too big an issue for concern; it runs fine for the most part. I did find the architecture and design to be a lot better this time around. It seems that every situation really does have so many different ways of accomplishing a specific task, which can lead to a bit more strategy. The sound is better and the chatter you overhear from enemies is definitely a step up, but I still can't see this game as anything but a rehash of the original. My favorite improvement is how they changed the set-up for Terrorist Hunt. Now you can go through all the levels with your two AI partners, or you can decide to go solo (Lone Wolf). I also like that the menu shows you whether you've already beaten that map as well as the difficulty level beaten. With all that said I still find TH to be slightly broken. I do enjoy the mode more than the story mode, but it's still heavily reliant on trigger points and once you learn them it becomes way too easy to exploit them. It takes away from the fun and the tactical nature that the game does well in certain areas. When you can play a map and just hide in a room with a shotty and kill 30 idiots one by one; I don't see how anyone could find that as fun. It doesn't stick out on every map, but on a few maps it is just pathetic how stupid the AI plays.
The biggest change (and most obvious) is the new experience system. Now XP can be gained in both MP and SP as well as the inclusion of sub-levels. Basically you have your main level which is you rank (ie. SGT) and then you have 3 "skill" based levels which are: Assault, CQB, and Marksman. By raising your rank in the sub-levels you can get new weapons of XP-boosts. The system in nice and definitely a huge step above the original, but it's still not quite as good as COD4's system. The online is very similar to the last game and they even rehash some of the old maps as well. There aren't any surprises on the multi-player side which may be a good thing or bad thing based on your preference. R6V2 is basically a game made specifically for the hardcore players of R6V1 and it's a pretty good game.
Those who never played the original may love the game and fans of the original will find enough changes to keep them happy as well. I do enjoy the game and it is an above-average shooter, but if the next Rainbow Six ends up anything like this I won't be anything except mad. The series after this needs something new, give me a new setting (I'm sick of Vegas) and refine the tactical nature because the game may be more tactical than COD4, but it's not that tactical. The game is good, but it's just another shooter in this constantly growing market of shooters and I have to say I am really starting to get sick of it. I don't want anymore mindless FPS games! I'm wearing pretty thin on all these shooters now and soon I'll be finished if they keep coming out at this rate. I hate something to ask of developers everywhere...
Give me more Bioshock/Fallout 3 and less Unreal Engine 3 Shooter #16/17/18...I've had enough already!
Pixelated SausageKush
