The Five: Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising
The Skinny: The original Operation Flashpoint garnered critical praise back in 2001 for departing from traditional arcade-style war shooters, with their health and ammo pick-ups, and aiming instead for a hyper-realistic tactical simulation. Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising moves to Skira, a Pacific island that's being fought over by Russia, Japan and China for its newly-discovered oil reserves.
alt="Shooting"/>1. A freakin' massive battlefield. Operation Flashpoint 2's world comprises 134 square miles of diverse terrain. From beaches and mountain villages to dense forests (apparently, the game world has over 1.5 million trees), using the environment to your advantage will oftentimes be your key to survival.
2. A freakin' massive arsenal. With over 50 different vehicle types to take to land, sea and air, and more than 70 planned weapons that can all be modified with attachments, battles will be quite complex and allow for plenty of customization.
alt="Explosion in field "/>3. Strategic use of firepower. Just because you have thermal scopes and tanks that could wash out an entire forest, blow up a bridge, or topple buildings, don't stop thinking. Once you destroy something, it's gone forever. In one mission, it may be easier to take out a bridge to deny the enemy passage, but three missions later you may need that bridge to cross the same river.
4. No more soldier drones. With highly-detailed models and hundreds of different character heads, you'll be able to distinguish a soldier's role by just looking at what he's armed with. This will help you dole out tactical orders more efficiently, as well as know which enemies to take out first.
alt="Transport"/>5. Detailed realism. Helicopter blades will flex, indicating a turn; if you're a sniper, you can lead your fire to try to sneak in a lucky shot on the helicopter pilot. Likewise, if you can recognize the effect of a specific round hitting your infantry, you'll know what exactly is attacking you so that you can respond accordingly.
The Big Question: Can Codemasters keep it hyperreal and make it fun at the same time? Operation Flashpoint 2 is not for the Halo or Battlefield: Bad Company crowd; it's for gamers looking for a deeper take on large-scale battles. Fans of the series will appreciate that the game is sticking to its original formula, and the modding community is sure to love the mission editor -- but Codemasters promises that the single-player campaign will teach newbs successful battlefield tactics.
This preview is based on a publisher-driven demo of the game at Leipzig Games Convention.
