Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix

"Guns, gore and lots and lots of boredom"

Soldier Of Fortune 2: Double Helix is a FPS developed by Raven. The first one although quite generic was a pure mindless action shooter and didn't try to be something it isn't. SOF2 though try to include a bit of stealth tactics and as if it wasn't a bad game already it now became an ever worse one.

Story: 2/10

I believe you know the deal, you the patriotic man of honor, John Mullins also known as the lamest action hero in gaming history, (even my mom would be better than him!), must saaave the wooorld from TEEERORISTS!!! Lame characters, lame storyline, lame dialogues, lameness everywhere!

Graphics: 6.5/10

There are 2 things that can be said about the graphic quality of SOF2. The first one is the fact that everything looks ok, SOF2 has a decent graphics engine that does its job done. The game is pretty gory and will satisfy the fans of the original once again. The second thing that must be said is that everything looks DULL!!! SOF2 is a great example of a game that has a good graphic engine but doesn't take advantage of it and lacks in overall design. The dominant colors are gray, dark green, gray, brown, gray, dark yellow and gray. Level design is totally boring, (apart from the jungle which is a tad above boring), and that's because most of the levels are just a bunch of rooms with some props thrown in, the typical crates, furniture, etcetera, etcetera… Characters have simple design and animation with enemies having little differences between them. Generally no matter the level you'll have a feeling of been there seen that!

Sound: 5.5/10

The game continues to be nothing special in the sound section. Music that is forgettable and sound effects that although are ok could be better and by that I mean that all weapons and all enemies have little difference between them making the whole experience very repetitive.

Gameplay: 3.5/10

The key word in the SOF games is repetition. As a game it has nothing new to offer, it is just shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot! There are games like that but have something that made them unique, Doom had hordes of demons, Quake had variety in enemies, Serious Sam had addictive mindless action and etc, SOF2 however doesn't have anything special. As if the game wasn't repetitive enough, all the enemies apart from slightly different appearance and weaponry are pretty much the same thus making the challenge the same in each level instead of gradually increasing it. Level design is like I said very simple and uses cheap tricks like barricades and crates to keep you follow the only path that is left for you to choose. The only thing that made me play the game a bit, (half an hour), was the auto level generator that creates a simple level to shoot bad guys without worrying about lame characters and plot…

Positives:
-The gore, (I'm not amused by it but some people are)
-The random level generator
-Decent graphics

Negatives:
-The definition of repetitive gameplay
-A Cliché plot and the return of the most boring hero ever
-Very simplistic level design, dull colors, average character design

Also Play:
Quake 4 (PC)
Return To Castle Wolfenstein (PC)

Overall: 4.4/10

Why people like this franchise is beyond me. No I don't have a problem with mindless action, in fact most FPS games I like are just like that, the pure gun-happy ones, but this game isn't one of these… It is boring and cheesy beyond belief, so please avoid it.

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 10/27/08

Game Release: Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix (EU, 05/31/02)