"Best Online game ever with some stupid conepts!"

Ill get to my gripe at end of review!

First things first:
ITS FREE...... THAT RIGHT FREE! Doesn't cost you a sent. No catches, no contracts no gimmicks. Just a free totally amazing online game!

About:
Well its a game developed by the ARMY. A lot of money has been put into it and this is definitely a quality game. Its perhaps the best Online game I've ever seen. In the newest version 2.0 they added Special Force which I think is just awesome but at the same time bad(read at bottom). Basically to qualify for a lot of stuff online like a Medic or Sniper you have to complete single player training which ranges from Easy to Hard. They make so you go through REAL LIFE TRAINING except in a game!

Graphics 9/10
The graphics are amazing to say the least. I cant believe this game uses the UT2K3 engine. Everything at when set at Max looks so real you almost feel like you actually there!! The only con to the graphics are some people have the FOG turned off which in certain levels gives you way better visibility. I personal think its cheating. But others argue they do it because their system cant run it. Which is BS.

Sound/Music 10/10
The music is normal. There not much music anyway's. But the sound......the sound is just godly! Everything is seems so real and you really learn fast from sounds. Like if a enemy throws a grenade you'll hear it land near you(Tink...tink tink...) then you know to run your little butt off! Sounds like I've always said let you use even more strategy. From foot steps, to nades , to the sounds of gunfire you can judge what's going on pretty fast!

Controls 9/10
The controls are as with most games customizable. I personally think for the average gamer there are a few to many buttons. It will take you a while to learn the controls online and you'll need to learn them fast if you want to win.

Gameplay 7/10
Ok there are a few issue ill mention further at bottom of review but in the mean time.... The gameplay is pretty simple online... Two teams, each has on objective, Complete the objective(or kill other team first). Its like Counter Strike only a million times better! This game definitely requires you to be able to have strategy and to be good at timing!

The one thing this game makes an exception for is Naders and Campers. If you don't like one or the other don't play this game because that's pretty much what it boils down to in the long run. Also to this game is the ability to LEVEL up. You start as level 10 and there are many methods to level up such as Healing People(requires medic training), completing objectives, killing people...etc. Ask on message boards for more specific. You also lose points for hurting or TKing a friendly. This game strives for perfection. Which IMO makes this game even more amazing!

My major gripes about this game:
Ok now's the bad things about this game. Some thing in this game are to realistic and almost kind of ruin it.

-Honor system(leveling up) makes you really hate it sometimes. If you throw out a flash and flash your own no matter who's fault it is you lose points. If you Tk or shoot and friendly you lose points. But that isn't bad. Its when its not your faulty and you lose major points.

EXAMPLE: When you fire the RPG and someone stands behind you, you kill them and lose a lot of points. Or if you throw a nade and a teammate runs near it anyway's even though you yelled ''Frag Out'' and can see it flying through the air. Leveling up is a pain with stupid teammates all the time. If you cant level up at least once within a a few weeks then maybe this isn't the game for you.

-Getting help is a pain. Most people have the concept that if you cant beat something in training then your ''Don't deserve to play the game'' attitude. Some people take this game to seriously! My point is don't expect to get help without a fight.

-Weapons are another pain. The RPK(compared to a SAW machine gun) is somewhat overpowered in the right hands. Then there's the fact that trying to get a good spot on a team is hard because you a lot of the time end up on a spot that gives you a crappy weapon. For instance the RPG will either give you really good points or bad points. Its not easy to use.

-Special Forces is the biggest pain the butt. If you can actually beat the god awful last training mission for SF(which BTW doesn't server a purpose online) you'll get access to a customizable M4A2. You can add parts to the gun like silencers and even change its color. But unless you beat the last SF training mission you wont be able to get into the best spots on a team online. The addition of SF is probably the best and worse idea ever. And people that have already are SF's tend to be jocks/egotistical about it too.

-Team Work is another problem. There are a lot of reasons why. But to me the biggest is your team rarely RADIOs in their position. So if you go around a corner and you see them you shoot them on accident and lose a lot of points. This happens a lot and is a major pain.

I could go on but I don't want to make the game sounds like its horrible. Its the best game I've ever played online!

Overall 7/10
Even with the gripes play the game a for at least a month then decide whether or not to keep it. This game is definitely worth it no only because its free but because its addictive! DOWNLOAD NOW AND STOP READING THIS REVIEW!!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/22/03