"Terrific tactical strategy RPG"

GRAPHICS: 9/10
There is no questioning it: Silent Storm's graphics are amazing. The textures are the best I've seen in any top down tactical strategy game, and the character models are detailed with distinct facial features and costumes. The animation is obviously motion captured, heck, they even incorporate rag doll physics! The game engine can also render some really good rain effects, explosions, and other visual effects, but one of the best things about it is that the whole game environment is destructible. If a door is locked, and you have no engineer, then blow it down. The door will shatter realistically with wooden pieces flying everywhere. If a wall is separating you from a place you need to go, then shoot your way through it. If an enemy is hiding behind a crate, then shoot it to pieces. You get what I mean? This new, unheard of depth in tactical strategy is available here, and it adds infinitely to the game's visual and gameplay quality. The only qualm I have is that the game environments are rather small: they are always restricted to an area the size of a few city blocks. Still, its not a huge problem because the game's amazing visual quality overshadows it. You will also need a powerhouse to run this at full settings, but if you don't then fear not, as the graphics still look great on the lower settings. I run it on 1024*768 16 bit res and medium settings on an 1.8ghz athlon mobo, radeon 9800 pro and 256 ram, and it looks great and plays smoothly. The graphics, overall, are excellent.
SOUND: 7/10
In the audio department, Silent Storm doesn't do as well as it does in the graphics department, but its still very good. Weapons fire differentiates in all guns, and are all solid and have a punch to them. The sounds of walls, windows and other objects shattering is very crisp and loud, as are explosions. The voices are alright but nothing too good, as some voices sound awkward and the way they're spoken is too unreal. That doesn't mean the voices aren't mediocre or boring though, they just sound a bit overdone. When there isn't fighting going on, the game sounds a little quiet. There is no noise made when characters move, and there is absolutely no ambient noise, making things dead quiet when it isn't raining. Speaking of rain, one oddity that you'll notice is that when it stops raining, it does so immediately. There is no noise of rain fading out or in..it just starts and stops instantly. The music is nothing amazing either. Its simply your standard WWII era orchestral music but it at least is the only bit of ambient noise you'll get. It looks like the sound department doesn't deserve a 7, but the combat components of the sound really outshine these various oddities. Overall sound is very good.
GAMEPLAY: 9/10
This is one awesome game. It is very similair to Fallout Tactics (the best game I've ever played)in that you control a squad of six soldiers, each one specializing as a medic, scout, grenadier, rifleman, engineer or sniper. You equip them from a gigantic selection of weapons and equipment and go on missions across the world. The game is entirely turn based in combat(real time when not), and it would have been really nice if real time was an option in combat mode, which is what made Fallout Tactics so awesome. Still, the turn based gameplay works very well here. You can also choose whether you want to fight as the axis or allies, and though with the game's huge visual customization options for the main character, you can fight for the allies dressed as a german officer. Each soldier gets around 40-70 action points, depending on their strength level, and the game takes turns between each opposing side. From here you can decide how you want to fight. You can be risky and use the silent approach, or wage an all out battle against the enemy. Both choices have pros and cons, and the gameplay elements make both fun as well. The way the levels are designed really opens up infinite strategic possibilities. Do you get your sniper to enter a house and snipe from a window, distracting the enemy while a scout takes a backdoor approach? Or do you use your rifleman to carve a path into the enemy ranks, while a grenadier stays close, ready to lob one at them? It goes on forever. Your men can go prone, crouch, run, and walk. They can pick locks, carry dead bodies, grab onto ledges, and climb through openings. The only thing I wish they could do is to lean against walls and peak out at corners, which is something that would really contribute to a stealth strategy. Also since this is a bit of an RPG, your characters level up and you can choose skills for them. Gameplay is open ended, in that you can choose what country you want to go to and what missions to take. The missions vary quite a lot. Some take place in a small town, others in farmland, mansions, and so on. The difficulty is quite hard, even at normal, since you are always against greater numbers. The AI is also fairly smart since they are competent with their weapons, though they tend to stand out in the open when shooting you. Obviously, Silent Storm is only for those who can think strategically. It isn't as impossible as the Commandos games though. Overall gameplay is excellent.
STORY: 7/10
The story is a little backstage here. While the game definitely has a fairly interesting plot, it doesn't do much to emphasize it. You don't talk to anyone during missions, and almost all of the story is presented through text. Still, the game deserves commendment for making an effort at the story.
REPLAYABILITY: 10/10
The game is very long. Each mission will last you an hour or more, and believe me, there are plenty. You can always play some of the missions again to try things differently too. Expect to play Silent Storm for quite a while.
BUY OR RENT?
I will say buy, only if you're a tac strategy fan. If not, then play the demo and see for yourself. And, just as it is with any game you burn, its illegal.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/16/04