Conflict: Desert Storm

"I discovered this game while checking the dictionary for the word: "Underrated""

Introduction:

This game set me back ten quid. It didn't look much I just bought it because I had ten left from buying Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, I expected to hate it straight away...quite the opposite, I returned Bounty Hunter the next day. This game is excellent...

Starting the game:

It is many people's opinion that this game has terrible controls, I don't understant why as the extreme sensitivity of the C-Stick has been dealt with (very annoying in other games) and the controls aren't hard to learn, much less harder than Super Smash Brothers: Melee (a nightmare for new players just entering the franchise) There are 3 training courses to help you get on your feet and 3 difficulty levels depending on how confident you are...

Gameplay:

Top-notch, no annoying camera, no ''why doesn't this button do what it's supposed to'', no ''the AI is way too easy/hard''. The gameplay is damn good and controls very well. You are in default third person mode but you can switch to 1st whenever you want to, switch to any team-mate at any time and give/take weapons from your teammates and enemy bunkers. Killing enemies is great fun with all sorts of stealth kill bonuses etc. Never a dull moment a lot of the fights are hectic and after a run in with a tank - you will fear them whole-heartedly. RPG style stats boosts for your men make them more experienced the better you use them, they can also earn medals and their statistics are saved (kills, ammo used, accuracy etc.) You can also choose from British SAS and American Delta Force when you begin a campaign.

Multiplayer?: Yes, you play co-operative in the campaign (up to 4 of you!) and it's a load of fun with 3 other FPS nuts in the house.

Graphics:

Not the best in the world, I tend not to concentrate on graphics when it comes to rating a game as I prefer Super Mario 2 to Final Fantasy X any day of the week (and I'm an RPG fan) it's as good as it needs to be let's put it that way, the cinematics are done with the actual models which I prefer (I hate seeing blocky characters in a game, then in the fmv they are smooth as silk) and there are a lot of funny scenes too.

Sound:

Great sound, catchy music (though I turn it off in all my games) and excellent weapon sounds. The Iraqi voices are hilarious and they even gave different voices to the different teams (SAS and Delta Force) which I liked (including your briefing and officers etc not just the squad) What more can I say? Sound isn't something you look for in a game now is it?

Realism:

Remember playing [insert any FPS name here] and taking round after round of 5.56 shots to the chest and not dying? Not here, the damage is quite realistic (assuming your playing the correct difficulty) the only unrealistic thing is the healing process, if you ''die'' you have a long length of time before you can no longer be revived with a medikit, this isn't annoying, trust me, on the later levels you will praise the developers for this. Otherwise very realistic in many aspects.

~|Overall|~

An excellent strategic shooter overlooked by most people. Not ranted about in the magazines but definitely a great game. Multiplayer is excellent fun, if you liked this go check out Freedom Fighters too.

86% Score

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/29/03