"Destroy and Destroy Again!"

Mercenaries far and away one of the most unique games that I've ever played. What makes this game so unique is that it's an open-ended, military, third person shooter. Everything about this game gives the feel that you are truly a mercenary, not only accepting government contracts, but also doing whatever you want to gain money for yourself. Furthermore, there's a wonderful story to the game that adds immensely to the atmosphere of the game truly making you believe that there is an international crisis and you're in the middle of it.

Story: 9- The story in Mercenaries is a very amusing tale of a rogue nation, North Korea, threatening to destroy the world with its vast, nuclear arsenal. The president of North Korea, a peaceful man working with other nations very willingly, is taken out by his son, General Song. Various factions have moved into the area for different reasons. The South Koreans, seeking to keep their neighbor to the north at bay and also grab some land, the Chinese, also looking to extend their borders, the Allied Nations, primarily the United States just looking to restore order, and the Russian Mafia, who just want to make some cash. This is where you, the mercenary, come into play. You work for Ex Ops, an organization that does accepts government and private contracts alike. What does that mean for you, though? Well, all you need to know is that you essentially get paid to blow up what people tell you to (and some stuff they don't). In addition to all of that, the voice acting in this game is absolutely incredible, further adding to an already outstanding atmosphere.

Gameplay: 10- Of course the most important aspect of a game is the gameplay, and Mercenaries doesn't disappoint. As I stated, the object of the game is pretty much to blow up whatever people tell you to; however, any time you destroy a North Korean vehicle you also get cash. This cash can be used to buy vehicles, supplies, and even air support from the Russian Mafia's website, Merchant of Menace. A fitting title as you'll see. There's quite a large variety of weapons to choose from including automatic weapons, rocket launchers, hand grenades, and many more. And if you just feel like smacking someone with your fists you can do that too. As with all third person shooters, the game is based largely on your ability to fire a weapon. The game makes this nice and easy, though, with a fairly large targeting reticule which will loosely follow an enemy in its sights. This is a great feature because it doesn't aim for you, which would take all of the fun out of the game, but it won't let an enemy get away from you while you're running or avoiding fire, which would be an incredible annoyance. A boatload of air support is also at your disposal which can be used strategically, or just to blow everything from here to kingdom come. A multitude of vehicles are also at your disposal as well. But the best part of Mercenaries is that the game, while a military style shooter, takes everything and puts it in a sort of comic light. While you may be running around blowing up buildings and getting paid, the fact that most of the characters in the game are actually caricatures creates a sense of humor not lost on the gamer.

Graphics: 9- The graphics in Mercenaries are just incredible. Nearly everything, and I mean nearly everything, can be blown up or destroyed. Adding to the effect even more so is that when a building is destroyed, the debris flying from it can do additional damage. Solid graphics add to an extremely good gameplay experience, reinforcing it and creating an enjoyable experience.

Sound: 9- The sounds of Mercenaries are very well done. Music plays in the background to reflect the mood of what's happening on screen and the guns and explosions sound as real as they can. The one downfall is that for some reason the shotgun has no sound in the PS2 version of the game. This was fixed in the Xbox version of the game but it just looks a bit odd in the PS2 version. It detracts nothing from the game, it just looks really weird.

Replay Value: 10- The replay value of Mercenaries is huge. After beating the game once you can go through the game in what is called Playground of Destruction mode and repeat the entire game with everything that you've unlocked from your first play through, including all of the cash you've acquired.

Overall: 9- An absolute gem of a game. What makes this game stand out from others similar to it, such as GTA, is that there's no blood at all in the game and the unique, little quirks of the characters that make it clear this is not a real life simulation, although it looks that way because of the graphics. The story and graphics create an incredibly beautiful, detailed atmosphere that seems extraordinarily life-like, but that the player realizes is only a game.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/18/06