Mercenaries

"Blowing up stuff...and not much else"

Ah, the pleasure of free roam gaming. Go where you want, shoot what you want, blow up what you want. Gaming just hasn't been the same since that wacky GTA series came speeding along. You just have to wonder how many games out there are pitched as "GTA with _______". I imagine quite a few. Ever wonder what GTA would be like in a modern war setting? Enter Mercenaries, Pandemic's foray into creating a living, breathing world that let's you blow up pretty much everything in sight. However, it should be noted that Mercenaries is no GTA clone; it introduces a lot of its own ideas, and builds on established genre conventions. Sadly, though, it just lacks the overall appeal of a great game.

Presentation (8.5/10): Visually, this game is quite good. The smoky, fog effect is put to good use. After all, a battlefield is rife with explosions and burning patches, so visability shouldn't be a given. There is occasional popup, but I would say it was better than the latest GTA game. It's rarely a hindrance. Frame rates can occasionally drop, but nothing drastic that greatly affects gameplay.

Sound wise, the game is competent. Nothing spectacular, but nothing severely lacking. Gunshots sound a bit muffled, and explosions could've been louder, but the vehicles all sound good. Voice work is excellent, but at times can be grating. Sometimes you just want to get into the mission, but have to listen to people ramble. One of the best touches of the game is that each character can understand a language, so you can actually understand what is being said dependent on whom you choose. I found that a very nice touch.

Gameplay (7.0/10): Total freedom was the idea behind this game, but it actually fails quite miserably at this. Yes, you can choose which faction to please, which contracts to take, and how to do them. However, the game is far more limiting that they'd want you to believe. You really can't have any faction against you, because driving through their territory on another mission will constantly cause failures. There's nothing quite like having your task done and having a rocket blow you up from behind. You really have to keep everyone happy. This is accomplished by bribes. Realistic, yes. Fun, no. That is one of the biggest problems in this game, the line they draw between realism and entertainment.

Example: your character can take a whole clip of ammo to the face without much to show for it. I chose the weakest, stealth based character, and had no problem fighting guys by charging right at them and clubbing them with my rifle. However, fall into water neck deep, and you're dead. I've seen guys take a rocket launcher blast and survive, yet if a car going 5 mph hits them, they die instantly. I understand they want to make it as fun as possible, but everything else seems so realistic. Reward me for being a patient, strategic shooter. Make the high ground worthwhile. In this, the game fails in its focus. However, one truth about the advertising campaign rings true; you can blow up anything you want. If destruction and mayhem is what you want, this is the game for you.

Controls (6.5/10): One of the biggest flaws of the game, the controls are loose, unforgiving, and generally poor. It controls like your standard first person shooter (left analog moves, right aims), but they've loosened them some, so running to your right doesn't mean you strafe. In a way, that's good. However, the shooting elements while doing so don't suffer in the slightest, so you're encouraged to run and gun. The only time cover is recommended is when you reload, and even then, it's not necessary. I've reloaded in a firefight with a half dozen guys unloading AK47s into me, and not suffered for it. Crouching while moving is poorly done, as you can't jog while ducking. Instead, you can only creep. Not to mention the cheesy CPU help aim the game uses. That's right, the computer will help you aim, and there's no option to turn it off.

The controls while driving are even worse. Tanks and slow moving vehicles are well done, but jeeps, Hummers...sadly, you're very often forced to use them in timed missions, and the looseness of the controls is just terrible. There's nothing more frustrating than doing a rescue mission, then while about to pull into the evac point, you run over a NPC accidently because your brakes suck. And then...mission failed. You have to start over again, because the idiotic AI character decided to run away from his cover for no reason. Ah yes, the AI...yet another failure in this game. You can load up a van of guys to take as backup. However, other than the guy on the turret, your backup is useless. I would compare the driving sequences to True Crime, minus the buyable style moves. Driving in this game is a chore unless you have a tank, which are rather rare to find. Helicopters controlled well, and were fun to unload with.

Replayability (8.0/10): There is a ton to do in this game, even if the missions feel repetitive. You have three characters to choose from, and each affects your understanding of a language, which is a cool mechanic. Unlockables, hidden characters...if you like the first few hours of this game, you will no doubt find a wealth of gameplay value in a purchase.

Tilt (7.0/10): All in all, this isn't that bad of a game. In some ways, it is an excellent game. However, I found the gameplay to be rather shallow, rarely rewarding, and more often frustrating. One of the cool aspects of the game is that you can disguise yourself by the vehicle you drive. So you can go into North Korean territory and not worry about being shot at if you're behind the wheel of a NK car. However, you can lose this disguise by honking your horn. At first, I thought this was odd, but then I realized it was to get Allies to stop attacking you. Or so I thought. In one mission, I was escaping with some hostages through a battle, and I saw an allied tank lining me up. I honk, but instead he decides to fire at me. TWICE. Car explodes, mission failed. Or the time I rescued a hostage from a moving car, only to have him get run over by the empty car, which was in idle. I am sure that given a few days of play time, you'll find tons of little frustrations like that. Some can forgive such flaws. Me, I can't stand failing a mission that I played perfectly because of a flaw in the game design. As such, I would recommend this as a rental first. I'm glad I did.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/16/05