Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow

"Black Arrow--greasing tangos never gets old."

Introduction: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow for the Xbox is a worthy continuation of the franchise on Microsoft's console. It offers more of the realistic and tense tactical shooting action found in Rainbow Six 3 with several notable upgrades and more maps for its unique and enjoyable multiplayer. If you're a fan of the Clancy games (or just realistic shooters in general) then you really can't go wrong with this title.

Gameplay: Black Arrow continues the Rainbow focus on slow-paced and methodical shooting missions. You control Ding Chavez and are accompanied on assignments by up to three multinational teammates (Louis Loiselle, Dieter Weber, and Eddie Price). Each level starts with a briefing by your superior John Clark which details the upcoming mission. You then select weapons and equipment for Ding (you can't choose gear for the rest of your squad, although your choices will influence their loadouts) and deploy to the operational area. Missions are standard Rainbow flavor—terrorist hunts, bomb defusal, hostage rescue etc. The story is forgettable but a little more interesting than Rainbow Six 3's political/corporate thriller ho-hum—this time, you get to save the world from a terrorist nuclear threat.

Black Arrow's ten mission single-player campaign is fairly challenging even on the Recruit difficulty level. Terrorist AI has been noticeably improved from the previous title—tangos will seek cover, push over furniture to create barricades, roll to evade and generally do their best to stay alive while killing you. Grenades, RPGs, Molotov cocktails and tear gas are used liberally by your enemies as well—I highly recommend choosing gas masks as part of your equipment kit.

Unfortunately, your squadmates still seem to have trouble keeping themselves alive, which will force you to finish many a mission alone.

Level design is a mix of linear stretches with some wider-open areas. Control is excellent and intuitive.

In addition to the ten-mission campaign (which can be played on three difficulty levels) Black Arrow features the return of Rainbow Six 3's acclaimed multiplayer mode. Coop and adversarial options are included and can be played over Xbox Live, system link or splitscreen. Ubisoft has released several additional maps—some of which can be downloaded for free and others which can be purchased.

Graphics/Sound: These remain essentially unchanged from Rainbow Six 3, which was no slouch in the presentation department anyway. Art direction plays a bigger role this time around, with several of the Italy levels real standouts (loved the castle). One of the better looking and sounding Xbox titles to be sure. Ragdoll physics make a welcome return and add to the realism of falling bodies. The only mark against Black Arrow in this department is the disappearing bodies—though at least a satisfying amount of blood remains.

Play Time/Replayability: On the default difficulty level (without using cheats) expect to spend about 10-15 hours going through the campaign. The game can then be replayed on two harder levels. Missions, once beaten, can be played over and variants are also offered (including Lone Rush, a frantic timed level run where killing terrorists adds to the clock).

Multiplayer alone guarantees many a late night playing Black Arrow. The tense and realistic action can be very addicting.

Final Recommendation: Definitely a buy. Military/tactical shooter fans and Clancy enthusiasts will love this game, and it remains a very popular choice for Xbox Live play. Add in a budget price and you can't lose.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/13/06