Worthy of the name Operation Flashpoint and more!
When I went to the local Gamestation in the local shopping precinct, I thought to myself:
Is this money better suited to buyin Modern Warfare 2, considering that the release was a month away.
The answer. No. As you may be able to tell, otherwise this review would be non existant and based entirely on specualtion and reccomendation.
Operation Flashpoint, was not a game for Mr. Run A. Gun in 2001 and I am glad that Codemasters stuck to this one thing that made me enjoy operation flashpoint 8 years ago. The realism of the battlefield. Guns sound right, Vehicles can be recognised by the sounds they make, bullets crack and whine as they go past your characters head making you want to duck behind the couch and never come back out.
The first mission throws you feet first into the plunge pool of special ops, you are tasked with taking down a missile system that will threaten the fleet if it comes within range. Needless to say it is an easy mission to undertake, but only if you are playing on normal (yes I took the easiest route first). As soon as you bump the difficulty up, parts of the HUD disappear, making it harder to keep track of enemies, your bullet count in the magazine and your squad status, as well as removing key items from the HUD the difficulty level also removes checkpoints, for example:
Normal: 6-9 checkpoints
Experienced: 3 checkpoints
Hardcore: 0 checkpoints
This lack of save points means that single bullets in the harder difficulties can destroy an entirely enjoyable experience and turn a night of fun into a night of hitting random things because some guy 500m away got a lucky shot in from his spray and pray.
The lack of linearity is the other brilliant thing about this game, as unlike CoD or any other shooter you will have a different experience each time, this is also seen when you have to reload a checkpoint, no soldier is in the exact same place, unless he is manning a fixed emplacement. This challenges you to think of new tactics after each death or reload.
There are no cut scenes in the game apart from the opening sequence, which was refreshing as soldiers dont need to have the story explained, just where to go and what to shoot at with some independence of how to get there and shoot the thing they are shooting. Also due to the brilliant explanation of the background story in the opening sequence you should have a brilliant grasp on the plot all the way through.
Operation flashpoints flaws are many though, these stick out like sore thumb...
Your team-mates think nothing of commiting fratricide by walking behind you while firing the M249 or MK60 Squad automatic weapon on full auto, sometimes you begin thinking why didnt codemasters give the AI some degree of Firing lanes? Also your AI counterparts can become stuck on many objects while running, one prime example was a 2 foot rock that my medic was stuck on while sprinting to treat me while I was downed, needless to say... I bled out.
This last flaw can work to your advantage, yes it may feel like cheating, but every so often a chinese soldier will become stuck on that same 2 foot rock that blocks your AI friends, easy kill. So far Operation flashpoint has also provided a less than satisfactory online experience, with games cutting out mid way through and sometimes not even allowing access to any server, this is the one shortcoming that I was completely peeved with, due to my wanting to play a game with 7 other people and pitting my strategic wit against theirs, seems as if it isn't going to happen unless Codemasters decide to come out from behind their desks and do something.
Overall a brilliant game with some shortcomings, not for those who love regenerating health or even ammo being picked up automatically.
Realistic, lots of replay value and a hell of a lot of fun for us military nuts.
Thanks for reading
Watari!