Been playing this today and my initial impressions are that this game won't disappoint. Mind you I initially thought that about CoD3 so don't hold me to that  . Although there's a change in era, the single player still has a very Call of Duty feel about it, even the Rainbow Six-esque introductory mission has the same fast paced intensity and relentlesness about it that befits a game in the CoD series. This introductory mission also gives you one of the weirdest sensations I've experienced in a game towards the end when you're 'escaping', I won't spoil it for you but I think you'll see what I mean. When you get on to the more traditional missions again the game has recaptured the feel of previous games. You very much feel you're part of a large ongoing battle and there's a lot of stuff always going on around you, but you have your part to play. A few times though I've found myself getting caught up shooting at endless streams of enemies not realising I needed to be somewhere else to 'move the story on'. Not really a problem, although it could have been if ammo was more limited. But it's probably down to having to get more used to the less conspicuous objective and distance indicator. Online, well a lot of us already had a taster with the beta, there's 16 maps in total and no less than 13 game modes ranging from the standard Team Deathmatch, Free For All, Headquarters, Search and Destroy through to the likes of Old School, Cage Match and Old Core whatever they may be. Unfortunately only a few modes are unlocked at the start, you have to unlock others as you progress through the ranks alng with the extra weapons, equipment and perks as in the beta. I'm not so sure that it was a good idea that you have to unlock the game modes, although the 6 I think it is that you have at the start is more than enough to be getting on with, especially wit hhte amount of maps, and in some ways it will keep the game fresher if you don't have everything available straight away, but if you're not so good it's gonna take you ages to unlock them. I suppose it won't be so bad if only the host needs to unlock them then anyone can play, but if you all need to have the mode unlocked in order to play it then it could be a nightmare trying to get games going with your friends. Overall though I think the game is going to be very popular and I think it's a definite improvement on CoD 3, some of the maps have a very CoD 2 feel about them which is a good thing in my book. Following on from my initial impressions here's my thoughts now I've been playing this solidly for a week. The single player game provides a very varied experience taking your squad into combat from urban environments to rolling countryside and even There's also a few surprises along the way and some nice set pieces. Graphically the game looks superb, all the environments are beautifully rendered and the presentation throughout is very slick. The sound too does an excellent job of making you feel part of the action. The single player is a little on the short side, so if you were only buying it for that you might want to take that into consideration, then get your head tested for missing out on a large and arguably the best part of the game, playing online. Some of us already had a taster on what was to come with the beta and the full game continues where that left off with more of everything.. more maps, more game modes, more challenges, more promotions, more... well everything. As mentioned before there's 16 maps and 13 game modes to keep you occupied. The maps are very varied and set in locations you come across in the single player game. Ok strictly speaking not all the game modes are modes as such there's a few filters that will limit you to only certain game types, but there's still a healthy range of modes to keep you occupied. The matchmaking though is where I seem to be spending most of my time. Form a party with your friends and go out and do battle with the world. There's a few issues with getting dropped, the game ending when the host leaves (even though nobody actually knows who the host is as it's all dealt with behind the scenes) which should be addressed with the recently announced patch, but overall it works very well. One limitation though is that as soon as you have more than six people in your party is that you can only play in Ground War which is larger games of up to 18 people which on the generally smaller maps I'm not finding as enjoyable, it ends up being a lot faster and intense than Halo 3 and half the time you never really get a chance to get your bearings and work out what's going on before you get killed again. The one thing that keeps me playing the matchmaking over and above private games though is the challenges. Completing challenges gives you bonus points that help you rank up faster, which of course in turn unlock different weapons, equipment and perks. They do encourage you to try different weapons and do things you might not ordinarily do. I sometimes find myself doing totally inappropriate things in some games just to try and complete a challenge, like running around on an open map with a shotgun, or just lying down in the middle of a map in the open, just to get a few extra points. The whole achievement thing was a surprise success with the Xbox and the challenges add another level to CoD4. Also, they're all very achievable and even if, like me, you're a bit crap (no I don't need to keep being reminded on how bad my hit ratio is guys, thanks) you can still get them in time. On paper I really shouldn't be enjoying this as much as I am, it's generally pretty fast paced, unless you're playing the likes of Search and Destroy which has no respawns (you can also limit or remove lives in private games for other game modes) and it does infuriate me at times, but I just can't stop playing this game. Some maps are definitely more suited to some modes more than others and the larger Ground War games tend to be far too run and gun, not just for my liking but it would seem quite a few of you too from comments that have been made. But overall this is an absolute classic. Just one thing left to say, Halo what?
|