8
Jun
2010
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon – Future Soldier
Ghost-Recon-Future-Soldier-playstationvsxbox
The success of Modern Warfare has all but wiped from our memories the fact that Ubisoft and the Tom Clancy brand have spent over a decade speculating on the shape of tomorrow’s battlefields. In this latest reboot, the threat comes from a Russian Ultra Nationalist group hell bent on destabilising Northern Europe by overthrowing the Russian government and invading the Nordics in search of their oil reserves. It’s your job to derail the coup before it gathers pace and spreads.
Ubisoft have gone to great pains to understand the dynamics of Elite fighting units and the mindset of the soldiers that fight in them. “Spec ops train for years to be able to move, react and deal with intense situations as a single and often isolated unit” says Creative Director Olivier Dauba. The development team have spent hours, days and weeks trying to re-create the sense of being in a tight-knit unit.
Squad commands have been dropped because the team were told that in reality, soldiers don’t use them. They rely on an intimate understanding of what the man next to them is going to do in any given situation. Ubisoft have used this knowledge to treat the team as one highly-skilled soldier, giving you the opportunity to draw on the specialist skills of you unit to overcome the game’s challenges. Hats off to Ubisoft, it’s this level of observation and detailing that makes for a great game.
What is perhaps more amazing, is that Ubisoft have had to factor in the technological advancements in weaponry expected for 2025! Lets take a look at what your work-a-day Recon Marine will be wearing 15 years from now
I found this video of Lockhead Martin’s new Exoskeleton project called HULC on YouTube. Modern combat soldiers face carrying extremely heavy loads, sometimes at high altitude. With the HULC exoskeleton, these loads are supported by powered titanium legs which transfer the weight to the ground.
The HULC is a hydraulic-powered anthropomorphic exoskeleton that allows the wearer to carry loads of up to 200 lbs for extended periods of time over rough terrain. The exoskeleton senses what users want to do and where they want to go via an onboard micro-computer and then moves in concert with the individual. Very useful post your weekly splash out in Sainsbury’s.
Joking aside, it is innovations like these that Ubisoft have extrapolated and projected into the future to give Ghost Recon – Future Soldier a tangible but futuristic edge. The thermal imaging eye patch is also cool. designed to facilitate target siting in the dark or through clouds of smoke.
19
May
2010
New Medal of Honor
There is nothing quite like a bit of competition to liven up the world of gaming! Enter Electronic Art’s New Medal of Honor.
There’s no real attempt here to disguise who EA are targeting with this release, but can they really shine a dim light on Infinity Ward’s outrageously successful Modern Warfare? The one thing we know for certain is that Modern Warfare not only found a gaping chasm in the market, but it also set a precedent for all realistic military shooters to follow.
Electronic Arts are keen to capitalise on the demand for this genre of game with the New Medal of Honor, but we have to wonder whether it will feel too similar to it Modern Warfare. Nobody wants to pay for the same game twice.
According to 360 Gamer, EA has been keen to use the game’s detailing to demonstrate that this reboot has an identity of its own and the X-Factor required to make it a success.
The setting is a prime example of this. EA consulted real Tier One agents, (the US answer to our SAS I guess) in the development of the game so that the missions you embark on are pretty similar to actual anti-insurgent operations being carried out in the mountains atop the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The combat clothing is another example of EA’s attention to detail. Tier One operatives look just like the locals from 100 yards away with their traditional beards, Pakul hats and shemagh scarves until they pull out an M16 and start shooting insurgents. This is an insider’s view of the conflict without the actual strategic details and a real insight into what these guys get up to over there.
It’s not all stealth and sneaking around though. At one point you will join a unit of US Army Rangers as you gear up for more direct contact with the enemy. You’ll get the chance to tear around on quad bikes, raid compounds and shoot all over creation whilst donning some serious night vision equipment.
Expect the New Medal of Honor to be more grounded in reality than Modern Warefare and hopefully not as linear, but all that remains to be seen! We can’t wait.
