.FLYINGHEAD WE GOT GAME!
.TITLE SOCOM Fireteam Bravo three-peats on the PSP
.AUTHOR James Booth
.SUMMARY Editor-at-Large James Booth has been a fan of the SOCOM franchise ever since he saw a commercial featuring US Navy SEALS playing against gamers online, and smoking them. SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 3 brings the familiar squad-level shooter action back to the PSP, along with the ad hoc and Internet multiplayer of its predecessors, while adding co-op play and custom missions. Does Fireteam Bravo’s three-peat repeat the success of its siblings, or does it fall flat?
.OTHER
I’ve been a fan of the SOCOM franchise ever since I saw the commercial featuring real US Navy SEALS playing online against average gamers, and smoking them. For those unfamiliar with the game, in SOCOM, you play as the commander of a US Special Operation Command SEAL Team; issuing orders, driving vehicles, and generally taking out the bad guys using a variety of real-world military hardware.
Fireteam Bravo 3 is actually the fourth SOCOM appearance on the PSP, but only the third incarnation of the Fireteam series; the other being a more strategy-based offering titled SOCOM Tactical Strike. Bravo 3, shown in Figure A, brings the familiar squad-level shooter action as well as the ad hoc and Internet multiplayer of its predecessors, while adding new features such as co-op mode and custom missions.
.FIGPAIR A SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 3 on the PSP.
.BREAK_EMAIL To learn more about SOCOM’s three-peat on the PSP, click here.
.H1 SOCOM returns
Fireteam Bravo introduces a couple of new faces to the franchise, while keeping some of the familiar ones. Whereas in previous Fireteam games you played as team leader Sandman, with either Lonestar assigned as your teammate, or given the choice of Lonestar, Wraith, or Bronco as a teammate, in Fireteam Bravo 3, Wraith is now the team leader, with Sandman and a couple of new members in supporting roles. Unlike the other Fireteam Bravo games however, you go on missions with the complete four-man Fireteam.
The story is pretty much the same as the other SOCOM games; some terrorist/revolutionary/military coup is threatening some country and the SEALS are sent in to straighten things out. Things aren’t quite what they seem, and along the way one team member is taken hostage and has to be rescued with the assistance of Lonestar, now the leader of a paramilitary corporation.
Equipment and weapons caches must be captured or destroyed, persons liberated, etc. and eventually the mission is, of course, a success. New weapons and equipment are unlocked and available for purchase along the way, and there are medals like the one shown in Figure B, to collect for various accomplishments.
.FIGPAIR B Collect medals for in-game accomplishments.
Each mission also has secondary objectives to complete, like taking landmark photos and grabbing intel as in Figure C, making for extra points which can be used to purchase new weapons, upgrades, and fulfill medal requirements.
.FIGPAIR C Fulfill secondary objectives for extra point.
The single-player campaign can be played through alone, or in a co-op with others; either online, or ad-hoc. Customized co-op missions can also be created using setting from the campaign, like in Figure D, and again, played either online or ad-hoc.
.FIGPAIR D Create your own custom missions from campaign settings.
And then finally, there is the full-blown online experience, with capture-the-flag and team deathmatch-type play.
.H1 How’s it play?
While the controls are slightly different, mainly the free-look and strafe, the gameplay of Fireteam Bravo 3 is pretty much on par with its siblings; i.e. a blast. Having the full four-man team allows for splitting the team up, so you can deploy different members of the team to different areas, like in Figure E.
.FIGPAIR E Deploy your team.
And they can be ordered to move on your command as opposed to immediate action, giving you time to get set up at another location.
The single-player campaign isn’t as long as I’d like it to be, but then again, few are. It provides a decent amount of action over a variety of environments, from a shipyard, to snow covered mountains, to a presidential palace. Figure F shows that the available weapons loadouts are taken from real-world weapons, no made-up stuff here.
.FIGPAIR F Real-world weapons are used in Fireteam Bravo 3.
FYI… the FN P90 is about the best secondary sub-machine gun available.
A tutorial aboard a Navy aircraft carrier allows you to get a feel for the controls before being thrown directly into the action. Mission briefings are given in the form of a short cinematic with photos and maps of the objectives. As you see in Figure G, objectives and maps can be accessed in-game via the objectives maps.
.FIGPAIR G Check the objectives map while on mission.
Weapon loadouts for each team member are chosen in the armory, and then the team is deployed into the field.
I thought there were a few occasions in the game where cutscenes took away opportunities for squad command and tactical deployment; namely hostage rescue situations. This is a prime opportunity to order your team to "bang and clear" a room; to deploy a stun grenade and take out the enemy. But these situations are taken away by the implementation of a cutscene. Figure H shows the breach command menu.
.FIGPAIR H Order your team to breach a door.
The Modern Warfare franchise utilizes a hostage rescue technique wherein the game goes into slo-mo during the breaching process, giving you the time the take out the opposition force without hitting the hostage. I think Fireteam Bravo 3 could have used a similar effect for all of the hostage rescue situations in the game, making the player much more involved in the process. There were far too many cinematics used where hands-on play would have made the game more realistic.
.H1 Multiplayer
If you’ve read any of my other game reviews, you’ll know that I’ve never been a big fan of multiplayer, especially online gaming. Well, the release of Modern Warfare has changed all that. A friend got me to try online play, I liked it, and I occasionally get my feet wet in the online pool.
Fireteam Bravo 3’s online component is pretty much like you’d expect it to be. While the names of the matches may be a little different, they all fall under the familiar categories of demolition, capture-the-flag, and team deathmatch. Even though I was pretty bad at Fireteam Bravo 3 online, it was still a fun experience.
Co-op is really where it’s at for multiplayer. Whether with a group sitting around the living room, or a group put together over the Net, running through the missions with a bunch of friends is a blast. Attacks can be coordinated, using squad tactics for more effect than the AI can accomplish on its own. And playing with friends only enhances the camaraderie of being in a simulated SEAL unit.
.H1 Wrapping it up
Slant 6 Games have certainly redeemed themselves from the colossal flops of SOCOM Tactical Strike and SOCOM Confrontation. Not since Zipper Interactive handled the franchise has a SOCOM game been done so well; nor has one been so fun. Fireteam Bravo 3 carries on the firsthand, third-person, squad-level action the SOCOM franchise is known for; and the co-op and online components allow you to keep that action alive long after the single-player campaign is over. I really enjoyed SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 3 and give it 4 out of 5.
.RATING 4
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
Learn more about [[http://www.socom.com/en-us/Game?id=FireteamBravo3|SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 3]].
Learn more about [[http://www.infinityward.com/|Modern Warfare]].
Learn more about [[http://www.slantsixgames.com/|Slant 6 Games]].
Learn more about [[http://www.zipperint.com/|Zipper Interactive]].
.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO
