The first Full Spectrum Warrior game was shrouded in hype regarding the title being based on a similar program used by the US military to train field commanders. Whilst the console iteration of its military big brother had to feature the all important “Fun” factor it still offered a reasonable level of tactical play. Well the boys are back and once again are thrust into the heart of an urbanised war. Enter Full Spectrum Warrior Ten Hammers.

Gameplay

The main feature of the Full Spectrum Warrior series has been a shift away from more conventional methods of controlling on screen characters, towards the style that is more akin to a real time strategy game. In Full Spectrum Warrior, players move a cursor across the terrain which allows the deployment of a unit, consisting of four soldiers. The cursor can be placed in strategic positions such as on corners of buildings, giving the unit a good view of what lies ahead. Players are also able to order troops to perform defensive moves whilst moving or things like sending a scout to recon the location before the rest of the unit moves there.

Being an urban setting, there are simply plenty of objects to seek cover behind. The main focus of the game is to find perfect cover and thus minimising the risk to the squad should they come under fire. However cover can be destroyed especially if its things like parked cars; which means as a commander of the unit it’s your job not only to find a suitable location which provides decent cover but also making sure the cover can sustain enemy fire and still offer the unit protection.

Players can switch to each of the four team members at any time and even give individual members specific orders such as cover a certain area. However what is new for the series is being able to split the four man team into two teams of two. This is useful in a number of situations and can help greatly when either trying to cover a wide area or when attempting to flank the enemy. During the course of the game players get to control an addition four man team as well as other units such as sniper support. Players are also able to control vehicles this time round as well as air-strikes. Another new feature is the option to briefly take direct control of a soldier and aim then fire his weapon in a first person viewpoint. Sadly you cannot move the individual soldier like you would in a first person game but still it’s better than nothing and allows players to perform precise shots.

Full Spectrum Warrior Ten Hammers on the surface all seems to work well despite some fiddly controls and perhaps daunting at first options. A lot of the time players will need to forget what they have learnt in other games and adopt a unique approach which the game dictates. The game play in general is slow paced but this suits the tense and unexpected nature of title as you are never certain of what lies beyond the next corner. Your mission objectives are as you would expect which consist of assisting other units, securing areas, retrieving items etc but also objectives can happen on the fly especially if the units are ambushed or receive priority orders. This keeps the game play fresh and although the style of play remains the same throughout its always great to be able to get in and out of a situation unscathed.

With the realistic slant the game employs, due care has to be taken at all times otherwise the player is penalised. Soldiers can take very few hits and once taken out they require immediate medical attention. What this translates to is players having to manually pick up the soldier and get the unit back to a medical truck. Sometimes this is quite an annoyance especially if you are deep within enemy territory and have to backtrack a reasonable distance; although you can sometimes call in a medical truck to deploy closer to the squad in cleared areas. Still, this forces the player to take more care and not to foolishly send troops to their deaths. In this respect Full Spectrum Warrior Ten Hammers can be quite harsh especially as some dodgy AI rears its head.

The AI is a major contention as it stirs up two sides of an argument that was also present with its predecessor. Purists will always argue that any deaths are usually as a result of player error rather than bad AI routines. The game is designed to be played a certain way and if players make mistakes then that is their fault; troop deaths means that the soldiers position wasn’t secure or you rushed the troops into an unknown location and got ambushed are likely responses from the purists. The other side of the argument is the game has some horrid and perhaps unfair AI. The most notorious of these are moments when an enemy suddenly rushes the unit to the side and begins his rain of fire on the squad killing everyone in moments. The problem here is that the unit fails to see this target and refuses to open fire until it’s too late. Other issues with the AI are things like dire aiming where all four men can be firing at a target literally feet away and still miss!

Personally I feel that both sides of the argument are valid considering I have suffered at the hands of both situations a number of times. The replay feature makes a return which allows players the chance to watch a replay of the level including their mistakes and then jump in and resume control again at any time. This is very useful feature especially when faced by said dodgy AI.

Graphics

Full Spectrum Warrior does look very gritty and in this respect captures the essence of urban warfare. It’s certainly not the prettiest of Xbox games but does a decent enough job of conveying combat. One major issue I had was with the camera controls which were often tricky especially when wishing to place the cursor in certain positions. I personally feel that the option of a near field overhead view would have been welcome and in some situations would have made positioning the cursor more fluid.

Sound

Full Spectrum Warrior features spot music which occurs when the situation requires it. This adds a certain tension to the game and certainly paints some aural colour to the whole package which generally is quiet bar the odd ambient sound effects like distant gunfire. Your squads are a vocal bunch, which are acted reasonably albeit a little cliché at times. They all have numerous remarks to make depending on the situation; however there are plenty of repeated phrases which you will hear over and over again and do get annoying. Gun battles sound pretty decent and with the shouting of your troops, the enemy and perhaps the player means that these moments certainly stand out from the rest of the game.

Longevity

The single player campaign will last competent players a weekend at best on the default difficulty. However crank up the difficulty and expect a longer haul especially if you do this on the first play through. There is an online component which features versus modes with up to 8 players and also a 2 player co-op mode where you and a friend can tackle the single player campaign together with each person controlling one fire team.

Overall

Full Spectrum Warrior Ten Hammers is an enjoyable yet frustrating experience and feels very rewarding when you do things correctly. The game play won’t be to everyone’s tastes especially those weaned on frantic first person shooters however with a little understanding, Full Spectrum Warrior Ten Hammers offers a compelling urban shooter experience. There are issues with the title such as the controls, camera and AI but in general these do not hamper the overall game play too much other than causing some player frustration at times. The new additions to the game are welcome but not overly necessary and do very little to make Ten Hammers stand out from its predecessor. If you like military shooters which require a little more tactical thought than your average shooter then perhaps Full Spectrum Warrior is for you. If you hated the first then I would recommend you stay clear as having a precise fire mode does not turn the game into a first person shooter fest.