Hier das komplette IGN Review...
May 27, 2003 - Digital Anvil's Brute Force had the distinction of being the
first Microsoft Game Studio title announced after the launch of Xbox back in
2001. It was the game that was supposed to make you say "I loved Halo so
this one will be just as good!" It took several delays and returns to the
drawing board but Brute Force has finally made it to the Xbox and in fine
shape. It looks the part of an Xbox first party title with outstanding
visuals and mature themes and should help flesh out the system's still
struggling library.
The developers at Digital Anvil have delivered Brute Force with plenty of
polish and the game is genuinely fun. The only catch is that it isn't a good
squad-based tactical action game as advertised. The genre of squad-based
tactical action is relatively new and so any definitions you may want to
throw out there might work, but Brute Force ends up feeling very much like a
run-and-gun action title instead of a game that requires a lot of strategic
thinking. Now the run-and-gun of Brute Force is plenty fun and very well
executed but it's just not what we or anybody else who's bought into MS's
marketing message is expecting from this game. If you're just all about a
good time blasting aliens then Brute Force shouldn't be a problem. If you
were looking for some more squad-based tactical shooting along the lines of
Conflict: Desert Storm then this game comes up a bit short.
Gameplay
The premise behind Brute Force is that you're in control of a team of four
unique commandos who've come together to meet a threat to the galaxy as we
know it. Each character has unique attributes, special abilities and weapon
options. Ostensibly your job is to use the correct soldier in the right
situation whilst keeping the entire team alive. You're allowed to switch
control from one teammate to another with a flick of the D-pad and issue
commands to all of your teammates via a special command menu you can access
by holding a direction on the D-pad. You're in control of one and only one
commando at any time so knowing when to switch to which is the key. Here's
what each has to offer:
a.. Hawk: carries one light rifle and one side arm; smallest health meter;
can turn invisible; only character that can use power blade melee attack
(very nice while invisible).
b.. Flint: sniper carries one light rifle and one side arm; second
smallest health meter; auto-targeting special ability means you barely have
to aim to hit targets and she excels at one shot kills
c.. Tex: heavy firepower dude carries heavy weapons only; largest health
meter; can disarm mines and use them later; berserker special ability allows
him to use both weapons at the same time.
d.. Brutus: feral warrior carries a heavy weapon and a light rifle; second
largest health meter; special ability gives him thermal visions, regenerates
health and devastating charge attack.
There are so many similarities between Brut
e Force and Halo that we could
wrap up this review right here and now with a checklist of features in
common. Brute Force is played from the third person perspective --just like
Halo used to be-- but the controls are nearly identical to Bungie's
first-person shooter. Each character can only carry two weapons, switch
between them on Y and pick up new ones off of the ground using X. Grenades
are defaulted to the left trigger but you can assign other items there like
mines or other special explosives. Sadly, there's no flashlight button to be
found.
Since you spend a lot of time running and gunning, the control system allows
you some pretty nifty and agile moves using the analog stick and primary
weapon fire on the right trigger. The frantic play is further encouraged by
a quick medpack button so you can take a dose of health (if you have any
available) in the middle of a firefight like we saw in Baldur's Gate: Dark
Alliance. Each of the four main character's special abilities is defaulted
to the white button so you can slip into and out of their powers quickly.
You can even command your teammates to use their powers and take medpacks
from the command menu where you'll also find the four basic "stand ground,"
"cover me," "fire at will" and "move here" commands. The fact that the
control system is aimed at keeping things quick and easy is the strongest
indication of how you're expected to enjoy Brute Force. The artificial
intelligence of your teammates whilst playing solo is the second strongest
indication.
The strategy elements of Brute Force fall apart early on when you realize
the AI of your squad mates isn't what it should be when you're playing by
yourself. The basic commands above represent the totality of the control you
have over your teammates but it doesn't feel like enough. "Fire at will" and
"cover me," for example, are more like aggressiveness settings than actual
commands. "Fire at will" means they'll go looking for trouble while "cover
me" is more akin to "stick close to me so you don't get yourself hurt,
idiot." Move is actually very effective since selecting this command will
take you back to the main game interface with a big blue arrow to help you
point to potential locations to send your troops. You can even send them to
higher or lower ground with no problems. Unfortunately "stand ground" ends
up being the most popular command because you'll use it to keep the other
three in one place while you go handle your business against the bad guys.
Most scenarios will involve you hiding Flint and Hawk somewhere safe
(feminists somewhere out there should be pissed) while you take Brutus and
or Tex into a hostile environment to whoop ass since they have the most
firepower and can take the most damage. You can then bring the two female
characters up whenever its safe and you want to pull off something cool.
Setting up quick ambushes or controlling the battlefield with superior
tactics are basic components of tactical squad based games, but Brute Force
undermin
es this with "loose" enemy and teammate AI that seems geared towards
pure action and trigger pulling. Your sniper is good if you want to take out
enemies at a distance, of course, just don't rely on her AI to cover you on
its own when you put her on a hill because she won't know how to zoom in on
enemies on her own. Basically it's like a game where you can pick from four
unique characters and take them into battle yourself, but the difference
with Brute Force is the other three you didn't pick are in the game with you
ready to be picked on a whim as long as you keep them alive. This is not
tactical action gaming. Fortunately things really pick up in Brute Force the
less you have to rely on AI controlled teammates.
System Link cooperative play through the main campaign is Brute Force's
greatest and only triumph over Halo. You and three buddies can hop on four
Xboxes and ride through the single player story controlling members of the
same Brute Force squad. Despite the choppiness that comes up, this is the
definitive BF experience since you've got your own screen and you can simply
yell at the knucklehead controlling Brutus instead of yelling at the AI
controlling him when he does something dumb. If you choose to do three
Xboxes and three buddies, one of you will always be able to command or
switch to that fourth character as you proceed through the game's 20+ hours
of campaign mode. But it doesn't have to all be cooperative.
You've got standard deathmatch and squad deathmatch in Brute Force. Of the
two, the latter is the bigger deal since you can take your BF squad against
your buddy's squad and see who's really the man or the woman. Throughout the
single player campaign you'll be able to unlock new characters that can then
be used in the game's multiplayer games. So while there's the Brute Force
squad made up of Tex, Brutus, Hawk and Flint there's also four-man squads of
Ferals (Brutus' homies), Seers, Shrikes and Federation troops. You can max
out both types of deathmatch games with eight players spread across four
Xboxes so that you have to two players splitting a screen (and a squad in
squad DM) on each TV. That's as close as you can get to Xbox Live without
crossing the line The way you can divvy up players, Xboxes and squads over
system link and splitscreen gets a little confusing but it's safe to say no
other game makes better use of that system link cable than Brute Force.
Graphics
Brute Force is one of the most impressive looking games on the Xbox period.
As long as you stay away from the multiplayer games with all kinds of action
going on, the framerate is surprisingly steady considering how much is
happening even in an empty environment. There are nice subtle weather and
lighting effects that really bring the missions to life when you stop and
take the time to appreciate them. The animation on all of the characters is
a little stiff and this is probably the biggest graphical weakness.
Explosions, weapon effects and everything else you'd expect from an action
shooter are al
l well done.
The worlds of Brute Force look like something from an old episode of Star
Trek. Early on you're treated to a volcanic environment with all kinds of
floating fireflies/lights hovering in place and you can get your James T.
Kirk on by ignore them and blowing everybody to hell. Brutus' homeworld is
made up of cities built among towering trees that seem to have no tops or
roots but are very convincingly drawn. The real treat is later on you blast
through a level where the roots of those trees seem to be growing and the
whole thing makes for quite a sight.
The characters themselves aren't bad looking but the fact that the same
models are used during the movie sequences makes them seem hokier than
necessary. It would've been nicer if the female characters looked more like
what they represented. That is, it's very clear that Tex is the
double-fisted tough guy because he's got a big ass gun on his back and one
in his hand; Brutus is the hostile, yet kind-hearted primal dude because he
has scales and red eyes; but Hawk and Flint are damn near interchangeable.
Their outfits, hairstyles and weapon configurations are identical so that
only Flint's darker skin and hair color give her away.
The main characters and enemies share far too many animations and this
becomes very apparent eight hours into the main campaign mode.
Sound
The music and voice acting is cheesy but very appropriate for the game's
vibe. If the jokes written into the dialogue were just a bit funnier it
would be easier to see that BF is not trying to take itself too seriously .
As it is however, the music and quality of voice acting (delivering corny
lines) have you convinced that this is some serious sci-fi even if you know
better.
The weapon sound effects are unique enough and the surround sound
capabilities of the Xbox make a huge difference. While the AI of the enemies
in Brute Force is nowhere near what the Covenant showed us in Halo, they do
have some decent lines that you'll even be able to hear in the middle of a
ferocious firefight. Few things can be better than listening to a bunch of
cannibalistic mutants with Molotov cocktails screaming about what they're
going to do to you if they ever find you.
The music sounds like something from a 1980s knock-off sci-fi show but again
it fits well with what Brute Force is doing. It doesn't change according to
events in the game like the music in Halo, but you will recognize the
consistent hokiness throughout your time with BF.
Closing Comments
Brute Force works well as a rich action-shooter but it just
doesn't have the brains to get by as a tactical squad-based anything. The
command system and other strategic elements Digital Anvil tried to implement
end up seeming out of place because there's so much mindless fun to be had.
What it does, it does well with a nice polished look, solid control and slew
of other good habits inherited from Halo so it's definitely a good Xbox game
to have in your library. It pushes the
envelope of system link functionality
and meets the multiplayer requirement with ease. I'm not sure if we'll still
be playing this years from now the same way we all still play Halo, but this
should get us at least halfway through the summer.
-- Aaron Boulding
Presentation
It's sci-fi for the casual fan, if that makes sense, but the
production effort is certainly there.
8.0
Graphics
In the solo game you keep waiting for it to chop up. In the
mulitplayer game there's no waiting! Choppiness for all.
8.0
Sound
The voice-acting is good and cheesy while every other sound
element is extremely adequate.
7.0
Gameplay
The shooting elements are good, but the squad-based tactics are
not. Focus on what it does well and you'll have a blast.
8.0
Lasting Appeal
Lots of multiplayer, co-op and system link options and a hefty
campaign with a Halo-like twist make BF a great value.
9.0
OVERALL SCORE (not an average)
8.1