Back in 2009, Codemasters released Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising for the next gen consoles and it was met with average reviews from reviewers. It was praised for having intelligent A.I. and giving players a realistic simulation that required tactical planning and skill in order to survive the enemies relentless assaults. The downside to the game was the muddy textures, bland environments, and a dragging story that wasn’t well told.
Two years later and Codemasters has released a new entry in their war simulator. Operation Flashpoint: Red River looks to improve upon the original by giving the players a more in-depth experience, better gameplay, and a more light-hearted narrative to bring more people into the story. But does Red River achieve the object that it set out to accomplish? Or does it end up misfiring and shooting itself in the foot? Here are the Hots and Nots of Operation Flashpoint: Red River.
Hot
SSG. Knox
Among a story that really has nothing special to bring to the table, Staff Sergeant Knox is pure comedy gold. His one-liners and name calling were things that kept me going through the game. I cared more about those than the game itself. Normally you find things in a game that will make you chuckle here and there, but rarely will you find a game that will make you bust your gut laughing at the randomness of some of his lines. This all ties into the light-hearted nature that this game is trying to achieve through it’s characters and their narrative.
Gameplay
The game at it’s core plays just like Dragon Rising, albeit with a few tweaks to the controls to make it a tad less confusing. There are three difficulty settings in the game for you to choose from starting at normal and ending on expert. Normal gives you everything you would want to get through your mission. You get a full HUD and can take slightly more damage than if you played on one of the other two settings. Play the game on hardcore, and you are truly a force to be reckoned with. Hardcore mode strips you of your HUD, checkpoints and waypoints while also making you cringe at every bullet that kicks up dirt in front of you. If you are even hit once, you’ll be looking at the loading screen waiting to start the level from the start. Then again, the same goes for your enemies…
Nothing feels better in this game than pulling off a headshot from the top of a mountain 400 meters out with your sniper rifle. Judging the correct notching in your scope and watching as you squeeze the trigger and let physics guide that one perfect shot to your enemies grape is quite a satisfying feeling. Setting up the shot using a range finder adds even more calculation into it as well as judging if the enemy will be moving or not. Factor all that in correctly and you may just be able to squeeze off that one perfect shot without alerting your enemies. Miss, and you may start taking heat from the enemies snipers.
The game now gives you the ability to choose what class and loadout you want to carry into the level with you. You have four classes to choose from: the Auto-Rifleman, the Rifleman, the Scout and the Grenadier. Each class has its own progression unlock system that gives you things such as new weapons, scopes and perks as you level them up by using them in-game. Some perks improve your accuracy with weapons while others improve your healing abilities and your threshold for damage. There are definitely a great deal of different options you can choose from to mix and match to suit your play style.
Co-op
Playing the game with a friend is definitely where Red River shines. You can choose to play the campaign with a friend or you can play one of the multiple fireteam missions that are available to you right out of the box. You and 3 other friends can team up to take out the PLA using one of the four classes and different loadouts. It helps you out more in the long run if you play the game with your friends because the A.I. is hit and miss when you play by yourself.
Graphics/Sound
The graphics in Red River definitely wont win any awards but they are good enough to get the job done. There are a few issues with overuse of the color brown and towns that don’t look like they belong in certain spots but then again you are in a Middle-Eastern environment fighting insurgents. The animations in this game are smooth and immersive compared to others in the shooting genre. Going into the prone position actually takes a few seconds as does getting up from it, and getting shot actually has your character move like he has been shot, leaving you vulnerable to follow-up shots should your enemy be right next to you.
The game also sounds great from the heavy footsteps of a fully packed soldier to the report of your weapon after it has been fired. Every gun has it’s own signature sound that actually makes the gun sound like it will have a heavy impact on your enemy. When you get into the Humvee or chopper at the end of the mission, you can also hear a metal soundtrack playing on the radio with actual bands. Some of the ones I heard were Bullet for My Valentine, P.O.D and Megadeath. It definitely gets you pumped for your next mission.
Not
Story
The story puts you in the boots of Sgt. William Kirby as he sets down in the fictional country of Kajikistan to fight off insurgents. You and your squad will go through a few of the missions fighting the insurgents before the PLA comes in from China and decides to call you their enemy. Shenanigans all around. That is seriously the story behind the game.
From beginning to end this game didn’t have a story that could hold my attention. I was not impressed by the lack of enthusiasm in the narration between missions in the “cutscenes.” I really don’t think you could call a picture of a map with narration a cutscene either. The game also doesn’t help itself in the story department by distancing the player from the characters. The only time you really here your own characters voice is when you are barking orders at your squad. Other than that, nobody can be heard other than the other squad leaders and Staff Sergeant Knox. The game set up narration by introducing the characters in videos online, Battlefield Bad Company style but they are never heard from in the game unless you are giving them a direct order. It was definitely disappointing since the devs were going for a more impactful story.
A.I.
The enemy A.I. has nothing to do with this section. They act as enemies should. They hunt you relentlessly and actually react to shots being fired at them. No, this section goes out to your fireteam that like to dive in front of you as you are taking a shot. Your fireteam will deem it necessary to walk in front of you only calling out right as they run past you. This causes you to fire a bullet into their body and getting chewed out because of their stupidity. This then requires you to babysit their wounds by either chasing them down and healing them or ordering another squadmate to do it for you. I can not count the number of times I had to chase Soto because he somehow survived a bullet through his skull . The A.I. acts like a child being forced to get a shot, they will run at the sight of field bandages. It was funny the first time. This is why the game works best with three friends.
Verdict
Operation Flashpoint: Red River is a solid game that will provide fans of the series and shooter fans alike with exactly what they expect from a shooter. If you have the extra cash to afford it among all the titles this year, then you should consider it or rent it before you buy it. With solid gameplay and a strong emphasis on playing with friends, this game has the potential for greatness. Just be prepared to look past a shallow story and deal with chasing down and babysitting the childish A.I. should you choose to play it alone.
[Editor’s Note: Operation Flashpoint: Red River was reviewed on the PlayStation 3 platform. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]
