After a long wait and a lot of hype surrounding the game, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising has been released.  How does the sim style shooter stand up to MG scrutiny and how good is the conversion of a traditional PC game to a console.

It has to be said that today’s MTV generation do not appreciate games as they should be.  Stuck in a rut

of fast paced FPS shooters that can sometimes make your eyes bleed and a sense of feeling that war is how it plays on the screen.  Well, welcome to the real world and an introduction to the follow up of one of the more realistic shooters to date, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising.

Set on the island of Skira, located of the East coast of Russia, with 220km2 of oil rich land on the brink of war.  An airborne division of the People’s Liberation Army of China (PLA) lands to claim the island as the sovereign possession of the People’s Republic. Russia turns to the US for support aid and they’re quick to respond. Sending in the USS Iwo Jima, a battalion of US Marines launch an assault on the strung out but dug-in Chinese force.

With a campaign spanned over 11 missions you take control of a squad of 4 infantrymen, led by yourself in first person mode with 3 men to command.  Similarities will almost certainly be made to Full Spectrum Warrior but where that somewhat failed in its approach, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising shines.  This new iteration will not be everybody’s cup of tea as the missions can be slow, hard as nails and more strategic than any other shooter for a console out there.  That said, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, although frustrating at times rewards you for the effort you put in giving you a definite feel good factor at the end of a particular mission.  There are no energy bars here and the game has adopted a more realistic system of damage depending on where in the body you are hit.  One shot to the head and all you will see is a black screen, a shot to other areas of the body and you will either be walking with a limp and become slower or start to bleed out.  As real as it feels, your injuries can be treated with he help of applying wither a field dressing to yourself or getting the medic to help you out and is a relief that you wouldn’t have to spend the rest of the mission limping on through.

The other realistic feel is that weapons will be changed and fired in real time.  No right bumper for an instant release of a grenade, now you have to change to grenades, get them out and throw which can take around 5 seconds to complete and add to the authenticity of the game.  Weapons themselves are based on weight and running with an LMG will slow you down compared to running with a pistol equipped. Again, this may not be everybody’s cup of tea but adds to the depth and authenticity of the gameplay itself with firefights coming at regular intervals and the whole story paced really well.

The big challenge for Codemasters was to adapt a control system that traditionally works very well with the PC but can be a tough challenge to adapt to the limitations of a controller.  In the most part the system works well with standard FPS controls working smooth and easy access to the various functions.  The main problem is the squad command system.  On the PC it is very easy to hit a command to command a squad member but with the controller these functions are mapped to the D pad with sub menus to find your way through.  Although problematic at first, once you get used to where the commands are it becomes second nature to select the right command for your squad, even in intense firefights and Codemasters have to be commended for creating a fine job on something that is pretty much alien to a console controller.

Although the squad system can be tricky, you do have the option of taking the campaign online with 3 of your friends and completing all of the campaign mission together in co-operative mode.  Many games nowadays seem to be implementing this feature and it is a joy to play.  Now you can experience the combat yourself and a few friends in one of the only games at the moment I know of when it is absolutely imperitive to communicate between one another to be able to complete the co-operative mode.

Unfortunately, the multiplayer element of the game at the moment I have not been able to test due to the amount of people overloading the servers but from what I am hearing, Codemasters are in the middle of sorting this problem out.

Overall, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising shines for the most part.  A solid conversion of a traditional combat sim normally designed for the PC.  The AI is sharp and will try to flank you, find cover when under fire and try its hardest to put that bullet through your head.  A few minor bugs here and there will be noticeable but not frustrating.  Overall, Codemasters have done a fine job and the amount of people playing this at the moment is testament to what they have achieved.  The game will frustrate but not to the point where you want to throw your controller at the screen and will definitely challenge you to understand the finer points of war and that run and gun is normally not an option.