[Dilmah G]

So, I'm a bit late to the party here, but this is a real gem and I was shocked and horrified that we didn't have a thread about it already.

For those who're not up to date on Spec Ops, it can basically be summarized as an interrogation of the COD genre of FPS, American military interventionism, and Western culture in general. It's a cool little game with an incredible amount of depth to it, and it was rather sobering to play, both as a gamer, and as someone who was offered a position in Army Officer training.

Interested to see what people's thoughts on this were.

[Scotty]

I haven't played it, but I did watch the Zero Punctuation on it.  It sounded good, but not good enough to buy while it was still new on a low budget.

[Dilmah G]

Yeah, I mean, I got it on special too, and wouldn't have been able to justify spending the usual $110 per new game we get stuck with over here. The SP is DEFINITELY worthy of a rent, though.

[MatthTheGeek]

Not interested in Yet Another FPS, sorry.

[ssmit132]

I'm not a FPS person myself (I only decided to try TF2 because it doesn't take itself seriously), but I've read about this game and I'm impressed with what the creators have pulled off with this.

[General Battuta]

Not interested in Yet Another FPS, sorry.

It's not an FPS and it's not Yet Another

[Dilmah G]

^What Battuta said. The gameplay is a very small aspect of this game, and its appearance is deliberate (you'll know what I mean if you play it). But yeah, honestly, this is about as far away from COD as you can get whilst still being in the same general ballpark. If anything, it's an attack on shooters like COD.

[Mikes]

Not interested in Yet Another FPS, sorry.

It's not an FPS and it's not Yet Another

I ll take that as endorsement and get it, then complain to Battuta, if I don t like it :grins:


Kidding aside... the reviews on this sounded promising in regards to the story.

The first serious take on an "anti-war" shooter?

[Dragon]

Looks like there are still games worth playing for the story. I think I'll look into picking it up.
BTW, what it it like, gamplay-wise? Is it a semirealistic tactical shooter (seems fitting for the story) or something else? Open-ended like the first Crysis, or more limited?
EDIT: Watched the trailer, mixed feelings. Graphics are very Hollywood-ish, and the fact it's a TPS may also detract from the immersion. Also, what's the deal with sandstorms? Though if the story is as good as they say, it's likely to make up for any drawbacks.

[General Battuta]

Nothing that is good in this game will appear in the trailers or demo.

'The deal' with sandstorms is that they are sandstorms, that's pretty much it

[Dilmah G]

Again, what he said.

Revolutionary gameplay isn't what this game is about anyway, as you identified. Gameplay-wise, it's just like Gears of War really.

I ll take that as endorsement and get it, then complain to Battuta, if I don t like it :grins:


Kidding aside... the reviews on this sounded promising in regards to the story.

The first serious take on an "anti-war" shooter?

Probably not the first, but it is a rather good one.

[The E]

the fact it's a TPS may also detract from the immersion.

I'd argue that if this game were an FPS, it probably would not work as well as it does. The extra distance afforded by a TPS setup is a definitive building block of the narrative told by the game.

[Zero Serenity]

I recently had the opportunity to play this game. I don't think it's worth a buy (rent, borrow, GameFly, whatever) but it has a story up there with (and possibly surpassing) Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. The thing with Spec Ops: The Line is story and characters, while the shooting is rather lamentable. It's completely designed to mess with your head and hate the character your playing as by the end. There are little touches that make you think you walked into hell with these guys, from the executions going from "killing me softly" to "I WILL GOUGE OUT YOUR EYES AND SKULL **** YOU!" On the bigger picture, you begin to question just everything as you go. I'm going to venture into spoiler territory now, highlight the black text if you wanna know badly.

Okay, the entire game starts out in what you think as In Medias Res, but when you get to the part in the game where it matches up you begin to question if it wasn't In Medias Res but rather a dream or just hell itself. While this is going on you are halucinating like crazy. But the biggest moment is when you see the effects of buring white phosphorus, use it anyway and wipe out civilians and then really question if you're actually helping people or just slaughtering them for the emotional high.

It's complex and surprisingly weighty. Again, worth a play, maybe not to own though.

[Dilmah G]

I'd agree with the last post in that it might not be worth a buy. The story IS pretty short, and even though there are multiple endings, its not the sort of setup where you need to see them all to get the full story. On the other hand the story is almost nothing like any of the CoD games. Simply put, the entire plot serves to deconstruct military shooters, the people playing it, and the reasons why people play them, and it does NOT have a positive assessment of these things once it has deconstructed them.

^typed by my good mate, and left because I have little else to say.

[Dragon]

I'd argue that if this game were an FPS, it probably would not work as well as it does. The extra distance afforded by a TPS setup is a definitive building block of the narrative told by the game.

Interesting. I'm definitely going to check it out. I have plenty of other stuff to play right now, but once it's on a good sale, I'll pick it up.

[MP-Ryan]

This is where I wish it were possible to rent titles on PC, because this is a game I have no interest in buying for the gameplay, but after reading the reviews (specifically ZP's) I very much want to play for the story.  Maybe I can find an LP on Youtube.

EDIT:  Extra Credit has two great episodes about this game:  http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/spec-ops-the-line-part-1

[Mikes]

This is where I wish it were possible to rent titles on PC, because this is a game I have no interest in buying for the gameplay, but after reading the reviews (specifically ZP's) I very much want to play for the story.  Maybe I can find an LP on Youtube.

EDIT:  Extra Credit has two great episodes about this game:  http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/spec-ops-the-line-part-1

Honestly,... if people pay 10+ bucks for a 2 hour movie why shouldn't they pay 20 bucks for a 5-10 hour game?

Fine with me really... I value my entertainment for the unique experiences that it can provide.

If I were to value entertainment by "lenght" or "time spent playing per dollar" I guess I would have no choice but grind for hours on end in some stupid MMORPG to get the "most gaming value" LOL.

[Scotty]

People also pay $1 a day to rent movies after they're released on DVD/video, or $8 a month for as much as they can stream/watch.  Around here, movie tickets are $5, not $10+.  What you're talking about has exactly zero relation to the actual topic, please take it elsewhere.

EDIT: To clarify, there is absolutely nothing in this thread to suggest that dollars spent per unit time played is how to measure a game.  In fact, there is absolutely nothing in this thread to suggest a criteria to measure a game at all, and MP-Ryan's post was simply wishing for a video game rental service that could be used on PC - much like the already existing rental services for console titles.

[Lorric]

If I were to value entertainment by "lenght" or "time spent playing per dollar" I guess I would have no choice but grind for hours on end in some stupid MMORPG to get the "most gaming value" LOL.

This is an amusing post considering where we are. Freespace 2 with what has been done here is the perfect blend of entertainment, longevity and value for money.

Me personally, I always target longevity and entertainment in my games.

[Mikes]

If I were to value entertainment by "lenght" or "time spent playing per dollar" I guess I would have no choice but grind for hours on end in some stupid MMORPG to get the "most gaming value" LOL.

This is an amusing post considering where we are. Freespace 2 with what has been done here is the perfect blend of entertainment, longevity and value for money.

Me personally, I always target longevity and entertainment in my games.

Hah Freespace 2, point taken.


Anyways... just wanted to point out, personally... I see nothing wrong with spending 20 bucks on a game that is trying something different. The contrary... there is the hope that by spending money on it... the people who made it will be encouraged to make more games that dare to break the usual mold.

Longevity is a secondary issue, at least to me. There are too many good games and way too little free time.