If
there is any difference between video games of old and new, it is the
potential for immersion. Enhancements in technology now allow game
developers to create ever more detailed environments that almost
capture the illusion of being in the game’s world. Super Mario
Brothers is fun, but it is nothing like the 3D, first-person
experiences of Soma or Resident Evil 7. And this is
not to even mention VR games. In short, players these days are
thisclose to being the heroes or anti-heroes of their games. From
apocalypse survivor to elven princess, WWII grunt to yakuza gangster,
modern games are putting people in the shoes of characters like never
before. Want to be a black ops operative working to stem the
narcotics trade in Bolivia? 2017’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands
puts you (and best played with, a handful friends) in those shoes.
Short
on story, long on content, GR:W is a massive open world game
filled with main and side missions in which the player infiltrates
the Santa Blanca drug ring and takes out its leaders, region by
region, until they arrive at the big boss El Sueno. Along the way,
players will destroy cartel outposts, raid supply depots, assassinate
targets, kidnap and interrogate cartel members, destroy comms
infrastructure, assist local rebels, tag supplies like medicine and
technology to be repurposed, hijack helicopters and airplanes, pilot
gunboats—in general be a bad ass, black ops operative in an
amazingly realistic rendition of Bolivia.
Not
precisely a solo experience, GR:W’s is tackled with three
fellow squadmates. The squadmates controlled either by the game’s
AI or online friends (no local co-op, unfortunately), GR:W is
a cooperative experience by design even if it means controlling the
team yourself, and, I would argue, is likely best enjoyed in the long
term with real friends fighting alongside you, as otherwise it might
get repetitive. Developers clearly put effort into the backdrop and
storyline, but it’s equally clear the majority went into creating
as good a multiplayer experience as possible. The game plays
perfectly fine in single-player, but when the squadmates are
controlled by other living, breathing humans the game really comes
alive. For this, Ubisoft should be commended for finding a game mode
which allows the entire campaign to be played single, multi-player,
drop-in drop-out, or mixed. GR:W may not have earned top
marks critically upon release, but from a sales perspective it has
done extremely well, and I think the multi-player freedom is the main
reason (along with the stealth-shooter game type).
Where
most video games these days make things easy on the player by
offering regular checkpoint saves so little progress is lost when
dying (Shadow Tactics even goes so far as to allow the player
to save any moment with the push of a button), GR:W opts to
balance realism with practicality. Upon “dying”, squadmates have
roughly 1 minute to come to your side and revive you (and you, them).
If successful, the player continues playing. If it happens again in
the same fight, then ‘real death’ occurs, and the player must
reload a save, meaning they must start the entire mission over again,
or try another mission. It can be a real bummer to get 99% through a
mission, only to die in the last firefight. But perhaps more
importantly, it adds a layer of realism. Players are forced to take
each action with careful consideration—plan B as well, in case
things go awry. A more difficult game for it, GR:W is
likewise more satisfying when the missions are pulled off
successfully.
Looking
at reviews of GR:W, one finds a portion of its player base
appears to be gun nuts. I am not a gun nut. (I dislike the things;
our world would be a better place without them.) But if you are,
Wildlands will be a treat. Not only are their major options
for assault rifles, sniper rifles, and pistols (most or all of which
seem drawn from the real-world), there is also the possibility to
upgrade and modify them in extremely detailed manner. Clips, braces,
paint schemes, grip, under-barrel, scopes, butts, barrels—seemingly
everything can be interchanged or customized. (I laughed to myself:
“Why can’t I switch the steel screws for titanium on this gun?)
But perhaps of further interest to gun nuts is that the physics are
extremely realistic, i.e. bullet trajectory is arced rather than
straight, unlike most shooting games. Like real-world snipers and
target shooters, players will need to account for bullet drop (i.e.
aim high) when taking out targets over long distances.
Another
area which Ubisoft has given players near complete control is
deciding what information appears on the screen. From icon-heavy to
no icons, and everything between, the player can choose what info
appears on their HUD, mini-map, and game environment. If the player
wants gameplay to be as realistic as possible, they can turn off
everything and go in with pure recon and stealth to depend on. Or
conversely, they can have the full blown display turned on:
collectibles here, enemies there, info cache here, gun part there.
Or lastly, they can mix and match to suit preference. Game immersion
is not only a thing, but a customizable thing.
But
in terms of 100% immersion, GR:W is still lacking. Overall
gameplay is quite realistic. Lighting, terrain, weather, weapons,
locations, vehicles—all are drawn from the real world. But there
are a couple of things that break the illusion. First is the sheer
spread of the Santa Blanca narcotics ring. It feels the player
cannot turn over a rock without finding a cartel gangster. Everyday
people are part of the game’s environment, but they seem to occupy
only 50% of the total population, the other half the cartel. No
matter how bad Columbia or Bolivia’s real-world narcotics problem
may be, it’s not as widespread as GR:W's gangsta
epidemic. Secondly is the AI squad members. Put bluntly,
they are best used in hold position as snipers. Too often are the
occasions where you stealthily crawl your way through the grass to
scope out a target, only to have the target spot your doofus AI
teammate as he stands beside you, and begins shooting. Why the
teammates couldn’t have been semi-synched to crouch or crawl with
you I don’t know. In the real world the teammate would be
intuitive enough to know as much. And thirdly, the player’s
appearance has no bearing on the setting. I understand developers
chose to prioritize character creation, but the fact wearing a cowboy
hat and brightly colored clothing (vs. camouflage and other, more
stealthy apparel) has no effect on enemies’ ability to see you is
strange. Moreover, players walk around in public armed to the teeth
with rifles, pistols, grenades, C4, etc., yet nobody bats an eye. In
the real world, such black ops operatives are going about their
business much differently.
Looking
back at the early reviews of Wildlands, there is a fair amount
of negativity, and I can’t really understand why. Perhaps the game
was released with bugs that have since been fixed, or perhaps gamers
who played earlier Ghost Recon titles disliked the open world
approach? Regardless, they game doesn’t appear worthy of some of
the criticism it received. It is not the greatest game ever made,
but it’s very solid. For players wanting to be undercover
operatives taking down targets and directing field missions, the game
wholly captures that feel. Guns and gun physics (for those who care)
are realistic. The action sequences are tense and exciting given the
patience required. The multi-player is very satisfying and may just
be the best 4-player experience produced yet. Even if the side
missions are repetitive, there is still a huge amount of content, and
ultimately no better or worse than most regarded titles. And while
the player is overpowered, AI teammates don’t react realistically,
etc., still, the game delivers the immersive experience of being a
special ops agent going on stealth missions with friends, which is by
rights the main design and selling point of the game, and something
we just didn't have with Contra...
No comments:
Post a Comment