Difference in Opinion

EA just released their much anticipated Army of Two game not too long ago and it is definitely creating some buzz. The game was announced in May of 2006 with a release date of sometime in 2007. In July of 2007 the game was slated to release on November 15 of that year. Finally the game was released in March 2008. Although it may alter the blood pressure of gamers everywhere, I think it is almost always better delay and polish than rush a game to meet a deadline. A great example of a good game that was rushed recently is Blacksite: Area 51. Although the game was decent to play through and we gave it a pretty solid score, it could have been so much better if it was left in the incubator a bit longer. Army of Two serves as a good example of delaying enough to polish things up, but not too long to annoy the hell out of those waiting in anticipation.

After not playing the game for very long, it seems so familiar, but in a good way. Finally it figured out why it seemed so recognizable. Army of Two was so much like Gears of War. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if EA noticed the success of the game and wanted to create a similar product that would appeal to that market. There are no complaints on my end. I don’t know why people to follow the same molds for success more with certain games. I can’t even remember how many games would have been amazing if they took a page from the pregame lobby book Bungie wrote with Halo 2. Gears of War is definitely not a bad thing to be reminded of. I loved the online multiplayer and the story, but most of all, the great co-op mode that allowed two people to play through the story together. EA offers that same appeal by tailoring the whole dynamics of Army of Two around co-operative gameplay. After all, things are always more fun to play with a friend.

The story line is interesting and a bit unexpected. From the initial screenshots of the game, I just assumed it was two guys looking to tear their way through some streets. It ends up that this duo are some of the best mercenaries around. The army has hired them numerous times in the past and they always seem to get the job done. As you play through the game you will recognize famous conflicts that you are a part of that took place in the past, some that are going on right now, and others that are yet to come. Even playing the game by yourself is still enjoyable. You are presented with many options to give your partner directions that they will actually follow (unlike Gears of War, stupid Dom…). Of course nothing is better than having an human being behind the controls that is just on the other side of your headset. The multiplayer for Army of Two is very unique. Since the whole game revolves around teams of two, all the modes online are various objectives that two people do together. You compete against another team of two and match wits in a variety of different gametypes.

Army of Two gave me a welcomed deja vu of one of my favorite Xbox 360 games of all time. Anything that can tap into that joy is sure to win over my heart. All the amazing things mentioned above coupled with various customizations (weapon upgrades, “pimped out” weapons, and alternate masks) really round out the game to make it something very familiar yet very unique (I know, that doesn’t make a lot of sense, but just nod your head). I would highly recommend picking up a copy for yourself and playing with a friend. You can play split screen on the same Xbox, so even if you don’t have Xbox Live, or do but don’t have any friends with the game, then all you need is a willing friend and an extra controller.