Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 (PSP)
- Publisher:
- Electronic Arts
- Developer:
- EA Canada
- Release Date:
- Q4, 2007
- Number of players:
- 1 - 32
- Type:
- Action
- Reality Factor:
- Realistic
- Perspective:
- First-Person
- Age:
- World War II
1 movie
We play Medal of Honor: Heroes 2...
The Medal of Honor series – yes, without the U, I suppose – has become a byword for World War 2-related action, with the first-person franchise appearing on every major machine since it's PlayStation début in 1999. There's been a version of the game on PC, Xbox, 360, every PlayStation, GBA, Gamecube – and now there's the 'Heroes' spin-off that shares the PSP and, hilariously, Nintendo's underpowered Wii. The pedigree is there, though, but the question remains – does the latest handheld title storm the Nazi stronghold or fall at the first charge?
Largely, it's the former, as Heroes 2 is an accomplished and hugely enjoyable – if lightweight – historical shooter. In the role of a highly specialised OSS agent, you and a couple of colleagues are tasked with infiltrating and exploring a series of German-infested scenarios to steal plans, blow up various objects and generally ruin their day. You're given a selection of generic – but well-designed – levels to explore, such as cities, sewer systems, ports and well-defended bases.
There is, of course, a large selection of weaponry to aid your progress through the thousands of generic evil Nazi folk who line your route to victory. Beginning with a basic pistol and assault rifle, you can upgrade with weapons gleaned from the missions and twitching bodies of your dead adversaries, so AK-47's, powerful shotguns and even rocket launchers are within your grasp – and theirs, unfortunately. Grenades litter war-era Europe, too, and they're easy to target and throw, launching bodies into the air with suitable force.
There's even an attempt at storytelling – your main objective is to stop Hitler from deploying his new V2 rocket by scuppering his plans throughout Germany. This is illustrated throughout by a few artistic slides preceding each mission – black and white drawings – and an all-American voiceover, as befitting the Medal of Honour games.
Gameplay is typical of the series – very polished and effective – which is what you'd expect given the amount of time the franchise has been going. Beginning with an obligatory beach landing (it doesn't live up to the famous Omaha Beach of previous games but, well, it's on a PSP) the game never really lets up, channelling you through well-designed levels that link evocative set-pieces – one section in the city requires you to storm an artillery position and to use the huge gun to take out anti-air defences, whilst holding off the German retaliation – with short, sharp sections of fast-paced action. The only downside to the levels, though, is that they're often split up into shorter sections – resulting in longer loading times more often.
Graphically, there's nothing that can be faulted, especially when you consider the game's diminutive handheld nature. The town in particular is great, filled with explorable buildings and ruined structures, and the sewers are pretty spooky – lots of rooms full of cover for vicious firefights, dark and dingy corridors, and a climactic battle that's almost dystopian and reminiscent of Valve's Half-Life games in atmosphere. While the enemy soldiers – and your colleagues – are identikit troops, there's nothing wrong with the character models, and the weapons are distinctive enough to tell apart. Explosions are pretty well-rendered, too, and the sound matches up with the visuals – plenty to really absorb you and forget that you're on a train to Stoke and, instead, yank you through the screen and onto a wartime battlefield.
The only problem is that, at seven levels, it's a short game – even though some life has been added through the various scores, medals and achievements you can earn by excelling on the battlefield. Even so, it'll take the most dedicated of Medal of Honour fans to nail every medal and reward on every mode. Longevity is added thanks to a competent multiplayer mode, though, that includes single-player and team deatchmatch and Infiltration – basically the familiar Capture the Flag mode. It works well, with surprisingly little lag – even though it occasionally crops up in busier scenes of the single-player mode – and is pretty addictive to boot.
This is an impressive title, especially for a handheld machine not really renowned for first-person shooter titles. Gameplay is tight, well-designed and addictive – however brief – and this is backed up with evocative graphics and hugely enjoyable Teutonic battles. Well worth a purchase, especially if you're looking for some high-octane portable action – you'll not find much better to occupy you on dull train journeys thanks to fast-paced, genre-typical action, decent graphics and varied gameplay.
Top Game Moment: Leading your squad to victory through a heft German resistance, completing objectives and stopping Hitler from raining V2's all over Europe.
Largely, it's the former, as Heroes 2 is an accomplished and hugely enjoyable – if lightweight – historical shooter. In the role of a highly specialised OSS agent, you and a couple of colleagues are tasked with infiltrating and exploring a series of German-infested scenarios to steal plans, blow up various objects and generally ruin their day. You're given a selection of generic – but well-designed – levels to explore, such as cities, sewer systems, ports and well-defended bases.
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There is, of course, a large selection of weaponry to aid your progress through the thousands of generic evil Nazi folk who line your route to victory. Beginning with a basic pistol and assault rifle, you can upgrade with weapons gleaned from the missions and twitching bodies of your dead adversaries, so AK-47's, powerful shotguns and even rocket launchers are within your grasp – and theirs, unfortunately. Grenades litter war-era Europe, too, and they're easy to target and throw, launching bodies into the air with suitable force.
There's even an attempt at storytelling – your main objective is to stop Hitler from deploying his new V2 rocket by scuppering his plans throughout Germany. This is illustrated throughout by a few artistic slides preceding each mission – black and white drawings – and an all-American voiceover, as befitting the Medal of Honour games.
Gameplay is typical of the series – very polished and effective – which is what you'd expect given the amount of time the franchise has been going. Beginning with an obligatory beach landing (it doesn't live up to the famous Omaha Beach of previous games but, well, it's on a PSP) the game never really lets up, channelling you through well-designed levels that link evocative set-pieces – one section in the city requires you to storm an artillery position and to use the huge gun to take out anti-air defences, whilst holding off the German retaliation – with short, sharp sections of fast-paced action. The only downside to the levels, though, is that they're often split up into shorter sections – resulting in longer loading times more often.
 |
 |
|
Graphically, there's nothing that can be faulted, especially when you consider the game's diminutive handheld nature. The town in particular is great, filled with explorable buildings and ruined structures, and the sewers are pretty spooky – lots of rooms full of cover for vicious firefights, dark and dingy corridors, and a climactic battle that's almost dystopian and reminiscent of Valve's Half-Life games in atmosphere. While the enemy soldiers – and your colleagues – are identikit troops, there's nothing wrong with the character models, and the weapons are distinctive enough to tell apart. Explosions are pretty well-rendered, too, and the sound matches up with the visuals – plenty to really absorb you and forget that you're on a train to Stoke and, instead, yank you through the screen and onto a wartime battlefield.
The only problem is that, at seven levels, it's a short game – even though some life has been added through the various scores, medals and achievements you can earn by excelling on the battlefield. Even so, it'll take the most dedicated of Medal of Honour fans to nail every medal and reward on every mode. Longevity is added thanks to a competent multiplayer mode, though, that includes single-player and team deatchmatch and Infiltration – basically the familiar Capture the Flag mode. It works well, with surprisingly little lag – even though it occasionally crops up in busier scenes of the single-player mode – and is pretty addictive to boot.
This is an impressive title, especially for a handheld machine not really renowned for first-person shooter titles. Gameplay is tight, well-designed and addictive – however brief – and this is backed up with evocative graphics and hugely enjoyable Teutonic battles. Well worth a purchase, especially if you're looking for some high-octane portable action – you'll not find much better to occupy you on dull train journeys thanks to fast-paced, genre-typical action, decent graphics and varied gameplay.
Top Game Moment: Leading your squad to victory through a heft German resistance, completing objectives and stopping Hitler from raining V2's all over Europe.
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Gameplay Montage
Posted 19.11.07
Length 01:45 Views 386
