Alt-Controls.com

Review: Rainbow Six Vegas 2

Available Control Options: Default, Legacy, Southpaw, Legacy Southpaw & four button layouts. You all know about the control options in this game already, either via this website, or from your experience playing the first Rainbow Six Vegas. But now is the moment you’ve all been waiting for… a review from one of your esteemed editors here at Alt-Controls.com.

First of all, what’s good about this game? Well, it’s very accessible for one. You have your four standard stick settings to choose from, and also four button layouts. Sadly, there is no button mapping available, but I’m pretty sure that you’ll all be able to find a comfortable setting out of the four. I personally prefer the “Gunner” option, which moves throwing frag grenades from the ‘B’ button (default) to the right bumper. That felt more natural for me as it is reminiscent of the COD series.

Another thing to note is that fans of COD will need to spend a few minutes adjusting to the fact that you need to click the thumb stick to use your iron site or scope. I habitually wanted to aim COD-style, but I was able to adjust quickly. No big deal there.

Overall, I had a good time playing RSV 2. The pace is slower than Call of Duty and often I felt like I was playing a game of chess with the enemy – slowly advancing, strategically directing my squad mates, and carefully picking off tangos with my sniper rifle from a distance. It’s not as chaotic as your typical military shooter, but it was a nice change of pace. Plus the character and weapon customizing options are nice features as well.

Now graphically, I have to admit that it’s difficult for me to compare this to the first RSV. The reason for that is because I only had a standard definition television when I played the first installment. This time around, I was playing in HD. So from my vantage point, RSV 2 offered much nicer visuals, but take that with a grain of salt based on the fact that I wasn’t playing the first game in the most optimal setting. I can tell you that the game looks pretty nice overall, but it’s safe to say that I prefer the visuals of COD4.

I also liked the fact that you arrived in Vegas much sooner this time around. The opening Mexican mission in the first RSV lasted far too long, and I recall wondering if I was playing Rainbow Six Vegas, or GRAW in first-person? But this time, it doesn’t take long before you’re in Vegas shooting tangos inside clubs and casinos.

I have a few gripes with this game however. The first being that it’s almost too similar to the first RSV. If you played the first one, then you’ve basically played RSV 2 already. Yes, there are some improvements but the overall feel and experience is very similar to what you’ve done in Vegas already. The recycled music from the first game didn’t help with that either.

Next, I wasn’t fond of the in-game advertisements. I guess I’d better get used to that though, because we have entered new era in games. The industry now rivals films in cultural impact and economic draw, so in-game ads are going to become common practice. It definitely took me out of the game experience though. Seeing ads for MLG and Far Cry 2 was frankly annoying. One or two here and there would still be lame, though not quite as offensive. There was one particular level where you were roaming through what appeared to be an MLG event… all I could see was the MLG logo plastered everywhere and it was pretty silly.

Surprisingly, there were also the odd instances of slowdown here and there. It didn’t happen often, but still far too much for a next-gen machine, because that shouldn’t occur at all. But it usually didn’t last long.

Overall, this is a pretty decent shooter in spite of the minor drawbacks noted above. It’s accessible, interesting, and fun. If you’re a fan of the first RSV, then this a no-brainer for you. Pick it up. If you’re a fan of military shooters, or a COD nut like me, give it a shot.

I would have to say that I do like Call of Duty 4 better. Before this game’s release, many people wondered if it would overtake the champion that is COD4, and I don’t think it’s done that. But COD4 is going to be the game that all new shooters are compared to until Infinity releases the 6th installment of the series, but that doesn’t mean that RSV isn’t a decent game just because it doesn’t shine quite as brightly.

Again, if you liked the first game, pick this one up. For other shooter fans, it’s worthy of a rental.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 15th, 2008 at 9:41 am and is filed under Multi-platform. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.