Now a little prelude; the first game in this franchise was
Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis released to great critical acclaim in
2001. I got this game for Christmas, 2001and in fell in love with it. It was a
breath of fresh air, a massive, detailed and realistic military simulation game
that allowed players to perform multiple roles; from being a basic solider, an
officer, a tank commander, a pilot or a Special Forces troop. It was a FPS
(first person shooter), a tank simulation game and a flying simulator all
rolled into one. Uniquely, at the time, it allowed players to play as a humble
foot soldier, you weren’t some superhuman delta force operative etc and you
were part of a squad. Throughout the campaign you were promoted until you were
a Captain in charge of a squad and able to give orders. Another important, and also
unique, feature of the game was its ultra realism there was none of this COD,
Quake etc get shot a million times and then respawn stuff. As an side this game
was so realistic that an adapted version was used for training by the armed
forces of the USA, UK and Australia to name a few! (LINK) In OF:CF it was one
shot in the right place and dead, if you were lucky you got shot in the arm and
were merely injured. A burst or two would kill you; there was only 1 save space
and a couple of checkpoints. This lead to a very tense game, that needed
patience and perseverance to succeed. It also made completing missions very
rewarding. In addition they were a multitude of weapons, tanks, vehicles, and
aircraft to play with (all realistically portrayed) and a massive map with excellent
terrain (they basically copied the geography of a couple of real islands). All
in all, a very worthwhile addition to the gaming canon, which I enjoyed.
Game Trailer
Unfortunately, due to a dispute between the publisher and
the developer led to a split. Hence the sequels took a while to come around. The
developers contained with the same formula but different name leading to the
ARMA series. The publishers kept the name and developed a new game.
And so we come onto Operation Flashpoint: Red River Rising,
the second instalment of the new OF games (the first being 2009’s Operation
Flashpoint: Dragon Rising). It has taken a lot of criticism from some reviewers
(LINK) and has had mixed reviews. Now that I have completed this game, as a
long time OF and ARMA fan, I thought I would give my humble opinion.
Onto the game itself, now some reviews have slammed this
game and it has come out moderately in aggregate reviews. I personally think it
is quite good. Although at this juncture I need to state what this game is not;
a pure military simulation along the lines of the original OF game and the ARAMA
series that however, does not mean it is a bad game as some reviews have
suggested. It is case that it is a halfway point between the reality of ARMA et al. and the playability of games such
as Call of Duty etc. In fact I think it is a worthy addition to the gaming
world, the fact is that there are not that many games in the military simulation
genre (in fact it is really just ARMA now). OF:RR is easily distinguishable
from games such as Call of Duty.
The game lacks the ambition of the ARMA series, in that you
are always infantrymen, and that you are stuck in the same squad throughout the
single player campaign. What OF:RR has in common with the ARMA series is its
attention to detail, with a good array of real life weapons (all modelled upon
the real specs) and the health system, in which death is only a well placed
burst away. It also, depending on the difficulty level chosen, has the suspense
and challenge of the original OF game (something that ARMA interestingly lacks
due to unlimited saves) with no save spaces.
The game is set in Tajikistan (although the first mission is
in Afghanistan) and for the first third involves the player dealing with Tajik insurgents.
After this come the Chinese who invade Tajikistan due to the perceived threat
of US forces near the Chinese border. It is a plausible, if unlikely scenario and
gives the player the opportunity to face different foes. Indeed, what OF has
always done well is conceive of contemporary scenario’s which allow them the
excuse to face the US versus another power (Russia or China), instead of just
facing tin pot regimes. The campaign is engaging and fun to play with a diversity
of decent and long missions, although I feel the campaign itself, is a tad
short. The sergeant and other members of the squad are a bit over the top with
many masochistic dialogues; however on further reflection I guess this is
realistic, if a bit embarrassing.
The game play is engaging and fun, whilst maintaining
tension and the game is challenging, making the completion of objectives
rewarding. The controls are mostly fine (pretty standard) apart from the
command controls, which don’t allow the player to shoot or move whilst occupied
with giving orders. This is pretty annoying at times. However the command controls
themselves are good, well laid out and allow a range of tactical choices.
The negatives of the game for me are a lack of ambition, a short
campaign, the command controls, a poor single mission selection and finally
(and the biggest complaint) the poor AI. The AI at times is utterly farcical,
with enemy troops failing to kill you despite the fact you are standing in
front of them, mincing around (usually with no ammo). This is a shame, as otherwise
it would be an excellent game.
BOOM !
In conclusion, Operation Flashpoint: Red River Rising is a fun
and engaging game that offers a good challenge and is rewarding to play due to
the suspense built up. The campaign is fun and well designed if a little short
and the game play is good. It is let down by the AI, although it is still a
good game. This game is not ARMA or the original Operation Flashpoint game, but
is still fun and well worth purchasing and playing. I would recommend this game
for people who enjoy the original ARMA and Operation Flashpoint games, who want
some light relief. I would also recommend this game to those people who enjoy
games such as Call of Duty and seek a slightly different, and more challenging (and
realistic) gaming experience.
I would rate this game - 7/10
Another final point: It is a shame that the studio which
made this is closing (to focus on car racing titles), this series can only get
better and indeed with a bit more ambition (the inclusion of Vehicles and Aircraft)
would be a good rival for ARMA (given this games vastly superior graphics and
shooting). I hope that Codemasters keep making Operation Flashpoint games.
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