Fat Ninja

Given the nature of my relationship with Ghost Recon, it only makes sense that I’m pumped about the latest incarnation; Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter (GRAW). What I saw at E3 completely blew my mind. Several months later reports started surfacing, saying that the GRAW we saw then wasn’t what we should be expecting; that early builds of the game were not looking as visually intense as all of us had hoped.

Never had a doubt

Honestly, my faith was never really shaken. As a long standing fan of any game bearing the Tom Clancy moniker, and in particular any game involving the team at Red Storm, I had few doubts that they would deliver a true next generation tactical shooter.

Here we are, a little over a month from scheduled release, and we’re getting to see a completely different reaction from gaming journalists. So far, impressions are good. I’m pumped to hear about the customization features that the developers have in store for the multiplayer elements. Quoting the impression piece over at IGN,

” The game configs enable enormous customizations. You can change camo, spawn points, method of player assignment (meaning either the host of you can pick your class), force re-spawn timer (enabling players the choice to spawn with a few seconds of invulnerability), set kill cameras, enable hovering drone cameras, enable friendly fire, switch on or off night vision, set voice options for close or all players, kit restriction limits, or edits, helicopters on or off, and more. If you remember the glorious GoldenEye 007 days on N64 and the options that game provided (or recently with Perfect Dark Zero), you’ve already come to realize this isn’t just a list of switches and menus; it’s a means to extend your online games, modify modes, and experiment with different ways to play. In short, GRAW was designed to exploit Xbox 360’s next generation options online. “

I have to say that this marks a firm commitment to and a strong show of appreciation for the online community on Red Storm’s behalf.

Details, details

Visually speaking, I’m stunned by the videos and screenshots I’ve seen. There’s a very gritty realism to both the environments and the character models.

I’m just floored by some of the subtle details, such as the way the character models’ tactical vests move independently of their arms, or how smoke wisps from your rifle barrel.

Final Thoughts

The whole experience just looks engrossing, and I personally can’t wait. In the meantime, I hope that they put a demo out on the Xbox Live Marketplace, because a month and a few days is going to feel like pure agony. All I’m asking for is a little hit to get me by….