Army of Two

Developers have always taken note of growing trends, and the recent boom in co-operative games is no exception. Army of Two is one of the latest attempts at capturing the sense of working together as one and it partially succeeds. 

The game is played in small chapters spanning from the early 1990's to the climax in 2009. You take the role of either Rios or Salem, who are mercenaries working for a private military corporation (PMC) that are sent around the world to do battle in a variety of locations. You begin the game in war-torn Somalia and progress around the world following the story, which is rather thin on the ground.

Working for your PMC bosses you carry out a series of jobs, sometimes being assisted by an insane psychopath, which essentially boils down to shooting thousands of enemies. The plot tries to thicken when strange inconsistencies start to emerge about your superiors. Suffice to say what happens next is so blindingly obvious that the game manual essentially explains the twist for you by giving away the later level details.

The characterisation is disappointingly non-existent and the supposedly snappy dialogue between the partners during the missions is, at times, laughable. The inclusion of a button to either praise or insult your partner is a good addition, as this is either a cool guy hand shake ("Props all round!") or a punch to the stomach ("You're dead bro"). Side characters are all underdeveloped creating a sense of total indifference for them as the story progresses.

The graphics themselves are reasonable enough, with some locations looking better than others. The selection of environments is refreshing and they are all suitably different, though with only 6 it is a brief experience. To say that Army of Two is short is an understatement, the game has barely begun before it finishes. The sound itself is rarely memorable with reasonable voice acting and entirely forgettable music.

The locations themselves are actually surprisingly insensitive, considering this is an EA title. Seemingly desperate to prove itself as an "adult" title, alongside copious amounts of swearing there are levels set in Afghanistan and Iraq. Whilst this might be considered a brave move to tackle such recent subject matter, it is handled with a blasé attitude which many will find in incredibly poor taste. Enemies appear as generic terrorists with little context and the game even sees fit to use suicide bombers as a sort of moving explosive barrel.

The gameplay itself fares much better. The system comprises a third-person shooter mechanic which is competently handled though it never excels. While there are some minor problems, it never feels unfair or incompetent in a Kane & Lynch style. Thankfully the game does utilise some original ideas which makes use of co-op play.

The most important aspect is the "Agro system" which becomes essential later in the game. As one character shoots enemies he is highlighted in red, signifying that the attention is focused on him. The second character can utilise this opportunity to sneak around behind enemies, effectively becoming a ghost to flank tricky opponents. This generally works well and there are some good moments where this feels satisfying and rewarding.

There are several other neat ideas; the ability to use certain objects as shields, where one person takes cover whilst the other shoots is a good addition which can lead to some fun set pieces. A co-operative snipe mode looks impressive though never really forms an essential part of the game. Reviving downed partners and removing them from conflict by dragging them away whilst they fire off shots is a nice touch and adds some humanity to the game.

Performing a step jump to boost your partner up a level is mainly used for accessing new areas but occasionally can be used to give one person a better firing position. This adds a vaguely tactical element but if one person dies whilst alone on top of a stack of crates they cannot be revived leading to a game over screen. Back to back sequences also feature, though feel underused. Here you stand with your partner mowing everyone down supporting one another by creating a 360 degree field of fire. These are immensely satisfying to achieve, but appear randomly. If they could be initiated tactically then they would be much more effective and would add more depth to the game.

Whilst the gameplay itself is reasonably fun, it is far too frequently let down by lazy gameplay decisions or annoying sections. Obligatory third person vehicle section? Huge waves of enemies to up the difficulty? Difficult final boss? All check.

The gun customisation mode does have its moments. Most weapons appear largely identical but hide a surprsing tactical depth. Adding shields, scopes, silencers, barrels and virtually everything you can think of seems to be beneficial though occasionally turns out to be superficial. Essentially adding extra stuff to your weapons improves the speed enemies die but also allows you to increase and decrease your initial aggro level. The hideous ability to "pimp" them to increase your character's agro is just shocking. Not only does this equate to a type of gun porn, but anyone who would actually want a gold-plated, engraved mini-gun needs to have a serious think. Yet, after a while it became oddly appealing and I soon found myself sporting a customised handcannon which decimated anyone.

The multiplayer mode tried to transfer the co-operative gameplay online with the same gameplay and the ability to buy your weapons. Thankfully this extends the game's lifespan by providing an alternative to the single player. There are some different maps and modes, but this is standard online multiplayer with a nice twist.

Army of Two isn't a bad game but it falls into repetetive sections too often. Even at the lower prices you can find it at now, it still has only 6 levels and there are superior alternatives out there. If you are desperate for some co-operative action, the title certainly has its moments especially when played with a friend but is not without its frustrations.