3rdalarm's Full Review: Rogue Spear Mission Pack: Urban Operations for Win...
Red Storm Entertainment built their reputation on the Rainbow Six series. Rainbow Six redefined realism in 1st person shooters. Based on the Tom Clancy novel of the same title, you took control of an elite international team to combat escalating terrorism. For each mission, you selected your team members and outfitted them with the latest real-life assault weaponry. Then, you used intelligence and a floor plan to create an attack plan, complete with go-codes and commands. Gone are such niceties as power-ups and health packs. This began a white-knuckle world of one shot-one kill, where silence is golden, and the thunder of miniguns is replaced by the chatter of a silenced MP5. This game divided the realists from the “Quake” clans. True, there were some initial problems, like terrorists that could instantly drill you in the head from 100 yards with a pistol from behind cover, and team members that clipped into walls, but these problems were soon patched. The Eagle Watch mission pack added some memorable missions like a space shuttle launch pad. The sequel, Rogue Spear, gave us enhanced graphics, sniper rifles, better AI, replay cameras, and better movement. Now, the Rogue Spear expansion Urban Operations steps up to add more variety.
Urban Operations does a great job managing missions and options. The new missions can be played as traditional campaigns, but the “Custom Mission” option allows for some quick and dirty scenarios, where you can quickly setup a mission to your standards. This includes the Rogue Spear missions, some new single and multiplayer maps, and some classics from the original Rainbow Six. These can be played as classic assault, hostage rescue, lone wolf (single agent must reach extraction point or kill all terrorists), terrorist hunt (your team must take out all terrorists) or recon (complete mission without being observed or using force). These are configurable for difficulty and number of terrorists (up to 50 on some maps, though this can put a significant strain on your system). The new multiplayer maps are fantastic (a training maze, a bunker complex, a Russian base, a supply depot, an underwater lab). There is also a new campaign that thrusts you right into the challenge on the first mission (a hostage rescue at a Turkish market bustling with innocent civilians). Some of the missions are “locked” until you complete previous missions. Urban Operations also streamlines mod management.
There are four new weapons to play with. Three are squad-type automatic weapons designed for cover fire, with significant ammo supplies, but must be fired from a crouch to assure accuracy. The last is a silenced sniper rifle, which lacks the punch of the other rifles, but still puts a smile on my face.
There are also some updated keyboard commands. The number pad now allows you to give orders like cover, defend, flashbang a room, and snipe to your team “on the fly.” This is great for reconsidering strategy when the "stuff" hits the fan, or you simply want to take a squad of intrepid gunmen on a terrorist hunt without all the hassle of planning.
I did notice some stuttering in performance when I began playing. My system would pause for about 3 full seconds every 30 seconds or so. This was incredibly frustrating. I traced the source of this problem to the music. When I unchecked the “Play Music from CD” box from the options menu, the problem resolved. I can live without it.
If your are a Rogue Spear fan, I highly recommend Urban Operations. The civilians add yet another element of realism to the mix, and the Custom Missions option allows for easy configurability and quick action.
Notes: As this is an expansion pack, you must have Rogue Spear installed on your system. The installation will also update Rogue Spear before it loads.
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