Tom Clancy's EndWar
EndWar is a new type of game for the Tom Clancy franchise and with plenty of new gameplay and even a bit of high tech control makes for a great game.
Ratings:
Graphics & Audio: 21/25,
Gameplay: 21/25,
Creativity 21/25,
Fun 20/25
Total: 83/100
The Tom Clancy franchise of video games has mostly been first person shooters but lately they are branching out with both a real time strategy and an upcoming flight simulator. EndWar is the real time strategy that puts you in the command chair and even moves one step ahead of today’s gaming with the use of voice commands.
If voice commands did not work this game would be a really good real time strategy but the voice command adds a lot to the game and even makes it unique in many ways. The real time strategy is a great way to get out of the personal fighting and take more of an overall view of wartime and take command of many forces.
EndWar does just this with three game modes for four styles of gameplay with the real time strategy using a massive Theatre of War, Skirmish and Solo Campaign. The skirmish will give you two different game types with a single player against the AI and against other real players over the internet or a LAN.
The Solo Campaign is your typical single player with set storyline and a realistic battle sequence for some fun in a building drama of war. The single player solo campaign is much like a tutorial to get your feet wet and gets you used to not only the controls or voice command but style and individual nuances of the game.
The Theatre of War is a huge online affair where you join a faction and lead your troops against other factions in a massive online campaign. Each ranked match helps your faction if you win toward global domination by a point system added up daily before redrawing the frontlines and consequently the maps of war.
This ranked system adds not only a great replay value but adds a totally unique system for console gaming even for the PC version. EndWar was not simply a real time strategy made for the consoles but one designed from the ground up using a new voice command system and camera system.
No more fog of war and overhead godlike views of combat, you get yourself in the action by seeing what your units see and occasionally having the advantage of a UAV view. The units are your eyes and ears so you play from their perspective with a quick change from one to the next using simple controls.
Commands whether given by voice or using a controller are boiled down to simple who, what and where following a quick menu tree by saying or being on a unit, ordering them to do something and then either where to go or what to attack or defend. This simple menu system makes the game faster as far as issuing orders but thing s are not simple as the core strategy game is well done here.
You also get the great visuals and sounds of war from this perspective which are great and just what you would expect from the Clancy franchise. The audio has plenty of good voice acting and well done sound effects and the really great looking graphics and effects add up for a completely well done game.
The core strategy game is well done and units will not only behave realistically but will also do things you would expect for units of their type. Men on foot will travel near cover and transports and tanks will take on units they know they can beat and avoid those they are vulnerable against.
Just as in real combat there are unit types that are for specific purposes and have certain vulnerabilities as well as advantages and you get to find out all about these through the solo campaign. The solo campaign is a great way to really get some experience and get your feet wet for the real work of the Theatre of War campaign online.
I must say I am not really good at this but others online really make me look bad, some have an almost natural instinct for how to do the strategy and EndWar has made it very simple to be able to order units around and get things done on the console versions. I have been playing the PlayStation 3 version and have enjoyed playing the solo campaign as well as skirmishes against the computer but I am not really good against others.
I guess I just don’t have what it takes for a strategist and do better on my own, but the game is fun and you can beat the solo and skirmish modes using the normal difficulty even if you are not that good. When playing you get the chance to call in reinforcements that are deployed using transport airplanes that drop them in at set points so you get help throughout games when you have earned it.
These reinforcements are available using a command point system in the solo and skirmish modes where objectives completed give you more points so when you fill a bar you get reinforcements. You have twelve units maximum under your control with seven different unit types for a good variety of forces at your disposal but some of the solo campaign will be limited.
The various unit types are two foot soldier units, two tracked vehicles and gunships with two special units, your command vehicle and artillery. That’s all you ever get but it sure adds up to be a wide variety when having such combinations of units as well as being able to rank them up. Each unit that survives battles will get rank and be better at their jobs so having them survive will really benefit you, especially in Theatre of War.
The ranked matches in Theatre of War are much like the skirmish matches where you have a lot of units playing on the field at once with you controlling your twelve at the most. The other player will also be controlling his twelve and you can play one on one games or up to four players on one map in a two on two match.
The Theatre of War is really an all out battle for bragging rights but when you start having so many playing on each faction things do balance out. The Theatre of War is a great way to have people take more of an interest in their online gaming and give enough of a twist to have things varied for a game with plenty of value.
EndWar may not be for everyone but if you are into strategy war games this does have a lot that is very different from previous real time strategy games. The voice command system works well and only a few times did I have problems with some bad commands while playing.
I played for several hours through much of the solo campaign and in a lot of skirmish games and had very few problems with the voice command system. My biggest complaint is one of comfort for the PS3 Bluetooth headset I have and not one of how well it works.
I occasionally would have units attacking points instead of moving to them but that was the only problem with issuing commands. You can play the game quite well without the headset and voice commands simply by using the controller to choose units and then point at what or where you want them go or attack.
The controller works almost as well as the voice command but the voice command is quicker and almost flawless so you can choose which way you prefer for controlling your forces. EndWar has plenty going for it and I feel is just a hint at games to come with new technologies and controls for gaming.
Tom Clancy’s EndWar is a great real time strategy and well worth getting for strategy fans, the voice command system works well and the game is genuinely fun.