2008-03-07 08:47:28 Army of Two - impressions

Alright guys I decided to get this game, even though I wasent planing on it for months.

I can say this, the game is fun for sure, co-op is a blast, way better than Gears, but that is obvious considering it is concentrated on co-op.

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Campaign online/offline

The game was I don't know, short?
It depends on how you play the game, and how good you are.

The weapons are pretty cool, the customization lets you upgrade them like AGGRO, mag clips, accrucy, damage, all depending on what things you add on the weapons.

The very first mission is SSC training, and Rios and Salem doesn't have those SSC armor, but more customized regular gear with paintball looking masks, but then after 2-3 missions, you get them armor.

You can customize the masks only which was dissapointing, I wanted to customize the armor as well, so that went through the window.

The AI was very good, they didn't storm at you like idiots or stand in the open, they kept getting to cover from cover and blindfiring their ass off, and the aim to kill, very good at that, with grenades now and then.

The co-op side is very cool.
You can help eachother to "step up" meaning if their a balcony for example you go underneath it and do a "step up" and one of you goes down on knees and hold the hands like a step and the other one steps up.
Now you can help each other to take down whoever is on top their or just go up on the balcone and press "pull up" to help the other character up as well.

Other things are their is like co-op snipe, if with AI, whatever you want to shoot at he shoots as well unless there is a different target oneof you must take out, very cool.
If with a friend there is a "countdown" button that both count down to 3-5 and then your job is to shoot.

When you are hit and lying down, the other player/AI will come to you and either revive (takes a few seconds) or drag you to safety, but both of you can still shoot while doing it.

Then there also a "back to back" scenario that comes in automatically, but you get a few seconds head warning when it happens.
It slows down and Salem and Rios goes back to back and you guys keep turning and slow motion and start shooting, but the slow motion ends almost when all the enemies are down, cool feature.

The co-op with an AI...although I played with my sister it went slow, it didnt play like a bad ass army of two, so I wanted to go with the AI and see how it feels.

I gotta say the AI is good and dumb at the same time,but it was definitely more fun for fast paced action...i played slow paced before haha.

There are 4 + extra commands you can give your parterner.
Advanced + extra advanced, or regroup + extra regroup...etc. The regular AI commands really, but the advanced was a bit bad, it wasent like GRAW were you can order him to go to a location and stay put or anything, he just wanders off like a bastard, so you can have to choose regroup and thentell him to hold position but he wont even shoot damn it.

However, sometimes when you choose advanced and then press for super advance he takes cover, shoots alot for getting the AGGRO to him so you can go stealth or take them out by flanking them...etc.

The ordering is a bit good and bad I guess, but it was more fun to play with the AI than with my sister. But online co-op...well thats another thing, way more fun of course.

Speaking of AGGRO is that the more you shoot the more of a big target you will be and the AI will be concentrating on you rather your partner.
The AGGRO meter keeps switching from you to your partner depending on how much you shoot so keep a eye out on the meter.

Sometimes there are there heavy enemy soldiers that have so much armor that you can't kill them from the front.

One of you decide who to get AGGRO and then the other one has to flank the enemy and shoot him in the back, either that, or take a RPG or throw grenades all the time.

However, choose a sniper and shoot at his waist and he will go down but you still hand hurt him, grenade...etc. will help.

If you got enough AGGRO you can go for a overkill, meaning slow motion massacre, go wild, but don't expect to be invisible...you got 10 seconds to do it.
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Online VS

Now...the online.
A bit dissapointment here.

I don't know if it was someting I did wrong or it is fact like that but the VS it is only 2 vs 2 vs ???

With "???" I mean you guys aren't alone.
There are many AI soldiers lurking in the battlefield to take you guys out, so they are on nobodies side.
But this is the thing, each time you kill be it AI or other players you gian cash.
there are like weapon boxes in the map, you go there and there are I think 10 weapon pack varieties to choose from, and you buy it on the fly. You can even buy seperate grenades or upgrade your armor.

There are also objectives that each team has to do.
Like kill an enemy boss, take one soldier to a safe point, destroy a machine of some sort by shooting it.

I have only played through 3 maps and I think it is only 3 maps, lame?
very!

You can also choose your "prefered" character when playing, but you have to choose each time, if not the default is "any". By prefered character I mean, you can't customize, but you can choose any campaign characters from regular soldiers to the bosses to Rios and Salem (different versions).

And when the match is over, you don't go back to the online lobby, rather the main menu screen, which is absolutely shit.

The online is a dissapoint for sure, but can also be very fun. I guess personal experiences for the online is better but I just gave you guys details how it works.
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Fun online/offline feature

One of the cool things i you can give eachother either attitude by hitting them or doing good friendship compliments, like high ive, air guitar...etc. cool taunts really.

Another thing I didn't like is some of the controls, like switching weapons. You have to hold one of the bumpers and then choose with the d-pad, while in online you can easily just change with the d-pad on the fly rather holding the buper to do so.

Another control feature is you hold another bumper for either both of you are going for sniper or swapping weapons to eachother.

For example lets say your partner has a awesome weapons and you wanna try that, you just choose take up the interface choose "swap weapons" and then they say it in the game and you go close to your partner and they swap.

Because I am not a tech freak, I can say, graphics are great at times, but sometimes it is bland. I got just one framerate issue but thats it, no glitches or anything else.

The controls can be clunky at time, especially the aiming. Sometimes it is good sometimes it is bad, feels random and it makes it hard to kill enemies.

The cover is good, you can slide to cover, but you wont notice so much like Gears were you characters back is facing the cover like a magnet, but good non the less.
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I would rate the game around 7 and 8 out of 10.

Now I don't know if I want to keep ir ot not. I bought the 360 version, but I got 10 days to return it.

It was fun for sure, no doubt, but I guess online co-op with a friend VS or campaign is much better, more fun.

I guess I have 10 days to decide,even fi I choose to keep it, I will pick up the PS3 version for free online multiplayer or co-op because I am about to cancel my XBL gold account next month (personal reasons).

But this is just to give you a heads up for what the game offers.

I say, rent it if you can, or if you can return it once you bought it like I can, better option.

PS. The soundtrack was very cool, felt like The Rock, 24 type of music, very great.

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-07 09:24:44

Cool impressions thanks.

I still cant belive a shop allows you to play and complete a game then bring it back for a refund?

and why is the game FREE to purchase online for ps3?

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Mass Effect - March 10th - Continue the Fight!!!

Bitches!!

2008-03-07 09:31:52 In reply to dcdelgado (2008-03-07 09:24:44)

I think he means that its free to play online with the PS3 :P

I hear theres no local co-op in army of 2, is that true? In that case i won't buy it.

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By Crom!

2008-03-07 09:45:21 In reply to dcdelgado (2008-03-07 09:24:44)

I edited, I meant free online multiplayer :P

And yeah, there IS local two player splitscreen both online for multiplayer and offline for co-op.

For splitscreen online multiplayer, the other player can sign in as guest, but I don't know if there is guest sign in for the splitscreen offline co-op, I have US and JAP account so my sister went with the JAP account.

I don't know about LAN though, so I better not say anything about that.Well you have to give them a lie, if the lie is not a lie.

For example if I return a game, I always come up with a excuse like it was short, not what I expected, the game was boring...etc. unless it wastrue that it was bad.

But do that too much, then they are on to you. Good thing I haven't done that in GAME though, but if you have the receipt you got 10 days to return the game if you are not "satistfied" with your purchase...nice!

That is like a rent in itself, but can't do it too often.

So I don't know, I am leaning to returning Army of Two, the online wasent good enough to keep me playing it, and the online co-op...honestly, how many times can someone play a campaign mode when its not that challenging and short, not so much.

I "may" return it tomorrow, or someday within 10 days (hahaha) and then save those money for Dark Sector and then do the samething haha.

Afterall MGS4 and NG2 is coming out in 3 months, I am gonna save up as much as possible.

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-07 22:21:37

im loving the game so far. very fun, and thats just on my own with the AI. i really cant complain about anything except for the length, im half way through and i've only been playing around 3-4 hours. meaning the games gonna be clocked around 6-7 hours. so its a bit on the short side, but then so was gears of war, the only real contender in terms of third person action games. the plus point with games that allow co-op is that you essentially get to play it at LEAST twice in the story mode. once on your own, and then once with a friend. personally im playing through on easy, then normal, then hard in co-op. so i see it as getting about 18 hours out of single player...which is better then most action games these days. the game is definately fun enough for a second play through on your own imo. and then theres the multiplayer, which i heard is where the lasting appeal really is. but even if i only play that for a couple hours before i go back to call of duty 4. thats 20 hours of gamplay i got out of it. which for me is more then enough to consider it worth the asking price.

its a good game. if your unsure about it, a rental seems best. if you know you will play the single player, co-op and multiplayer then i'd easily say it was worth buying.

2008-03-08 02:01:53

Looks like a really fun game! Awesome to play with a friend.

2008-03-08 11:18:43

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Hey, I'm just like you. I put my pants on one leg at a - dammit, I knew I forgot something today.

2008-03-08 12:47:05

Phaethon I see you have snatched the image from GAF ;)

But yeah I saw the image before, so funny when you actually play it and it all makes more sense and more funny :D

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-08 18:22:55 In reply to Sath (2008-03-08 12:47:05)

the air gun-guitar is even more wierd in the context of war. its also the most annoying. the should have given some sort of reason for doing those things tho.

2008-03-08 18:26:11

Hehe the air guitar is decent, but its taunt, don't take them seriously, unless you are a taunt fetisch.

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-08 18:33:54 In reply to Sath (2008-03-08 18:26:11)

its not really a taunt tho is it. its a sort of, after battle thing, you take everyone out and do a fist pound to celebrate. but there is no reason for it. same with the negative ones like headbutting each other. very stange thing to have in the game imo.

2008-03-08 19:37:37

Here is an idea...don't use it!

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-09 00:45:04 In reply to Sath (2008-03-08 19:37:37)

i dont. seems EA could have maybe put some thought into it tho, given it a purpose.

2008-03-09 09:03:00

Well alot of people like it, like me!

I don't use unless I want some "pooound it!" moment or "are you fucking insane" moment.

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-10 10:48:39

I picked this up but I haven't played it yet (been Brawling all day). I'm looking for a co-op partner in the US, since the game is region locked through multiplayer.

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Hey, I'm just like you. I put my pants on one leg at a - dammit, I knew I forgot something today.

2008-03-10 12:34:28

Well I returned the game today, campaign co-op (online/offline) was good, fun, but then the fun stops.

And like Phaethon said, we tried to play it yesterday but then we figured out that it was region locked, I was in EU and he in US, so we couldnt play, another reason to return it, lame!

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*A New Form of Change*

2008-03-10 16:40:29 In reply to Sath (2008-03-10 12:34:28)

That is lame.

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Mass Effect - March 10th - Continue the Fight!!!

Bitches!!

2008-03-10 17:59:08 In reply to dcdelgado (2008-03-10 16:40:29)

Very.

I say rent it for a good co-op experience, but it is not worth the full price...unless you are a EA lover or just happens to love Army of Two.

Gameplay is fun, co-op is fun...but the way EA have done the online part sucks!

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*A New Form of Change*