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| Go, go, go! | Oops, my finger slipped |
Starring at an open battlefield, covered in enemies who have bunkered themselves down snugly in the area and you with only a handful of men, like the odds? Well then Joint Task Force looks to be something you’ll jump for.
As usual, it’s another real time strategy with the commandos feel to it. There are no bases to create, but rather buildings to siege and capture. No barracks needed to create new troops, but a helicopter transport to bring more in, and there is no resource gathering either, the more you kill the more cash will be thrown into your bank account… and the more cash you have, the more you can throw back at the enemy.
Now one aspect I did like in Joint Task Force was the ability to call in additional units (always handy when the odds are against you). Now you’re commando is able to call in additional solders and light vehicles via the transport helicopter. Unfortunately you cannot bring down tanks and heavy artillery without storming and capturing an airport, though once you do… the real fun begins as the tanks are Para-dropped from cargo planes.
So Joint Task Force does have a mix of interesting concepts to use, you can even pick up new weapons like RPG’s and Grenades from the battlefield as and when you find them, which makes things go with a bit of a bang!
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| Move In, boys! | Engineers, keeping everything armed and moving |
Now I started off in the tutorial, like with most games. Once I had a play with the movement and camera controls I found it very easy to get to grips with, as Joint Task Force operates much like any other good strategy game. I found the tutorial to be a great help as it covered the main tactics and abilities of the game. The only shame was I had to be careful of what I was doing, as the preview release has the usual bugs and errors. However, as they did not occur that often, I managed to get a good few hours of play in, even covering some of the story.
The storyline has the same goal as most currently, beating off the terrorist/dictatorship threat, and to my surprise I even found an Iraqi skirmish map!
Graphically the game is great. It contains so much detail on the highest settings that it gets to an amazing state, which includes not only the scenery but also the unit models and special effects. Once you zoom in and are looking at the side of a tank while engineers repair it, or watching the medics healing solders you really can appreciate the detail. Not to worry however, as the settings will allow systems with less power to storm through the game too, obviously with reduced detail.
I didn’t get a chance to watch many movie sequences, but the few I did manage to catch were very impressive, shame that they had not got FMV voiceovers in yet; otherwise I’d have a much better idea of what was going on… Once the opening in game sequence starts it’s a lot like C&C Generals until you’re back in the game, ducking and diving between sandbags, cars and buildings.
Sound, another main issue, seems to be as influential as ever. The music gives you plenty of reason to keep destroying those bunkers, and the sound effects only sweeten the deal. Explosions, gunfire and more explosions… just want you’re speakers need to lure you in.
I think the game interests me so much as it is a modern warfare game, much like C&C but with obvious differences, allowing you to enjoy a different storyline and some fantastic graphics in the process. Anyone with a heart for RTS games should defiantly give Joint Task Force a serious chance to blow them away.
With a collection of 20 missions and over 5 campaigns spread around places such as Middle East, Central Asia and the Balkans, Joint Task Force looks like it will keep you entertained for a long time.
Joint Task Force as mentioned earlier consists of modern technology, which always makes sense. There are no Ion Cannons here my friends, not any Prism Tanks or Ice Spitter Tanks. The concept here is: if it’s real, we’ll use it. Hinds, Humvees, Tanks and artillery combined with a mix of solders… can create a multifunctioning team.
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| Now, don’t these look fun? | I tried to warn him, I really did |
Joint Task Force need some tidying up in the coding and to get all the campaigns, skirmish maps and other goodies jammed into the game. However for me, Joint Task Force looks like a solid game that’ll entice any real-time strategy gamer into the fold.
