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	Brute Force
	Developer: Digital Anvil Publisher: Microsoft Genre: Action Players: 1-8 Similar To: Conflict: Desert Storm-ish Rating: Mature Published: 06 :11 : 03 Reviewed By: Ryan Newman Overall: 7.5 = Good

Screenshots

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Intro
Squad-based games were all the rage some years back - thanks Tom Clancy - but their prominence has weaned a little lately. That hasn't stopped Digital Anvil from embarking on a sci-fi rhomp to a time and place where cloning troops is the norm and hokey looking aliens are a-ok. While not without faults, Brute Force is much like Digital Anvil's earlier offering, StarLancer, in that is an an experiencing that isn't groundbreaking, but enjoyable.

Gameplay: 8/10
Before I start, let me repeat my mantra: don't mention Halo, don't mention Halo. Alright, I think I'm good to go now. Ah crap. I mentioned Halo, didn't I? Well, I'll just get it over with quickly. It's easy to think of Brute Force as a third-person Halo. I mean, the color schemes, fonts, and items - re: the sniper view - are very similar to Bungie's hit, as are many of the environments. Gameplay-wise, though, there is really isn't all that much that the two have in common; the limit to two weapons per character and how grenades impact landscapes and units is, in what I noticed, about all that feels the same.

Similarities aside, Brute Force is an interesting act in its own right as it's a rare all-out action title that allows the player to take command of a small detachment of specialty soldiers - something not that common on consoles. Fighting off rebellious factions, both human and alien, is hard work and the Confederation needs the best. That's why the player will find themselves cloned back into existence, as well as seeking the aid of other clone soldiers as well - not all the soldiers are cloned from the get-go, namely Brutus, a reptilian alien from the Feral race. Each has their own special attributes that will be required to achieve success.

The initial soldier used, Tex, is a heavy hitter, with a scout named Hawk and a sniper named Flint, and there's the ever awkward Brutus. Using each soldier to their maximum ability will require getting accustomed to their special talents. What are those talents? Well, I'm glad you asked! Tex can wield both of his weapons at the same time, for double the pain; Brutus can invoke the Spirit of Vengar, doing this gets him a blessing from his god and gives him advanced, infrared vision, as well as increased range, and the ability to kill upon contact; Hawk can go invisible and use her powerful energy blade to slice enemies down without causing a ruckus; and Flint gets into 'the zone' and auto targets any enemies nearby. They're a varied bunch, but all are equally important in accomplishing the given objectives.

Picking from an arsenal of both ballistic and laser weapons, the squad will be taking up shotguns, machine guns, sniper rifles, blasters, grenades, and anything they can get their hands on as they face off against the cannibalistic mutants, psychic Seers, rebel Ferals, and the corrupt Caspian militia. While serviceable, the enemies are fairly bland in appearance and none install a sense of urgency or fear, so dispatching them doesn't feel as satisfying as it could have. Regardless of their appearance, they'll still put up a solid fight, and a much more satisfying one on harder settings. There's no need to fret, though, the odds are evened out by the ability for a friend to hop on for some co-op fun - on either the same system or system link, sorry, no Xbox Live goodness here - or the player can take control of any of the other teammates to make sure that their plans are more thoroughly followed.

Having teammates in such a small group means that the developers really needed to do their stuff right, since any problems with the friendly AI could really bring the experience down. How well they handled the squad aspect is arguable. On one hand, it's amazing to see the other members run for cover and take potshots at escaping foes; but, on the other, it's painfully annoying to have them run out in the middle of a firefight and get killed. Unfortunately, they aren't too shy about getting shot. Issuing orders to one, or all of them, is a breeze, and they should be safe in the hands of a capable commander since the basics - stand ground, move to, fire at will, and cover me - but their eagerness to fight often makes things difficult. In fact, I spent most of my time telling them to stay put and switched to whatever character was better fit for the situation, as they say, if you want something right then you do it yourself. What I think really could've helped alleviate much of the problems would've been evasive maneuvers; something similar to Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Gold, when the player could swivel around a corner and take a shot or two, and immediately go back to safety. Who knows, maybe next time.

Spread out over 6 different worlds, the player will find themselves anywhere from a sprawling wasteland to a jungle filled with hidden enemies. Similar in design to the enemies, they are varied enough, but they aren't overly creative; many of the locals really don't look too far removed from Earthly settings. If I go gallivanting across galaxies, I'd hope to see something more wondrous. Despite their rather generic appearance, they level design is solid and made in such a fashion that the player won't spend hours on end trying to find their way back to the right path. The linear approach works well in this case, especially when also having teammates around.

Unfortunately, aside from the moments of brilliance when it all comes together, the true potential of the design is left virtually untapped. However, the most telling aspect of Brute Force is that, despite its faults, it's still a fun game. Personally, not enough games have co-op, so that's icing on the cake, and it's also fun enough to warrant a mentioning; there's also other multiplayer options, like deathmatch, but I wonder, why no Live support? As with the current crop of Xbox titles, there's also downloadable content, so there's a little boost in replay value. Even for those without connectivity, the 18 missions are enjoyable enough to play through more than a few times, with or without a pal to share in the carnage.

Graphics: 7.5/10
Technically impressive, there's several effects used to bring the worlds and characters to life. However, there isn't much in the way of artist direction since much of the game's design is fairly standard. What really caught my eye was how poorly Brutus looked; in-game wasn't so bad, but he looked hokey as all get-out in the cutscenes. The levels look solid, especially the foliage, but the possibilities to have incredible settings in alien worlds wasn't really taken advantage of, likewise with the enemies. Limited in design, enemies are pretty bland, but the great explosion and weapon effects help to keep the battlefield an eye-catching place. All of this isn't to say that Brute Force doesn't look good, it does, it's just that it isn't very distinguishable.

Sound: 7.5/10
A decent soundtrack is accompanied by some solid voice-overs. The in-game chatter adds to the atmosphere, and is effective, although I wouldn't have minded a few more character-specific lines. The sound effects are pretty satisfying, despite being randomly drowned out by the score, with machine and lasers both having a nice deep sound, I particularly enjoyed the explosions from grenades; good sound effects help to give weapons a good 'feel' and that really goes a long way to making the combat more satisfying, and this was - thankfully - achieved.

Control: 7/10
Utilizing a control scheme similar to the past few LucasArts' Star Wars titles, controls are issued out via the directional pad. While controlling characters and giving commands isn't particularly difficult, how well the commands are followed is another matter. Fortunately, the squad mates are competent enough so that they aren't useless lumps. Individual unit control is simple and responsive, and players should feel right at home within a few moments of play; although, I do wish that crouching had been implemented in such a way that the player could stay crouched, since trying to move in said position can be difficult. If it wasn't for the AI's ambitions for glory, the feeling of actually being in control would've been much more complete.

Overall: 7.5/10
One thing that I found very annoying, which doesn't necessarily reflect negatively on anything else but the entire package, was the limiting of campaigns to one; I really don't see why this was done and I don't think I'll understand what benefit it plays. Even with its problems, Brute Force remained an enjoyable single and multiplayer experience, by offering action fans a solid package of alien corpses and spent shell casings. Hopefully a sequel will flesh out the more nagging faults, which is a notion that I'm guessing will become reality in due time. Until then, there's enough action here to keep - keen - adrenaline junkies busy for a while.

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