Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2

Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2

‘What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas’, so the saying goes. It’s a warning that rings true for this, the second trip to Sin City for Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six three man, terrorist-busting squad. Almost every aspect from the first game remains in place for this sequel from the slick and stylish visuals and solid close quarters fighting mechanics through to the poor storytelling, convoluted control scheme and tough difficulty.

This is not necessarily a bad thing as the first game was well received by fans of the close-quarters combat genre (first person shooters principally set in-doors). The game was praised for its compelling and rich single player campaign that proceeded to make way for some excellent and supremely well-balanced multiplayer. Nevertheless, while the first game was a dazzling display of next-gen graphics and technology, it’s perhaps a little disappointing to see how the sequel is mostly happy to retread old ground. A graphics engine that shined two years ago now pales slightly in the light of Call of Duty 4, Halo 3 and even Ubisoft’s own Ghost Recon 2.

That’s not to say this is by any means an ugly game but rather that it just fails to match the set-pieces and diverse locations of recent FPS high points. However, underneath the visuals, the mechanics are solid and enjoyable, even if they’re only briefly employed across a short seven-mission single player campaign. The story, such that it is, has you playing as a character known only as ‘Bishop’, leading a team of two others through the corridors and stairwells of terrorist infested buildings. Ordering your two comrades around is as easy as pointing and clicking and, much of the game has you positioning them in front of doors before issuing breach and clear orders.

You get the usual gamut of modern weaponry to play with: two larger guns (from MP5s to AK-47s, shotguns and everything in between), a handgun, flash bangs, smoke grenades, night vision goggles and thermal imaging. Add to this a button for switching into cover (when the game changes to a third-person perspective rather like Gears of War), grappling gear, a mini-HUD for keeping track of enemies, and an all new sprint button and you’ve a control scheme that’s not for the faint-hearted.

However, learn to master its intricacies and you’ll be able to move through Vegas in full control of yourself and your team, able to pick and choose how to approach any situation as you work towards your goals of rescuing and protecting hostages, diffusing bombs and so on.

The game’s main innovation is an ‘experience’ system – similar to that employed in COD4’s online arena – where every headshot, distance kill and effective grenade earns you points. With these it’s possible to unlock new equipment, guns and armour and personalise your character to the nth degree.

While co-op play has been pared down from the previous title, the multiplayer modes remain as compelling as the ever were and, as it’s possible to unlock rewards here as well as in the single player game, there’s lots of incentive to start up the old clan again.

Of course, change for the sake of change isn’t necessarily a good thing and, as all of what made the original game a good one is repeated here, fans will be kept happy. But for players hoping for a glimpse of where the FPS might be headed, Vegas offers but few clues.

4 out of 5