The first Hidden & Dangerous was
among the first of the tactical team based shooters, putting you in control of a
group of SAS soldiers fighting their way through World War II. While widely
considered to be a pretty good game, a ton of bugs and other problems plagued
the game and prevented it from being a great one. Now, Gathering is releasing
its sequel, Hidden & Dangerous 2, hoping to rectify the problems with the first
game. For the most part, they’ve succeeded, although the game does still have a
few problems. However, aside from a few bugs and gameplay issues, Hidden &
Dangerous 2 is a vast improvement over its predecessor.
H&D2 has you leading a group of four
elite SAS officers throughout a variety of different missions throughout WWII.
The missions will take you to practically every front of the war, from Norway to
Burma to Czechoslovakia.
Controlling your team is fairly
easy. You issue commands using the number pad on the keyboard, as each command
(like move forward, hold position or heal). The team AI works quite nicely, as
they will react and change position or return fire if enemies are around.
However, the overall feeling of the control scheme is a little bit convoluted;
the game uses just about every key on the keyboard. Plus, the default settings
for the keys are kind of a pain. You use the Tab key to switch your characters
and the arrow keys to move them, which is a really cumbersome placing
considering how you need to switch around in the heat of battle.
You choose your team out of a group
of different fighters, each with their own attributes and stat points. These
attributes include health, endurance, shooting, stealth and first aid. H&D2 also
introduces a new RPG element into the mix, allowing you to level up your
surviving soldiers after missions.
H&D 2 also features a pretty
impressive physics engine. Vehicles in the game handle realistically, and each
of the weapons is a very accurate representation of what you would find on the
field in WWII. Bullets will ricochet realistically and penetrate certain
materials like wooden walls and cloth. This means that if you have a group of
Nazis holding up in a little wooden shack, you can take them all out by taking a
BAR and laying massive fire on the house. Very cool.
Unfortunately, the game does fall
prey to some problems, namely poor enemy AI. While the team AI has been greatly
improved, the enemy AI is pretty buggy and leaves a lot to be desired. Your
enemies will sometimes be able to pick you off from hundreds of yards away, and
yet not even be able to detect you when you’re a few feet from them. They’ll try
to run at you through walls (instead of firing through them).
The graphics are pretty good, but
the Mafia engine is beginning to show its age. The character models look and
move great, and the lighting effects are pretty good. However, the environments
aren’t as good as they could have been. Trees have a dated 2D look, and the
textures are pretty blurry and runny at parts.
The sound effects are pretty
realistic. The guns each have a unique sound, and the voice acting is nicely
done. The music adds an appropriate atmosphere to the missions, as well. The
only problems are a few bugs which cause the sound effects to cut out at parts.
Hidden & Dangerous 2 is a very good
game mired by some control problems and bugs. However, fans of tactical
team-based shooters should definitely give this game a look.
Gameplay: 8.5
The gameplay is a great mix of team-based shooting, stealth, and WWII action.
The interface is pretty easy, and the team AI is much improved over the original
title. However, there are a few nagging issues, like the complicated control
scheme and the overly buggy enemy AI.
Graphics: 8.0
The graphics are quite good, although Mafia’s LS3D engine is beginning to show
its age. The character models look and move realistically and the lighting
effects are pretty nice, but the environments succumb to blurry textures and 2D
objects.
Sound: 8.0
The sound effects are realistic, as the guns each have their own unique firing
sounds, and the voice acting is done quite well both in the briefings and on the
field. The music is appropriate and does a great job of setting the mood for the
missions. The only real problems are the occasional sound bugs that cause the
sound effects to cut out at points.
Difficulty: Medium/Hard
Concept: 8.3
The game makes some great improvements over the original, but still falls prey
to some nasty bugs that could have been fixed up with some more time in
development.
Multiplayer: 8.5
The multiplayer mode has been greatly improved from its predecessor, now
boasting deathmatch, occupation (capture the flag), and objective modes
(although the once proposed co-op campaign has indeed fallen by the wayside).
Overall: 8.3
There is a great game here underneath the AI problems, bug issues and
control problems.
