Hands On: R.U.S.E. Demo

Developed by UbiSoft, RUSE is an RTS for the PC and the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles.

The Intro

The intro into the demo is pretty straight forward, displaying scenes of large-scale battles between opposing forces.  I’m already disappointed in the game due to the graphics themselves.  Usually when I look at an introduction, I expect the graphics to be better than what appears in-game.  The intro to the RUSE demo looks like it was pulled from an Xbox title (the original, that is).  Enough of my poor animation ranting.  Let’s see if the game play can make up for it.

The Game Part

In the demo, going solo is your only option.  There is only one playable mission, so you have to make the best of it.

The Story

The opening cinematic is interesting enough hinting at complex tensions between key figures in allied forces.  The single mission you can play pits allied forces against the Germans accompanied by the Italians.

Game Play

RUSE plays like a war game, which I think is pretty cool because it is a war game.  To start the level, you are flown into a battle model that becomes the battle itself.  Under your control are four Sherman tanks with which you will storm the beaches.  I’ve always wondered why wars couldn’t be fought through video games.  Anyway, units attack automatically and can be selected by a single tap of the A button.  Pressing the X button will select the unit and all other identical units within the screen.  A cool feature when multiple units are selected is that you can see a “preview” of your units’ formation before you move them anywhere.

Upon ordering your units to move somewhere, they are automatically deselected.  While I can see this as a useful feature in an intense battle where you are in charge of many different groups of units, it was quite annoying during the extent of the demo.  Units taking heavy fire become “routed” which means they can’t attack and their movement speed is reduced drastically.

Much like Halo Wars, all production is centered around a central HQ.  In contrast, however, buildings can be placed almost anywhere on the map, whereas buildings were always adjacent to the central hub in Halo: Wars.  Supply depots are used to generate supplies that can then be used to train units or build new structures.  The barracks is the general military force production building that can produce most general combatants such as recon units and infantry.  Soldiers/buildings can be produced from anywhere on the battlefield, although they still come from their respective structures.

The environment plays a large role in the outcomes of battles.  Units hiding in woods/bushes become 25% more resilient to damage and gain the ability to lay ambushes.  These surprise attacks cause up to three times as much damage as a normal attack would.

A Ruse, for which the game is named, is basically a power-up of sorts.  The three available in the demo version are Blitz, Fanaticism, and Terror, each giving boosts to units in some way.

Midway through the demo, the game play becomes increasingly complicated.  Tanks, Anti-tanks, and artillery are all made available to you meaning you have to decide the best course of action.

Conclusion

Wow, this game has potential.  At first, I laid it off because of the graphics, but, honestly, this game doesn’t need them.  The concept is so well thought out, so basic, and the game play is so well put together, that the graphics don’t affect the final product much at all.  I’d highly recommend this demo to anyone looking for half an hour of entertainment and encourage you to seriously think about purchasing the full game.  You can get it from Amazon.com for some incredibly low prices.

A strong RTS.  Possibly even better than Halo Wars.

Mafia 2 Demo Review

Mafia 2 is the sequel to Mafia, also developed by 2K Czech.  The game will be available August 24, 2010 for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

The Mafia 2 site says the game brings “a mature and exciting experience that will immerse players like never before.”   From what I have experienced from the game demo, I can hardly disagree.  Inside the demo, text reads that the level found in the trial game was created exclusively for the demo and won’t appear in the finished title.  While I can’t speak to the validity of this statement, I can tell you that the level provided is both entertaining and immersing as the official site claims the game to be.

Upon starting the demo, I was immediately stunned by the graphics displayed on my TV screen.  The sheer amount of detail rendered was astounding.  Not only were the character models almost life-like, but the backgrounds and scenery were also amazing.  The colors that appear in the game are much brighter and more vibrant than that of other games of the genre, namely GTA 4 and Saint’s Row 2.  Somehow, the brighter colors make the game more appealing to me, making me want to discover everything the game has to offer.

I was very pleased with some of the game play mechanics introduced in the game, some of which I have never seen before in a sandbox title.  The first thing that caught my eye was the number of items I was able to interact with in some way via the X button.  Things like the telephone, fridge, sink, window, and even toilet were available for interaction.  Many of the actions incorporated with the items didn’t effect anything, for instance turning on the shower didn’t make Vito take a shower, but water still came out of the faucet.  Other objects were much more functional such as the phone for calling contacts, collected throughout the game, and the garage where you can access and store a certain amount of vehicles.  Doors can be opened and closed, which makes indoor spaces seem larger and more functional.  This ability doesn’t apply to all buildings, so, much like GTA 4, most structures will be inaccessible.

Another mechanic that is, as far as I know, unique to Mafia 2, is police awareness.  While the cops won’t come after you for running into them or another vehicle, although I think they should and can’t wait until a game is released that they do, they will come after you for excessively speeding.  Once they are on your tail, you can pull over and the police will, very realistically, stop behind you, get out, and offer you a ticket.  At that point you have the option to run or pay the fine.  You can guess what happens from there depending on your choice, but I can’t tell you how excited I am to have a game that is pushing the bounds of what we have considered “realistic” in video games.

Update:  The police do come after you if you run into their vehicles or hit a civilian’s car.  However, they must be in direct line of sight of the incident to respond.

Mafia 2 still provides many options for the casual gamer who wants to roam around the virtual city based in the American 40s and 50s.  From authentic cars and clothes options to color and performance customization, the options are nearly endless.  Also included are stores scattered throughout the game that provide basic services such as bars, coffee shops, diners, gun stores, and mechanics.

The demo gets a 5/5 for being awesome and free.  While the demo doesn’t necessarily reflect what the finished title will be like, I am confident that Mafia 2 will turn out to be a spectacular game that will provide hours upon hours of game play.

If you haven’t picked up this demo yet, you can find it on the Xbox Live marketplace, and probably PSN too.  The demo is available to Silver members, so there is no reason to miss out on this morsel of gaming excellence.