Wednesday 25 Mar 2009

The SOCOM franchise was one of the jewels in the PlayStation 2’s crown, with no fewer than three critically acclaimed and popular instalments. Widely praised for its deep, tactical gameplay, the SOCOM games were also almost solely responsible for multiplayer gaming on Sony’s last-generation wonder. Needless to say, the series’ first entry on the PlayStation 3 has been hotly anticipated. Released in North America last October, SOCOM: Confrontation sold well but met with a chilly critical reception, mostly due to the large number of technical deficiencies and bugs which, in some cases, even rendered the game unplayable.

With the game finally seeing a release in PAL territories this month, most of the technical hassles have fortunately been ironed out. So, was SOCOM: Confrontation worth waiting for? Unfortunately, the answer to that question is not quite ‘yes.’ While Confrontation is a competent and enjoyable game, both long-time SOCOM fans and newcomers to the series will be disappointed to find it a remarkably un-ambitious title that simply doesn’t do enough to stand out from the crowd.

SOCOM: Confrontation is in some ways a departure for the series. It is the first main series instalment to not be developed by Zipper Interactive, with Slant Six Games taking over development duties this time around. In another series first, Confrontation is exclusively an online multiplayer game, with no single-player campaign offered, and no offline (LAN) multiplayer possible. Just like the PS3’s previous multiplayer favourite, Warhawk, Confrontation has received a dual-format release, with a disc-based version available at retail, and a downloadable version available on the PlayStation Store. The US and European retail versions were bundled with an official PS3 Bluetooth headset. Unfortunately, South African PS3 owners will not be given this option. It’s not all bad, though, as Confrontation retails locally at a reduced price, roughly equal to that of PS3 Platinum releases.

The basic gameplay to be found here has not evolved much since the earlier games. Confrontation is still a third-person tactical shooter, with quite a broad spectrum of available weapons and gear. Players familiar with the series will find themselves immediately at home with the basic mechanics. It is somewhat disappointing that the developers have not given more thought to extending or deepening the tactical elements in new ways. The last two instalments in the GRAW and Rainbow Six franchises, for example, have done much to take the tactical shooter a bit into the future, so it’s regrettable that Slant Six have stuck to the tried-and-true.

The controls mostly work well, but unfortunately the use of SixAxis motion controls have been implemented for some functions (such as leaning out of cover), and the results feel tacked-on and unwieldy. Confrontation does feature a fairly deep and balanced character customisation system, where players can personalise their in-game avatars not just in terms of appearance, but also in terms of their weaponry and gear. The range of options to be found is quite broad, so it’s possible for players to put together the kind of character that best suits their individual playing style.

Confrontation offers a variety of game types that should all be familiar to both series regulars and multiplayer gamers in general. There are two deathmatch variants, as well as several objective types. It’s a solid enough offering, but for a multiplayer-only game it feels a bit too skimpy and predictable. In a series consistently praised for its tactical gameplay, it would’ve been great to see some game modes that offered deeper tactical options. It would also have been great to see Confrontation at least attempt to redefine multiplayer gaming on the PS3, given how that is precisely what the earlier games had achieved on the PS2. Still, there is some great fun to be had here, with a slower, more careful approach needed than in the average multiplayer shooter.

Counting in the game’s favour is the number of players that can be accommodated. Games can be set up in four-versus-four, eight-versus-eight or sixteen-versus-sixteen configurations. While this makes for a robust and diverse game setup system, it should be noted that other high-profile PS3 shooters such as Killzone 2 and Resistance 2 offer games for at least the same number of players, or more. A nice design touch though is the use of a playlist system. Setting up a game, one can pre-define a whole playlist through which participants will play, specifying different game types on different maps, as well as factors such as number of rounds or game duration. This makes it easier to have more satisfying and longer gaming sessions with friends.

Confrontation essentially ships with seven maps, but for five of the maps a larger version is also available specifically for larger game types. The maps to be found here are quite elaborate and detailed, and are clearly the products of careful and involved design. And yet, all too often, they don’t feel particularly better than the included multiplayer maps in most other first-rate multiplayer shooters. For a multiplayer-only shooter, one would expect not only a wider offering of environments, but also a more unique and refreshing one, given that the developers did not have to expend any resources on a single-player campaign. That being said, the maps do make for fun, engaging multiplayer matches.

The presentation is fairly average. While some of the maps are visually pleasing, texture detail tends to be on the low side, and character models seem a bit primitive. While Confrontation is by no means a bad-looking game, it doesn’t match the visual quality of most of the top-tier games currently available on the PS3. The audio presentation fares a bit better, though, with great use of realistic sound effects. Games actually sound like true battlefields, and PS3 owners with a decent audio setup should be pleased with the in-game sound.

On the online performance side, Confrontation excels. Even in 32-player matches against international players, there is very little and infrequent discernible lag. The online community seems quite healthy and active, with no shortage of players to be found, regardless of which game types or maps one prefers. Gamers who invest in Confrontation should not worry about difficulty in finding games. Prospective players should, however, try and source a Bluetooth headset for the game. Voice communication with team mates is quite important in a game such as this, and many players will become impatient with team mates who are not sufficiently communicative.

SOCOM: Confrontation is not at all a bad game. What’s to be found here is solid and entertaining. But it does come across as a redundant and disposable game. As a multiplayer shooter, it is no richer in content or more compelling in design than the included multiplayer component of any recent high-profile shooter, and in some ways it trails behind the offerings included in other big releases such as Resistance 2, Killzone 2, Far Cry 2, or either of the last two Call of Duty games. Furthermore, it lacks the kind of unique design angles employed by some other multiplayer-only games such as Warhawk or Unreal Tournament 3 to make up for the lack of a proper single-player campaign.

At the end of the day, this is a game that doesn’t really distinguish itself from the crowd. While it’s definitely competent, it’s also rather forgettable and plain. This makes it very hard to recommend Confrontation to anyone other than series fans.

Pros: Excellent network performance; great use of playlist system; some really good maps.

Cons: Feels too similar to too many other games, with nothing that really distinguishes it; small number of maps; predictable game types.

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Contributor:	Mark

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