![]() Fortunately, Supreme Commander 2 utilizes a simple control scheme that makes it easy to manage everything at once. However, there is usually a lot going on, with some missions throwing enemies at you from the get-go and others forcing you to build a base from scratch. If you play on normal difficulty, don't expect much of a challenge: Supreme Commander 2 is rather easy, so if you've played a strategy game before, you may want to turn the difficulty up a notch. It's an excellent campaign, getting you into the fray quickly and letting you focus on strategy rather than on the "take these few units over here" objectives that all too often invade real-time strategy games. The first couple of missions for each faction might take you 15 minutes or so, but the biggest ones might last close to an hour and keep you occupied on multiple fronts. There's a nice sense of forward momentum to the campaign, which opens up features and units to you over time, but it does so without holding your hand every step of the way. You get to know them as you make your way through Supreme Commander 2's single-player story, which features 18 missions-six for each faction. (Some campy dialogue and hammy acting don't help matters, either.) Nonetheless, these characters provide an intimate view of the conflict that puts an end to the tenuous treaty, and they're appealingly scrappy, which makes it easy to root for them. The character models that appear in cutscenes and within talking-head story updates have a stylized, almost cartoonish look that sometimes seems at odds with the dignity and drama of the main story. The story also boasts a distinct personality, following three military commanders that met during training after three warring factions-the United Earth Federation (or UEF), the Cybran Nation, and the Illuminate (formerly the Aeon Illuminate)-formed a coalition to destroy the invading Seraphim. Still, Supreme Commander 2 has more style than its predecessor, which took a more matter-of-fact approach to its visual flourishes. The environments benefit from a distinct sense of place, though the art design won't floor you and a general lack of crispness muffles the overall look. You battle in misty mountaintops connected by a series of bridges and fend off hulking robots within towering industrial complexes. The game may not push many polygons or provide pitch-perfect audio, but it does sport plenty of personality and verve. Battles often sound uncomfortably abrasive, and sometimes the noise will cut out completely for a few moments after a particularly harsh explosion. Like its precursor, Supreme Commander 2 does a terrible job of scaling its audio and often sounds as if it's trying to stuff more sound effects through your speakers than it's capable of delivering. One area in which the sequel has not improved over the original, however, is in its sound design. ![]() Yet while your first impression might be one of surprise at how dull SupCom 2 looks, you'll soon grow to appreciate how pleasantly smooth it feels to move about the battlefield, even when you zoom all the way out to get a godlike view of the proceedings. The sequel isn't visually remarkable textures are bland, colors look a bit washed out, and units lack the crisp detail you'd hope to see in a game featuring big robots. Apart from a few hiccups here and there, SupCom 2 maintains a solid frame rate, even during one of the game's signature nuclear explosions. The original suffered from massive frame rate drops that greatly damaged the experience. If you played the original Supreme Commander on the Xbox 360, you'll notice right away that Supreme Commander 2 performs far, far better than its predecessor. Yet while it isn't likely to challenge experienced armchair commanders, it still stands out for its fluid gameplay, excellent multiplayer maps, and the thrill of emerging victorious from a long battle of wits. The strategic joy doesn't go unhindered, however pathfinding headaches, sound bugs, and predictable AI keep Supreme Commander 2 from reaching its potential. Most importantly, it's good fun, letting you play with a variety of interesting units and giving you lots of room to experiment with all the tactical possibilities. This is an inviting package for both veterans and newcomers-intricate enough to keep your mind nimble but welcoming to those daunted by the original's magnitude. If you were cautiously considering picking up the sequel, rest assured that Supreme Commander 2 suffers from few of its predecessor's visual problems. Bad bugs and abysmal engine performance overshadowed the satisfying and complex strategizing and made the game excruciating to play. ![]() The original Supreme Commander made waves on the PC, but on the Xbox 360, it barely managed a ripple.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |