I've played less than ten games on my PS3 and reviewed only three and I'm proud to count SOCOM 4 as one of those games. Playing this game solo brought back memories of Full Spectrum Warrior with all the squad-based tactics and ordering options, and playing co-op was like reliving all my best Tom Clancy moments, and the online versus modes had all the fun of MAG with the added bonus of the incredible Bomb Squad mode. And while it may never be able to compete with Call of Duty in sheer popularity, SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs definitely wins when it comes to reality.
And though SOCOM: Special Forces is, at heart, a tactical shooter (and I suppose many will buy this game more for the multiplayer aspect than the campaign itself), I couldn't help thinking that if it had a bit more flexibility in terms of completing missions, there'd be a much greater replayability factor.
Socom 4. upon release took a lot of flak from fans of the series as well as from trolls on zippers official forum. But taking a second look at socom 4 apart from the loss of a few in-game mechanics like guns hot (your'e gun would move indicating an enemy was near). You begin to appreciate how much of a quality game zipper interactive actually made. The maps and campaign graphics are highly detailed and the foliage even allows you camo that actually works. stealth works consistently too so if you snipe an enemy on a bridge. closer enemies will not react and rush in to kill you, as they do in the recently released sniper elite v2. Having said that most campaign missions require both run and gun and stealth to complete. Socom is the thinking mans call of duty. Were tactics and pre-planning works better than trying to simply shoot everything that moves, that usually results in an un-timely death. The amount of content is good from the lengthy and challenging campaign the seperate online or offline co op missions to the full multi-mode multiplayer with leaderboards full guns and performance stats and medals to show your online progression with a fully working clan, and invite system the online after the final 1.04 patch is about 90%stable allowing for many hours play without lag or disconnect problems. Dedicated servers too so no host migration at all spoiling youre game. Also the uni-forms are replicas of the real item and voice localisation of troops is great. ie chinese troops speak chinese just like they do in real life. Sadly this may be the last in the Socom series as Zipper -Interactive no longer exists. But despite its critics i would recommend socom 4 now if youre looking for a more realistic war game than a lot of more recent titles and even some forth coming titles with recent beta,s do not beat socom 4.r.i.p. Zipper-Interactive.
Different then older socom but a great game anyways. The new game modes are alot of fun. Nice to see developers trying something new. In a time where respawn is kind it is great Zipper kept a classic mode for all of that are true.
The single player campaign is not the strongest out there, and lacks intelligent AI and an abundance of tactical options. Coop and multiplayer has a satisfying focus on teamwork, which is refreshing in a genre where most players only aim for a high kill/death ratio. Zipper Interactive haven't forgotten their core fans, and the Pro-mode is a good way to please long time SOCOM players.
SOCOM 4, like any new game in a series that has a near-and-dear fan base, is going to rub some people the wrong way. But it's really not a bad shooter; its biggest issue is going to be whether there's a there there, to quote Gertrude Stein.
It's an antiquated shooter that's trying to hang with the new blood and failing at every turn. The fact that it's thoroughly broken serves only to rub salt in an already stinging wound.
What a game,I love everything about this game.Thanks a million that it got the patches it needed cause yes it truly needed **** game was good but needed help because it was rushed.I usually won't go out and get a game that is bashed by reviewers so badly,except for a few.People are really hypnotized with black ops fever cause this game is better and more ****'s like comparing an arcade racing game with a simulation.This game is real while more and more military games are being streamlined and made arcadey just for the fun **** you have a choice,go out and buy them all like I do or if you have or want to choose then what is your preference,do you like run and gun like black ops,do you like real and rewarding like bad company 2 or do you like it all which is this game.Trust me folks,the game play,graphics,feel of war,replay factor,team based mission structure,ect..,ect..This game is the game to get.
These games such as SOCOM and CONFLICT I love them all and I honestly afterpiece both the PS2 and PC and is usually evaluates 8/10 or more but unfortunately at this part I give 7/10 . The game fulfills all the previous parts (great mission , good graphics , great controls , tactical options ) but has two fundamental errors and they are short playing time and stealth missions that are incredibly inept frustrating .
A lot of video game companies that are continuing a series title tend to try to make the title appeal to a very broad audience (Much like Bioware and Dragon Age II). Although it doesn't have the same feel as a typical SOCOM U.S. Navy Seals title, it still ends up being a pretty fun 3rd person shooter. (It looks a lot like Call of Duty if it were in third person) Like every war game now you have the typical weapons that every game has and the cover system where you run behind something and can pop in and out to fire. Nothing really new or extremely exciting about but if your a big fan of 3rd person shooters, it may be worth your while.
I was completely unimpressed by the lackluster story and its' half assed attempts at trying so hard to pretend it's original. The shooting mechanics are atrocious and nobody should have that much recoil while shooting a weapon. The camera was extremely close and claustrophobia inducing, also severely limiting your field of view in SP. MP is a work in progress. I get that most games nowadays can be patched later, but that should be left for exploits, not for fixing things in a game that was already delayed. Doesn't feel like a SOCOM experience at all. Overall, one of the bigger disappointments of this year.
If you purchase this game expecting a "SOCOM" title you will be SEVERELY let down. This game has gone away from the true roots of the series and has moved the title to be more casual player friendly. Features found in shooters such as call of duty, uncharted and rainbow six debut for the first time in this "SOCOM" titled game. All aspects of this game are changed for the worse from single player, co-op and online multiplayer as I will now explain to you.
Singleplayer in SOCOM 4 is an mediocre experience at best. The storyline is extremely cheesy as it is you and your squad versus an entire country's army with generic plot twists.. Rambo would be jealous because I racked up 1000+ kills on hard mode right before the game ended (I know this because I got a trophy for that). The acting is very b-movie like where it shines for a few moments and then drowns miserably for the rest of the show. However the voice acting is a tad bit better during some moments. To beat the games 14 lackluster missions on hard it took me a total of 7 hours and 14 minutes. Your AI teammates range from being useful as bullet sponges to being borderline **** during the entire length of the campaign. The best part of singleplayer is when it solos you through four stealth missions. Zipper must of made these to piss of the socom community, as they are the only parts of singleplayer that almost resemble the series offline roots.
Co-op is best played online since your squad ai is already as I mentioned handicapped in every way. There are only 4 missions to play with your friends or random quick matched players. However these missions can be altered with enemy difficult and count. But who the hell doesn't want to play on the hardest settings? Once you beat them all each one time you will never want to return as co-op gets repetitive and boring quick.
Sigh now lets get into the biggest letdown of the words on the front of the box. SOCOM is all about online multiplayer gameplay no question about it. With that being said this is honestly the worse online SOCOM game you will ever play. Lobbies are now replaced with random call of duty quick matches where little to no communication takes place. There is never a sense of comradery in these rooms as you will find quick you don't give two **** who is in or out of your game nor does anyone else. Consider yourself lucky if you can switch up teams in 15 seconds since you cant talk to the opposing team.
Do you like playing with your friends on SOCOM? Well you cant for awhile zipper forgot to add a party system there suppose to "patch" it in before the end of april. You can play with friends but you have to join there room and hope its not full while hoping you get on there team... talk about a nightmare. The clan system is the only way to currently play in a "party" at all. Here's how it works; you make a group and challenge clans from any gamemode from a list and hope they accept or even get the invite to war.
If you want to go solo you can play some ranked respawn and call in some airstrikes from your killstreak reward.... yep hello call of duty! There are classic modes where there is no respawn but they are a slight nod at the series if you want to go that far. Hip fire **** so you get two dual primary weapons on this "SOCOM" game! Everytime you score a kill you get some fancy experience points to unlock weapon attachments and level up your character to gain access to new weapons. That is assuming if you can get a kill with the clunky character view point that plagues every aspect of the game from online to offline.
Im going to stop here as I do not want to rant about the thousands of negative changes for multiple paragraphs. Maybe in 3 months from now after multiple patches this game will be better but as it stands right now it is better than Confrontation RELEASE period. See that the keyword was RELEASE... Confrontation TODAY is better than SOCOM 4 without a doubt if you get into a legit room. This game does everything the mainstream market has today but doesn't do one thing right its just a big mess.
Bottom line... zipper lost touch with its fanbase and you need to avoid this game unless you find it used or on the bargain bin for a decent price.
Summary(Also known as "SOCOM: Special Forces") A militant revolutionary has unexpectedly seized control in an important South Asian country. As the Ops Com, your mission is to command an elite five-man squad charged with stopping his aggressive agenda before it's too late. In only six days, you must lead your team through a hostile jungle and u...