Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2

The graphics are incredibly fantastic and you’ll be shooting South Americans right up until Bungie release "Halo 3" in the autumn.

Beyond the improved AI and riveting plot, the pacing of the missions has been vastly improved as well, and I found myself being introduced to the new features of GRAW 2 on a regular schedule...[GRAW 2] eclipses the first game in every way.

Expands and improves on the original game with more multiplayer options, a refined single player game, and even more impressive visuals.

The area that has probably received the most attention has been the AI of your team mates.

A pleasant surprise but it not the true sequel people may have been expecting. It takes the original title and refines it to a tee though, and that is what makes this game so good. The graphics are superb, the sound is sharp, the campaign, although somewhat short, is quite engaging and the online play is fantastic.

Absolutely worth the purchase for old and new fans alike. There’s no reason why someone looking for a third person tactical shooter should opt for the original game (unless they’re looking to save a bit of cash), and fans of the first GRAW will find all the same modes, but with more customization options and ramped up clan support.

An excellent and atmospheric military shooter. The cover and command systems work really well. The multiplayer modes are good, but nothing special. [Apr 2007]

The learning curve is steep and the squad AI could stand a few classes, but the truth is you won't find a more realistic, feature-filled shooter. Toss in a nice bump in visuals and you'll get your money's worth and then some.

The single-player campaign features a bunch of new gameplay mechanics, improved A.I., and some spiffed-up visuals, and while the multiplayer is largely the same, it’s still an absolute blast to play. Our only hope is that Ubisoft doesn’t decide to make this a yearly tradition.

Yes, there are pathfinding issues with respect to friendly AI, some of the missions will seem a little overwhelming with all the units you have to control, and multiplayer still doesn’t feature a cover system, but all that aside what you’ve got here is a singleplayer campaign that’s just as thrilling and intense as the original, and a robust multiplayer component that is sure to keep gamers coming back to the virtual battlefield for months to come.

If you own an Xbox 360, then here's another essential title for it.

The single-player campaign, unfortunately, seems a little short and even a little too easy, which is a bummer. But the co-op mode and the MP modes are deep, highly customizable, and great fun so for some players, that might make up for the single-player campaign's brevity.

Personally co-op was one of my favorite aspects of GRAW1 and I was blown away with the amount of effort Ubisoft put into it this time around.

An acquired taste. It is the best of its kind but it still takes a certain mindset to fully enjoy (read: patient people). If you're a twitch shooter and think stealth is for sissies, you might want to rethink any decision to buy this game.

Spectacular visuals, ruthless opposition and gritty, tactical gunplay make this intense entertainment for solo soldiers and a hoot to play online with friends.

No one does war like Clancy does, and this could be his finest hour yet... if it wasn't just a little bit too short.

It's been a long time since I played a game that literally kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish and left me wishing for more, actually wanting to play through it all over again.

Wrapped around the entire single-and-multiplayer package is, again, some of the best presentation in any Xbox 360 game to date...With single-player delivering another snipe-'em-if-ya-got-'em ride and multiplayer upping the ante with its everything-you-could-imagine delivery, GRAW2 easily achieves must-play status. [Apr 2007, p.54]

Quite simply, GRAW2 is the game the original Advanced Warfighter should have been. It’s GRAW with a proper running time, GRAW without feeling penned in by invisible walls and the endless and constraining "You’re leaving the battlefield!" warnings. GRAW2 promised to be bigger, better and more – and it’s delivered all three.

What’s amazing about the multiplayer portion is the co-op. Not only is it completely unique content, but it mixes the greatness of the single player with the amazing new online competitive mode.

I love the fact that the physics engine in the game applies not just to the player, but to the entire game environment. I felt like sitting back with a bucket of popcorn to enjoy the big, big, beautiful explosions in all their earth shaking, shrapnel flinging glory.

Some will be tempted to dismiss Advanced Warfighter 2 as an extended mission pack for the first game rather than a proper sequel. But from a solo perspective, there's no contest: GRAW2 delivers a much tighter and more polished experience. Online, it's a little less clear-cut, but the new set of maps, weapons, and tweaks will make it an attractive proposition for those hooked on the original's high-caliber offerings.

The single player mode might be a little easy for some, thanks to a few of the new features, but the co-operative mode alone more than makes up for any shortcomings. GRAW fans can rejoice, the sequel is better than the stupendous original title and thats all that should really matter.

GRAW 2 doesn't blow its competition out of the water like its predecessor did, but it easily matches them. Not bad for a "rushed" sequel.

The campaign mode is full of tense moments, high action sequences and is presented using a very cinematic approach at all times. It’s fun, engaging and pushes all the right buttons. That said, there’s definitely an air of familiarity about the whole thing especially if you’ve played the first game and I felt some sections were a little, Graw painting by numbers.

As a single-player game, alone, GRAW 2’s four-to-five hour campaign is short even by new-gen standards. However, when you toss in multiplayer and keep in mind that the original GRAW is still one of the most popular Xbox Live games, the game becomes a much better investment.

Unquestionably a huge success. A short campaign aside, it does everything GRAW fans would want from a sequel and once again confirms Ubisoft as one of the leading next-gen publishers.

It's really all about the experience, reading all the facts and features lists in the world isn't going to accurately convey the feeling of playing GRAW 2, the feeling of being sucked into a game world so beautifully formed and well designed that the individual features blur into the impressive whole.

GRAW 2 is the definition of a year-to-year sequel. All of the things great about the original are here and all of the issues have been addressed in some form or fashion.

If you did not play GRAW, GRAW2 will astonish and amaze you. If you played GRAW then GRAW2’s impact will be very much diminished.

Overall, GRAW 2's package looks, feels, sounds, and plays better than the first, so if you liked the first GRAW, checking out the sequel is a no-brainer.

A better game than the first one but not by much and it never really convinces you that it is a full blown sequel rather than a mere upgrade.

While GRAW 2 may have fallen behind the excellent "Rainbow Six Vegas," its great multiplayer and explosive single-player storyline still make this game a tour of duty worth taking.

GRAW2 offers up a better, though shorter, single-player game than its predecessor. But the bulk of its gameplay can be found in its impressive and deep multiplayer game.

Although the single-player is a roller coaster ride, complete with "on rails" vehicle sections that are over all too soon the multiplayer will ensure that you stick around.

Regardless of the clear setbacks and lack of evolution, this is still one of the finest titles available for the Xbox 360. If you don't like tactical shooting, the GRAW series will change your mind. It's that good.

You may get a sense of deja vu as you play, but GRAW 2 is still a game that's worth having in your library. [May 2007, p.52]

GRAW1.5? Yeah, I don't have any problem calling it that. But that shouldn't stop anyone from suiting up for battle again. GRAW2 is still tremendously fun despite its all-too-familiar design.

If [you] live and breathe online gaming, GRAW 2 is undoubtedly a must-buy.

Big and exciting, packed with content. It's GRAW 1.5 in terms of gameplay, however. [May 2007, p.67]

Everything about the world appears more detailed, and the fantastic lighting effects from the first game appear even better here.

Something about it just feels too clinical, too rehearsed and at the end of the day this is a sequel in the strictest definition of the word. It doesn't take any risks, it doesn't give players new, exciting or exotic flavours and it tends to focus more on the multiplayer side than the single player experience.

Very little in GRAW2 is designed to convert those who steadfastly refused to get on with the first, something which Ubisoft makes no apologies for. Instead they have provided for the already-converted with a game that will thrill and engage for its duration.

We’re way overdue for this series to let us issue direct commands to individual squad members, or split up teams in more ways than this awkward 3-on-1 business.

GRAW2 may not make the same splash as its predecessor, but it's still a no-doubt award winner. [May 2007, p.85]

It’s the sheer epic nature of the single-player campaign that will leave you craving more. [May 2007, p.104]

As a full-priced offering, though, the goal posts have moved, and it's hard not to feel a little short changed by the short-lived single player campaign and how similar the whole thing feels. In many ways, GRAW 2 is the classic quick-fire sequel - short on new ideas, but big on polishing what we know and love. But these days, isn't that what people want?

But it's the same story as all the other Ghost Recons online, you need to be a ninja at the game to stand a chance of actually having some fun. That or you could just round up your mates who aren't as hardcore as most of GRAW's following.

Criticisms aside, GRAW2 does manage to improve over the original, with a more stylish grasp on creating atmosphere and ensuring the action and intensity seldom drops. There's few next-gen titles out there that portray the ferocity that GRAW2 effortlessly achieves; whilst it's a short-game, it's one you'll be racing through without taking a break.

Ubisoft and Red Storm Entertainment concocted a short yet satisfying single player campaign full of action, weapons and cool vehicles. It ends much too quickly, but the game's robust multiplayer component more than makes up for that, thanks to 16 player support, new maps, weapons and deep customization.

But yes, apart from all the good things it’s a shameless cash-in, that falls short of becoming a classic in its own right, and simply gives us more of what we loved last year, without truly innovating or leaving the treaded path.

While GRAW 2 is a good game, it doesn't make for a great game of 'spot the difference' with its predecessor. No advancements as such, just more of the same. But shorter. Whoops. [Issue 18, p.74]

For dedicated Ghosts GRAW 2 is a no-brainer. For the rest of us it's just the exact game "Advanced Warfighter" should have been and would have beeen if the clock wasn't watching; Ubisoft rewriting history and charging us twice for the privilege. [May 2007, p.89]

GRAW2 is more of the same wrapped up in a coating of graphical improvements, tweaked functionality and new items and abilities. GRAW2 gives generously with one hand and abruptly takes away with the other.

The inability to take cover in multi-player is an odd omission and the AI in the single player is dreadful.

But despite its graphical flair and fancy high-tech features, the hollowness and simplicity of the core gameplay ultimately left the experience feeling unbalanced and unrewarding.