Problems?
By now you’ll have realized that I love this game. True, but there are some problems. Firstly the mission scripting doesn’t always work, as it should. You may find a scripted event that should have occurred, didn’t and you have to restart a mission. On one mission I ordered a column of ammo trucks to turn right at a crossroad but they went left. Replaying the mission showed the same result, there’s an error in the script for that mission I think. I still managed to complete the mission though. Yes there are a few script glitches along the way but none that really get in the way of enjoyment. More importantly in the two weeks I have been playing the final review code the game hasn’t crashed or locked up once. The real problem many players will face is that some of the missions can be damn hard, so hard you’ll despair of completing them, but the solution usually involves improved thinking rather than better rifle skills. Practice makes perfect.

Graphics
The graphics are a mixed bag and are likely to divide people who just love the way the game looks and others that find the rough washed out look of the game not to their taste. The color palate is definitely in the same ballpark as Saving Private Ryan. Let’s deal with the bad first, well the frame rate never approaches something you would have expected from Quake III. But as the player is never running around at mach one it doesn’t seem to matter too much. The gameplay for me was always smooth and that’s what counts. While the motion-captured movements of the soldiers are convincing there are times when you see hands move through weapons on other similar glitches, these are most apparent in cut scenes.

The good? Well you have never seen detailed exteriors like this before. Eastern European looking hillsides dotted with hundreds of trees, bombed out villages, towering mountains. It’s spookily similar to the scenes of destruction in the ongoing Balkan conflicts. The use of lighting is particularly effective in this game. For example an RPG’s rocket motor lights up the landscape in nighttime missions and casts shadows around men, trees and buildings that move as the rocket continues to fly. Vehicles are particularly detailed and you’ll see commanders sitting in the open cupolas of tanks, pilots heads moving in choppers and the suspension working on trucks and jeeps. The use of photorealistic textures lends the game a unique style.

Conclusion
In summing up it’s customary to compare a game to its rivals. This is hard to do in the case of Operation Flashpoint as there’s little to compare it to. Project IGI shares some similarities with Flashpoint’s covert missions, but the Eidos shooter is fatally flawed, buggy and badly supported. Delta Force Land Warrior boasts links with the US Army but the CPU controlled team mates are next to useless and the graphics relatively poor. In effect Operation Flashpoint is without peer. In these times when greedy lawyers seek out the game industry as easy post-massacre targets for huge lawsuits, preferring a softer target than the NRA, it’s also welcome to see a game that is violent but takes no pleasure in the blood and guts of warfare. The locations are too close in our memory to the Balkan conflicts to take any sense of glory from the war. Bohemia is based in Prague and many of the development team served in the armed forces. Although NATO only seems to be represented by US Troops there’s none of the flag waving jingoism that a US based developer might included. When death comes the quotes from such diverse sources as Pink Floyd or Georges Clemenceau, serve to highlight the futility of war.

Operation Flashpoint is a stunning game; it’s the most brutal and realistic look at land warfare at the level of the individual soldier currently available. Minor gripes aside the campaign is gripping, the graphics detailed and eye catching, the 3D sound atmospheric and the whole setting of the game exudes class. Touches such as a top loading VCR in a command tent or discussions between grunts about digital watches neatly place the action in the mid-eighties. While anal retentive sim-heads may scoff at the short range tank battles, those of you seeking action without wanting to disengage your brain will find this game an answer to your prayers. There’s no doubt about it, Operation Flashpoint is the best PC game you will play this year.

Related Links
   • Codemasters – The Publisher
   • Bohemia Interactive – The Developer
   • The Official Site
   • More Flashpoint images