America’s Army: Special Forces review

America’s Army has become one of the most successful games to date, largely because of its different style of play and the fact that it’s free. What makes it so interactive is the way the whole thing is set up - turning what would normally be seen as just another FPS into more of an online simulation of the real thing.

Editor’s note: The next paragraphs are a general introduction to America’s Army. If you already know the previous versions and want to know what’s new in version 2.0, skip ahead to the header ‘Empower yourself, defend freedom’.

Drop and give me twenty

America’s Army was very different from the beginning. It could never be compared to other FPS games like Half-Life or Quake, as it involved a lot more than just grabbing a gun and running for it. Developed by the U.S. Army, they tried to move realism away from death and overly detailed chunks of bodies to more meaningful things such as learning skills, then applying them in the game.

To begin, you have to go to basic training. Just like in real life? You bet! To get anywhere in the game, you have to qualify first. Later on, you can go on to do more intensive training, but I’ll get on to that soon. Basic training is simple.

First things first, give a man a gun and teach him how to shoot. The test is to hit as many targets as you can out of the forty in total, and the more you shoot the better. A lot actually depends on your score here, as you have to hit at least twenty-three to even play the game and thirty-six or more will let you go on to sniper training. Second, is the obstacle course, which is passable no matter how slow you are. Third is weapons familiarisation, which again does not require you to do much. The last test is just running through a simulated course with cardboard cutouts of enemies.

So after all that, it’s possible to join a game online. The only problem is that only a small number of maps will be available to you until you do more training. Don’t worry about all the training too much, just as long as you pass all of it you can get right into the action. The other training courses available are: Advanced marksmanship, Airborne school, Medic training and the new Special Forces training.

It’s not all fun and games

Training, training, training! It makes you go crazy doesn’t it? When you thought school or work was enough, they start putting it in games too. I guess it all depends on how you want to play. America’s Army involves a lot of teamwork and you never find anyone stupid enough to just run out into the open by themselves.

Medics play an incredibly important role in every situation, as they obviously have the ability to heal people. Well, they don’t necessarily heal you, more like bandage your wounds. Bleeding is bad and the more you leave your wound untreated the less health you’ll end up with and the harder it is for your player to do things in the game. To become a medic you have to be patient, and willing to sit down and learn for a while. A great addition to America’s Army is (and I hate to say it) the classroom. Never before seen in a game, the classroom is all part of trying to make America’s Army look and feel like America’s Army – the real one. So if you can withstand the long wait and pass the tests, the better off you will be.

Advanced Marksmanship allows you to use the two sniper rifles when playing online and airborne training will let you play on a few other maps. They make take a couple of tries to pass at first, but they aren’t as challenging as the other tests.

Empower yourself, defend freedom

There is a lot more to write about than I think I can fit into this article, so I’ll go straight into what the latest update is all about.

The Special Forces are an elite team of highly skilled men who undertake the toughest and most dangerous missions behind enemy lines. Just like before, training is involved before you can become a Special Forces soldier, but you also need experience. The Special Forces training is by far the most fun out of them all. The first map is learning about the Special Forces and what they do. Don’t get wrong idea when you hear the guy talking another language! He quickly changes to English and explains everything. You don’t want to do what I did and think “No! I’ve downloaded the <insert other language here> version!” and download it all over again only to find that it’s the same thing.

Once you’re through that, the fun really starts. Introducing some new AI and cooler scripted sequences is the Special Forces Escape and Evade course. This map starts you off in a small in-game movie, where you fly through the map in a Blackhawk helicopter, before being dropped at the beginning of the training exercise. The map is set at night, and your objective is to reach the end of it. Sound easy? Well, wait until you play it. This map really tests your patience and skill at avoiding the enemy.

Some of you may find that you have completed all of the training needed to become a Special Forces soldier, but whenever you play online you can’t choose it. Why? Being an Special Forces member requires experience and the more you play the more honour points you get. It takes a minimum of fifteen to select a Special Forces class.

Special Forces arsenal

The other new addition to this version of the game is the SOPMOD M4 Carbine, which can be customised with a great range of equipment. The M4 can be fitted with a 4x scope, a reflex sight, an aim point sight, the M203, the M583 flare launcher, the Harris bipod and the ever-popular suppressor. As you can see it’s not something you want to mess with.

Other weapons that have been included are the M9 pistol, the SPR rifle and my personal favourite, the RPG. The M9 and SPR are only available to Special Forces, as the RPG is to indigenous forces. You heard right! Indigenous forces are a playable class in the Special Forces maps. Part of being in the Special Forces is to go behind enemy lines and train these people in how to use weapons. The indigenous forces get their own array of weapons, but are limited to using the AK 74, RPK and RPG.

The quiet professionals

Along with a whole new set of models, sounds and weapons, the game includes four new maps, which are designed for Special Forces missions. Special Forces: Hospital, Special Forces: CSAR, Special Forces: Recon and Pipeline Special Forces are really well designed and great to play. New objectives have been added, such as escorting the V.I.P. or identifying enemy vehicles and all require different tactics and use of skills to complete. Also, all the new maps but one contain indigenous forces. Pipeline Special Forces is a remake of the old Pipeline map, but all classes are now Special Forces and it has changed from day to night.

The new maps are a big change to the previous ones. Everything has been balanced out a bit more, so that both teams have an equal chance of completing their objectives. Special Forces: Hospital is by far the best map (in my opinion) as it contains the V.I.P. class. This adds some crazy tension to the game, because his life really depends on how fast your team can respond to the enemy. Being the V.I.P. is another thing. People don’t like an incompetent V.I.P. who doesn’t know what to do. It’s a scary role to play, but it’s a lot of fun if you make it out alive.

Special Forces: Recon is a night map, and becomes pretty hard when you’re the indigenous forces class. Only the Special Forces are given night vision, so all that E&E training comes in handy here. Special Forces: CSAR is another great map. Almost like a “Blackhawk Down” mission, it requires you to either defend the Blackhawk and pilot or destroy them both. If you want to get honour points really quickly, so you can become a Special Forces, then my suggestion is to play Hospital and CSAR as much as you can. That’s what I did and I found I was earning up to 300-500 points every seven rounds (as long as your team wins of course).

We have visual

America’s Army’s graphics have always been good and with version 2.0 they just got a little better. The maps are looking really nice, along with the character models and weapons. A great improvement in the AK 74 is the 3D sight. This makes aiming feel a lot more realistic, as most weapons still use the flat blurry picture. The rockets can add a bit of hysteria to the game, especially when you’ve been spotted, and Special Forces: Recon looks superb when someone starts firing flares over your head. The sound is as realistic as it can get. Weapons fire, people shouting and some new ambience give this game an edge over others.

To quote from the AA website:

Many people ask us, "How do you get the game to look, sound and feel so authentic?"

That's easy, we tell them, we live this stuff. We are the Army.

And with that I take my leave and present you with one of the greatest FPS simulations of all time. Not only is it free for download, but it teaches you something too: patience truly is a virtue.

So there if you haven't tried this great, FREE, game, yet, you can download it right here. If you have installed an older version, be sure to update with this patch.