Review: Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (360)

With this sequel making the step up to the current gen of consoles, as well as appearing on the venerable PS2, Gamestyle hoped that Pandemic would have kicked on from the original Mercenaries, and delivered an even better game.   

However, on first loading Mercenaries 2, we had to make sure that someone hadn’t switched our Xbox 360 for a PS2. This game is definitely not what you might call a looker. From the feeble foliage, incessant texture pop-up to the ridiculous swimming animation, the whole game looks distinctly low rent. The plot is similarly poor. We’re not sure whether Pandemic was trying to make a serious political statement about our reliance on oil and the demand for the ever dwindling reserves of fossil fuels or not, but what we end up with is a simple revenge story, hung around a load of clichéd nonsense about the control of oil in a fictionalised near-future Venezuela. The same cast of stereotypical, one-dimensional characters that starred in the first game return here, and prove to be as eminently dislikeable as they were last time round. Each has a unique ability, such as carrying more ammo, or regenerating health more speedily. You might not be surprised to learn that the female character’s unique ability is that she can run faster. Yawn. And a note to the developers, the joke about getting shot in the backside was not particularly funny to start with. Repeating the same joke all the way through the game is even less funny.

Once again, the player is given a sandbox to explore. However, it’s noticeable just how empty the world of Mercenaries 2 is, particularly as GTA IV has really thrown down the gauntlet and shown what can be achieved. Sure, there are plenty of hidden items to find, but the relative emptiness of the environment is very noticeable. Without the distraction of the missions, Gamestyle can’t help but think that things would get dull very quickly.

However, the missions on offer aren’t exactly inspired. As the game progresses, five distinct factions will appear, all vying for a barrel of Venezuela’s oil, each needing to instruct a mercenary, rather than utilise the standing army of private soldiers they have hanging around the place. However, as those already familiar with the first game will testify, a complete suspension of disbelief is required to play Mercenaries and go along with the premise that your sole mercenary is capable of storming military installations and slaying hundreds of enemy soldiers, whilst calling in massive artillery and air strikes and being proficient in the use of every vehicle they comes across. In such circumstances it’s best not to question the ability to hijack a helicopter in mid-air, using nothing more than a grappling hook and a QTE. In fact, to hijack any vehicle the successful completion of a QTE is required and this tends to get old rather quickly.   

In addition to specific missions that each faction offers which advance the storyline, they also have a list of standing objectives that can be tackled at any time. However, these are essentially the same two missions repeated very frequently, an assassination or snatching of a high value target, or the destruction of a building. Some careful thought is required as the game start to open up though. For example, upset Universal Petroleum too much by kidnapping their high ranking staff for the P.L.A.V or destroying their assets and they’ll become hostile and stop offering work. This is a clever system and it’s been implemented well. It’s possible to work your way back into a faction’s good books by completing some of their standing objectives, or paying a big fat bribe, but make the right decisions in the first place and you should be able to avoid the extra work, or cash outlay.

The failings of Mercenaries 2 might be forgivable if the story driven missions were well crafted or the game presented a reasonable challenge. However, neither of these stand true. The mission design is insipid and rarely requires anything other than the destruction of things. That said, unlike the deceptively linear Battlefield: Bad Company, this title really does let you tackle a mission however you see fit. Why not steal a chopper and rain destruction from the sky, or have a tank delivered to you in the field and blow a hole in the wall and storm in. The effect of this is blunted though by the hideous AI, whereby the enemy almost line up to be easily picked off by meandering towards you from behind cover. The regenerating health system makes the game even easier still. Been peppered by MG fire and you’re on your last legs? No problem, simply hide behind cover for 30 seconds and your health will have recharged enough to plough on. 

Yet despite the glaring flaws in Mercanries 2, the game still manages to have enough about it to save it from the depths of gaming oblivion. Somehow, against all the odds, the game still manages to be fun. Perhaps it’s the sheer over-the-topness of everything, Mercenaries 2 displays an exuberance missing from so many “realistic” games these days and it is this that will hold interest long after it should have waned. Despite running in to more inexplicable indestructible scenery than we care to mention, the flaws still can’t outweigh the satisfaction of calling in a well-timed airstrike and watching the havoc it causes. The online co-op in particular is a hoot (even if it does make missions even easier). Yes, the game is short and yes, it has all the depth of a puddle, but those easily pleased and looking for simple shooting thrills, could do worse than this game.

Rating: 5 / 10

Words by Andy Lucas