Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter

Gameplay modes

As you might expect, there are a number of single and multiplayer game types for you to engage in, from the standard team-based objective-centric multiplayer, to a large single player campaign and everything in between. There are 12 single player levels (each with a number of sub-campaigns) and a plethora of multiplayer levels to go with that. Multiplayer games are very customisable, taking a leaf out of the Halo book, meaning you can have pretty much any experience you want. Of course, multiplayer will be a cinch over Xbox Live, and we expect the normal PC matchmaking tools - although, this is going to be perfect for LANs, so we'd suggest the best multiplayer tool would be a crate of beer and a spacious living room for your mates to set up in.

Xbox 360 v PC

We went hands-on with the Xbox 360 version of the game, but we have plenty of information about how the PC version is going to differ - although, it's not a massive amount. The graphics engine is the same, the overall gameplay is the same, but some elements are being fine-tuned for two particular reasons - keyboard and mouse.

The 360 version of the game sports a third person view that is 'over the shoulder', allowing you to peek around corners and get a slightly more 'arcade' experience of the game. The PC version is strictly first-person, as the rest of the Ghost Recon games have been. The first-person view will allow a more FPS-pure experience, as befits the control mechanism, whereas the feeling at Ubisoft is that the third-person view is more suited to the joypad on the console.

Also different are some aspects of level design - PC levels will have more cover and will be more intricate, because of the added accuracy gamers will have. Enemies will be a bit more crafty, and there will be additions to the tactical aspect of the game, with the tactical planning menu - familiar to those who have spent hours slaving over the perfect insertion in previous GR games - now accessible from within the actual level on the PC version, allowing you to alter and tweak your plan depending on how the mission progresses.

Pacing

The game is kind of an odd mix of tactical play and team deathmatch. As such, it sometimes feels like it should be faster to play than it is. There's not, as far as we could tell, a Run mode, only a walk-even-slower mode. This makes rushing any points pretty difficult to do. Strafing is also incredibly slow, meaning that moving sideways whilst keeping your sights trained elsewhere makes for a very slow moving target. As such, you end up, perhaps, doing what the pros do - actually looking where you're going. However, it definitely adds to the slow-paced, tactical feel, since any hopes of running-jumping-swivelling headshots, Counter-Strike style, are right out.

This slow pace will perhaps feel more appropriate on the PC, where the first-person view will give it more of a simulation feel. On the 360 version, it feels like a slightly bizarre mishmash, especially since between walking normally, accidentally walking slowly and strafing it rather feels like your pace is constantly yo-yo-ing.