Operation Flashpoint : Dragon Rising

By Saurabh ‘2S8’ Chhabra | Friday, November 20, 2009

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising had a relatively impressive marketing campaign. Or at least, if you were following the game and the multitude of developer-released videos over recent weeks, the game either wasn’t your thing or it blew your socks off and you couldn’t wait until its arrival. I was among the latter.

Nowadays all the FPS games are all about fancy engines and shooting the hell out of the scenery. As the Flashpoint games took the road of being a simulation shooter, the graphics weren’t that important. Do not think that you can get a couple of headshots in this game and still be running around killing people. Your character reacts according to the damage taken. For example, if he’s hit on his leg, this might prevent him from sprinting until healed. The game is very tense and strategic. Running around and spraying at players will end you up soon in a body bag. Fantastic combat sounds and realistic ambient noises set the mood perfectly.

You are the leader of a US Marine squad comprising four men and you have been sent to the island of Skira just off the coast of Japan. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army has invaded in the attempt to claim the recently discovered oil reserves from the Russian rulers. The US forces try to act as peacemakers, keen to ensure that this conflict doesn’t develop into an all out World War. The scripting is solid enough even if it is a little farfetched but it dissolves into the background with short briefings taking the center stage – instructions on your forthcoming goals. It works really well as the dramatic background story sets the scene perfectly for the mission briefings.

The single player aspect of the game is based around 11 missions and initially you start on a smaller island which serves as a tutorial off the coast of Skira, then you move onto the main Island for the more difficult missions. Your squad tactics and weapon load out also change depending on the mission, from full out assault mode to ‘Sam Fisher’ style stealth based missions.( Samuel “Sam“ Fisher is the fictional protagonist in the Splinter Cell series of video games ).This change in pace helps to keep the player interested long term. Enjoy a myriad of comical moments where your enemy just will not die, no matter how many times you shoot vital organs and kill zones. In some cases, multiple headshots were needed.

The AI can be dumb at times, but ironically it actually feels right under the circumstances. When you are in the chaos of battle, guys are going to scramble around and no, always make the best decisions with regard to cover and yes, and sometimes may run in front of their own guy’s firing at the enemy. Any issue with the AI is a quibble and not that distracting from the game. There is little scripting so things always have new twists and surprises on replay. There are a few minor glitches here and there like not being able to jump over small boulders sometimes or a rare stutter or hang-up on something, but again nothing really distracting from the overall effect. It is kind of crazy that in a game that claims it is so realistic bodies still disappear especially when they’re the only chance to get a weapon that may better suit your playing style. Speaking of “realism” it is abundantly clear that your enemy is not playing by the same rules you are playing by. Enemy’s don’t dismount vehicles they just suddenly appear next to the vehicle they were just in, ready to fight and they usually mow you down with one burst. To kill an enemy it takes a few burst where as you are usually put out of your misery with one burst sometimes with one round!

The visuals are “ok”. They are certainly not what we see in the screenshots and videos we saw before the release. Personally, I do not mind a few rough edges on foliage and terrain elements sometimes if it means higher frame rates and draw distance. But you will probably roll your eyes in disbelief when you sit in a passenger seat and watch another AI player drive – they sit completely motionless, with only their arms moving, creating a marionette effect. It’s almost disturbing. Some moments are quite impressive though. Running through the woods on a particular night mission during multiplayer, laden with fog and foliage was of particular beauty. As you might expect, Flashpoint 2 favors vast, sprawling environments which can accommodate battles of impressive scale. We’re told that the island itself spans 220 square kilometers or 134 square miles, and that the viewing distance is about 35km.

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising isn’t what they said it was, or remotely close to what was implied. Sure, there are some VERY fun dynamics and game play elements. And yes, I still enjoy it. But I also want to throw bricks at the people behind it, for offering me into something and giving me something different. And for releasing a game that feels like it’s still in beta. Allegedly a patch is in development though, and I anxiously await its release. I imagine the most visible of bugs will be patched, but some of the most frustrating elements don’t seem like something that could be fixed very quickly. We will have to wait and see.

In the meantime, if you’re unsure on whether to pick up Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, my advice is this: if you have money to burn, and are a very patient person with a slight penchant for optimism, go for it. If you have a limited budget for game purchases, or are easily frustrated by game play hiccups large or small… hang on to your money for now, there are dozens of fantastic games on their way. Keeping fingers crossed for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

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