Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix Updated Preview

There have been a lot of shooters released this year, and there will be a lot more out next year. But since very few will feature modern-day weaponry and locales, and fewer still will fall outside the realm of being more serious tactical games like Ghost Recon, arguably the most exciting of those games is Raven Software's Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix. It's really one of the few games that will feature recognizable weaponry without being overly complex...or complex at all, for that matter. We've already seen the game twice this year--once at E3 and again at QuakeCon--but we snapped at the opportunity for a hat trick when Activision and Raven Software offered us the chance to play the game one more time. The build of Soldier of Fortune II we saw was, naturally, the latest version of the game, and it seemed nearly complete, which is surprising considering that Activision announced it only less than six months ago. Raven's project administrator, Kenn Hoekstra, assured us that Soldier of Fortune II still has a solid five to six months of development time ahead of it, but we were nonetheless impressed by what we saw.

As you'd expect, Soldier of Fortune II takes place after the events of the original, and you will reprise the role of ex-special operative John Mullins. What you probably didn't know is that the game actually starts you off in a flashback level that occurs roughly 15 years prior to the events in the original Soldier of Fortune. As John Mullins, you're tasked with infiltrating Soviet-held Prague during the height of the Cold War. While in the Czech city, you're to meet and escort a Russian scientist who wants to defect from the Soviet Union. This scientist is apparently very skilled in the field of viral and biological weapons, and when the game actually starts 15 years later, you find out that his work has been duplicated and that the end result has wiped out an entire village in Colombia. When the game starts, Mullins is once again called to duty, and one of the first missions that you'll encounter takes place in the jungles of that South American country.

In this level, you are actually part of a US Force Recon Marine unit that comprises about six members. Your character is strictly an observer--albeit, an observer with a weapon--so you'll often be ordered around by the squad leader. Since the game's announcement, there's always been talk about a small element of squad-based combat, but it had been unclear about how you'd order your squad around. It turns out the squad will do all the ordering--your job will simply be to follow orders. In fact, if you keep disobeying the squad leader's direct orders, he'll be forced to shoot you for insubordination. The Colombia level shows off several of Soldier of Fortune II's more appealing aspects, including the Quake III engine's ability to render massive outdoor environments. Some of the early screenshots showed off this level's gorgeous jungle environments, and the vegetation you'll find here is even more impressive in motion. Unlike other games that use sprites for grass, all the undergrowth in Soldier of Fortune II is procedurally drawn, so it looks and acts realistically. But as good as it looks, this technique isn't just for show, as the grass can be used by you and your enemies for cover. Specifically, one of the new features in the game will be the ability for you to lie in a prone position, which provides excellent cover against enemies on patrol. It also makes it easier for enemies to ambush you, and the AI will do just that.

In fact, according to Hoekstra, the game will have three distinct types of AI. The first, friendly AI, is what your sidekicks and squadmates will use when attacking others; it involves the basic tactics of engagement, like seeking cover and using radios to communicate with one another. Then there's enemy AI, which isn't all that different from the friendly AI in that the enemies too will use radios and work as a unit during combat, although not with the same level of precision as the friendlies. Some enemies can even be seen dropping their primary weapon when they run out of ammo and then reach for a pistol or another gun. The riffraff of Soldier of Fortune II, however, will use what Raven calls thug AI in their attempts to fight you. Thug AI is pretty much the same kind of AI that most of the enemies in the original Soldier of Fortune used. That is, they won't work as a team, nor will they try to be stealthy--they'll simply try to overpower you with brute strength. Of course, there's nothing wrong with a face-to-face firefight in a first-person shooter like this one. After all, Soldier of Fortune is famous for its visceral weapons and frenetic action.

And there certainly won't be any shortage of weapons in Soldier of Fortune II. The game will undoubtedly be a delight for gun nuts everywhere, as you'll have access to firepower such as the M4A1, the M203 grenade launcher, the AK74, the Heckler & Koch G3, the Uzi, the Heckler & Koch Mk23, the USAS12 auto shotgun, the Soviet RPG7, the MM-1 grenade launcher, and a 12-gauge pump shotgun. Additionally, Soldier of Fortune II will even have the coveted OICW, the infantry rifle that the US Army hopes will soon replace the M16/M203. The OICW is actually two guns in one--an assault rifle that fires .223 rounds, as well as a 20mm grenade launcher--mated with a robust fire control system that lets the user of the gun practically hit targets that are hiding behind walls. Apparently, the game will have a special mini interface strictly for this gun, and players will have to go through a training session with a Marine before getting access to the OICW. Other weapons include a Colt 1911 and an M3-A1 for the prequel mission, as well as various mounted arms like the M60. What's more, most of these weapons will have multiple modes of fire--the M4A1 has single, burst, and full modes, for example--and some are even modular. That is, you can upgrade your existing weapons by attaching different items onto them, such as a bayonet for the AK74, a silencer and a LAM unit for the Mk23, and an M203 grenade launcher for the M4A1. And if you so choose, you can carry a different gun in each hand for an even higher level of customization.

All these weapons are beautifully rendered, and you'll easily see details such as moving slides, hammers, and clips on most of your arsenal. In fact, all the environment and object models in the game look great, even in its incomplete stage. Soldier of Fortune II will also have various weather effects, like rain. One of the missions takes place on board an ocean liner in Tampa Bay during a squall, and the rain effect is on par with that found in the Metal Gear Solid 2 demo. But this shouldn't dishearten those who don't own a mean gaming rig, since Soldier of Fortune II will be scalable to accommodate as wide a range of system specs as possible. According to Hoekstra, Raven Software is aiming for a minimum spec of a 300MHz Pentium II, with 64MB of RAM and a Voodoo3 video card, but he points out that the game will look much better on and take advantage of a high-end system equipped with a card like a GeForce III or a Radeon. With the rock-bottom price of hardware these days, nobody should have an excuse not to enjoy this game's visuals when it releases early next year. When exactly? It's still too early to say, but there's a good chance that we'll see Soldier of Fortune II on store shelves in March. Of course, we'll update you on its development well before then, but in the meantime, feast your eyes on the latest batch of screenshots.