Socom 1 Is A Good Action Game But Falls On Its Face In The Stealth Department. Actionareno Kinda Tastic.
First off I'm only reviewing this from the single player aspect. There has been a lot of people who have been asking if the game is worth the $30+ purchase for the single player missions only. So I think a single player only review will be helpful. This is also due to the fact that I have yet to play the game online. When I do I'll make sure to write a review of the online play.
Gameplay : Controls are good. They get the job done and you hardly ever feel like they were the reason you died. With 12 levels each containing many objectives (some very difficult to complete), and AI that is good enough to make you feel like your not shooting at statues, will keep you playing for awhile. The MAJOR innovation in this area is the headset. NEVER have I seen voice recognition used in such an affective way. Shouting commands to your team mates and having them respond in the ear piece REALLY draws you into the game.
Graphics : Some people might think my score is low but here is the truth: this games graphics are average (5 being average). There are some nice looking models and a few pretty touches but over all there is nothing ground breaking. Which is fine since this was most likely needed to keep the game running with no slowdown. Oh and on a side note this game can be really dark making enemies hard to see, so you may want to turn the gamma up in the options.
Sound : Ok for starters the FIRST thing I did was turn the music off. When your out in the field in real life there isn't ''dynamic music'' that comes from nowhere (its very good any ways). I would have given the sound a 5 had it not had the headset which brings it to a new level. Having your team mates and base chatting through it is just amazing. Gun fire sounds good and the terrorists shout at you. overall the sound is good.
Ok remember where I said this was a SINGLE player review only? Well this is why this score is so low. Once you play through the missions you may never put the game in your PS2 again.
The AI does get harder after you finish the game the first time through and I heard you can select the terrorist guns for the missions after you complete the game, but this isn't enough to keep you playing. Maybe more missions or some unlockables would help, but this game was really meant to be played online.
This game is fun, VERY fun. But unless your going to play it online, you may want to barrow this from a friend or rent is for a few nights. It has many good point, ESPECIALLY the headset, but there is almost no reply value. Every thing else is, well, average