FA-18 Operation Desert Storm

FA-18 Operation Desert Storm is a real-time strategy game that is due for release in the fourth quarter of next year. The game takes place in 1942 during World War II. The story is set in 1941, and it involves a fictitious German convoy that has made a successful evacuation of the island in an effort to colonize it and recover an experimental version of the M1 Abrams Abrams artillery in the nearby country. The game has been developed by Liquid Entertainment, a division of famed World War II mod-maker, and it features different weather effects such as rain, snow, and snow, among others.

"Wargaming.net has made a real difference in the real-time strategy genre," said Todd Van Veld, CEO of Liquid Entertainment. "From years of trying to solve complicated problems, we have created a real-time strategy game that will satisfy both new and returning players. We are confident that it will also reach new audiences and extend the franchise to new audiences. We will continue to develop the Wargaming.net platform, so that there will be an overwhelming majority of new players in the real-time strategy genre."

Those who played last year's Command & Conquer Yuri's Revenge will know that the game contains more than 150 types of units, including the global marine infantry, commando, and vehicles, as well as heavy armored vehicles. Each of these vehicles is equipped with a powerful weapon, such as a sniper rifle. Many of the vehicles, including artillery guns and flamethrowers, can be upgraded to deal more damage than the standard tanks, although they are slower.

Although the Command & Conquer series is primarily focused on fast-paced real-time strategy, the game is set in three distinct game modes. Combat in the game's multiplayer mode is based on a battle between nations, and it offers an interesting take on the economics-driven gameplay. The strategy game's single-player campaign lets you choose a side and command four different nations: the US, China, and Russia. Each of the factions will have an arsenal of combat vehicles, such as tanks and helicopters, which you'll have to ferry around for protection, though you'll also be able to enlist a small squadron of infantry in order to take on air support in case of fire. The multiplayer game is a free-for-all, though you will be able to play through the single-player campaign with up to four players, or you can purchase more-expressive multiplayer maps and mods for your existing games. The Xbox version of the game is due out this year, but you can expect more in the next few months.

Many of the multiplayer maps in the Xbox version of Conflict are based on real-world locations.

For its multiplayer mode, Conflict: Desert Storm was a tweaked version of a canceled tactical first-person shooter. As in the previous game, the action took place on a massive battlefield with hundreds of players parachuting into action. You'll be able to play as a number of different characters, and we've played a couple of different maps in the current version of the game. As you'd expect, the most interesting aspect of the Xbox version of Conflict is its co-op mode, which can be played cooperatively or competitively. We've played one mission at a couple of rounds of our own and have found the action to be engaging and challenging. We've played a couple of different areas on the PC version of the game, including one on a helicopter, and one on a shipping container ship. Most of the action takes place on the huge circular platforms in the levels. We've played on the Xbox version of the game in a team setting and have found that it can work well for those who like to get up close and personal on the battlefield.

When you're in the middle of a battle, you'll be able to see onscreen indicators showing how far you're going to be pushing forward. For example, in the second mission, we noticed that when one player runs off a ledge, another player is crouching behind cover and opening fire, putting him out of the fight instantly. In another mission, we had to work together with an enemy who was carrying a heavy machine gun, and we found that it took a lot more skill to be able to blow this guy off to the side.

This sort of gameplay is a mix of quick-time events and the traditional hectic one-on-one action. If you're just taking out enemies in the game, you can switch between a variety of weapons in the heat of battle--there are different kinds of weapons to choose from, and many of them can actually transform into more powerful versions of themselves. Each weapon will be tied to the exact combat style you use; you'll have different weapon combos and more powerful strikes at your disposal.

Unreal Tournament 2004 has some stunning graphics that take advantage of the Xbox's processing power to make you feel like you're in the game.