Rainbow Six Vegas 2 Review

Billed as "part prequel, part sequel", Vegas 2 follows the exploits of Bishop and his team in a storyline that runs prior to and concurrently to the timeline of the 2006 original, before eventually bringing everything to a thankful climax. Taking place initially in the past, Vegas 2 storyline reveals how Vegas' Logan Keller and Gabriel Nowak (boo hiss) were originally under the command of new protagonist Bishop. Play then forwards to the present, focussing on the threat of a second bomb and chemical weapons in Sin City.

Much like GRAW and GRAW2 there's very little to distinguish between the games, although if we had to stick our necks out we'd say there's even less between Vegas 2 and its predecessor. Minor new features include the ability to shoot through materials such as wood and plastic, Bishop's ability to sprint, and well that's about it... as we said, it's definitely falls into the expansion pack category when it comes to content and new features.

Undoubtedly, the biggest innovation stems from the A.C.E.S setup. Working closely to the experience point system found in the online multiplayer mode, A.C.E.S grants points for various different kills grouped under CQC, Assault, and Marksman, all of which helps to rise through the military ranks and unlock new weapons, armour, and various other goodies. The idea being that Bishop is a customisable character that can be taken seamlessly between the single-player and online multiplayer modes.

Fortunately despite the overwhelming sense of familiarity from the onset, the intuitive cover and squad command control remains enjoyable and the counter-terrorist gameplay still manages to provide the occasional adrenaline pumping sequence with an appreciated, if ever so slight, tactical edge. The sole gameplay introduction to really add anything substantially new to the formula comes from the ability to command squad members to chuck frag and smoke grenades wherever you're pointing. It's a little touch but it's definitely one that adds to the experience and quickly becomes a prominent technique in your repertoire.

Primarily the action is based around larger outdoor environments this time around, as you take on the less glamorous side of Las Vegas with plenty of shoot-out scenarios and the occasional peppering of hostage situations or bombs to defuse. We'd say the action doesn't quite reach the plateau offered by other shooters, and certainly the lack of any substantially tactical edge is now beginning to become even more apparent. There's simply not enough major set-pieces to dramatise the action, which soon spirals into the monotony of Whack-A-Mole shoot-outs.

The tactical deficiencies were easy enough to overlook the first time around, but this time we're beginning to side with the hardcore RS veterans now that the next-gen gloss and covering novelty has faded. The action never gets tactical enough and leaves you yearning for the co-ordinated team movements and planning that characterised older Rainbow Six titles- all of which was sacrificed in an attempt to appeal to a wider audience with the Vegas games.

Much like its prequel and the GRAW series, Vegas 2 single-player campaign is on the short side and is over in a handful of hours. Unless you're a Tom Clancy fanatic the storyline fails to really capture the imagination and we felt ourselves dragged through just to finish it rather then feeling hooked the entire way through. We were hoping for a few more nods and tie-in's with the original Vegas, and felt this was a significant area that Vegas 2 fails to explore.

Surprisingly the game still demonstrates AI issues in regards to control over your squad mates. Frequently we found ourselves out on our own simply because a partially closed door was causing too much confusion for the crack members of Rainbow Six! Equally, the group of terrorists you'll come across can vary between sharpshooting excellence to blind stupidity; Ubisoft Montreal have made bold claims about progress in this area, but there's still plenty of room for improvement.

Fortunately even though the single-player mode feels as though Ubisoft may have stretched it all a little too far, much like the original, Vegas 2 is all about the online multiplayer. Quickly establishing itself as a popular online shooter, Vegas fans won't be disappointed by the simple premise of more with Vegas 2. Like most of the game, there's nothing particularly new or different, although we suspect it's still likely to pull one or two fps fanatics away from CoD4 and stamp its mark for the next few months.

Once again, the XP system makes a return and works in tandem with the A.C.E.S system from the single-player mode. On the new front, Ubisoft have introduced 12 new maps geared around close-quarter-combat, altered a few modes and developed the co-op experience. Vegas fans won't need any reassurances about the appeal of the online multiplayer, though we have some reservations about its appeal beyond this audience.

Attack & Defend makes a welcome return with the original premise staying largely intact. Team Leader is an amalgamation of several modes from the original, with the challenge of killing the opponent's leader whilst ensuring yours survives. Total Conquest follows the same format as the downloadable Red Pack mode from the original Vegas, challenging teams to hold control of strategic satellite points for a certain time. Finally, the obligatory Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch complete the slightly limited initial selection of modes. Strangely, we couldn't find the original's Survival and Retrieval or the Red Pack's Assassination modes, though presumably these will appear on the Marketplace and PlayStation Store in the not too distant future.

Coming at the cost of a more complete and polished co-op mode Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 restricts this feature to two players from the original's count of four players. Joined by AI squad mates and a specific character for the second player, having the entire game more than makes up for the lack of players, though we suspect this will cause a few complaints amongst some of the Vegas players out there.

Finally, Terrorist Hunt returns in an expanded form with 12 new missions. Essentially one off skirmish missions that offer the task of eliminating a certain number of terrorists, this mode provides a surprisingly welcome opportunity to test out your tactics and provides a certain level of replay value after the short single-player mode has long finished.