The Just Win Clan

SOCOM Confrontation Reviewed

 By Matt Phillips – Second Opinion by Bill Tomer

The SOCOM series has been one of the most successful series of online games in history.  For many, including me, SOCOM introduced us to the future of video games…playing online. I can still remember the first day I hooked up my PS2 to the internet.  I can remember thinking how cool it felt to know that I could play a game with my friends without sitting in the same room.  I can remember the first time I heard someone talking over the headset and thinking I was in some science fiction movie. All of that seems like a lifetime ago.  Now we have wireless controllers, Bluetooth headsets, HD TV’s, Blu-ray players and flat screen televisions.  We also have a new SOCOM game.

The concept behind this game was to take what was done in SOCOM 2 on the PS2 and transfer that experience and gameplay to the PS3.  I like to think of it as SOCOM 2 on steroids.  The developer, Slant Six Games, realized that the core fan of the series was desperate to play the more intimate maps where team work and tactics is the core of the game.  The developer even went so far as to reinvent some of our favorite maps and weapons, all in an effort to keep the game as close to the SOCOM 2 concept as possible. 

Graphics – 7.5

While the graphics of the game are not exactly innovating, they aren’t bad either.  Like some other aspects of the game, I’m on the fence.  If you take what was done on the PS2 and then compare it to the new game, the graphics are amazing.  On the other hand if you compare them to some of the newer games on the market today that are played on the next generation systems, the graphics are probably slightly below average.  I’m of the opinion that the developer wanted to clean the game up but at the same time didn’t want to change too much.  If you are a SOCOM 2 fan then you know how the old maps looked.  Lots of shadows, blurred lines, poor contrast ETC.  This game kind of kept that same feel.  It’s funny because back in the day I remember messing with the settings on my TV just so I could see other players on the map.  The new game is the same way.  I am not sure if that is done intentionally or if it’s just a design flaw, but the lighting and contrast could have been cleaned up considerably.  It’s not bad, not by a long shot, but it could have been better.

Sound – 10

The sound of the game is probably the one area where I think the game really exceeds expectations.  Each weapon has a unique sound which is extremely close to the real thing and possibly better sounding than any game I’ve played.  Sound actually bounces off walls so a gun being fired in an alleyway sounds different from one being fired in the open.  This is crucial on some of the maps as it can give away enemy positions.  If someone throws a grenade and it lands close by, you can tell which way to run solely from the sound of it bouncing along the ground.  If someone is shooting at you with a silenced weapon you can hear the bullets whizzing by your head.  If someone is walking close by you can hear their footsteps.  Heck, with the implementation of proximity voice chat, you can even hear and enemy or an ally that hasn’t cued their mic talking out loud through your sound system speakers.  This feature is outstanding and long overdue in online shooter games.

Playability – 7.5

The controls of the game could use a tune up.  First off, everything is right where it’s supposed to be.  There are several different presets that you can choose from and there is even an option where you can customize the buttons to whatever point on the controller you want.  The game is really designed to be played with the default setting so I forced myself to use it.  It took about a dozen games before I was doing what I wanted to do without thinking.  For me that learning curve time is a little on the high side.  I attribute this to the design of the weapon switch feature.  At the start of each map you have to set the two weapons you want to switch between.  The default is always the primary and secondary weapons.  In order to quickly switch between the primary and the “gear” (grenades, C-4, claymores, RPG, ETC) you have to hold the circle button, press the D pad and highlight the weapon you want, and then press L1 to set it.  For some reason you have to do this at the start of each game.  Sometimes it will save it, other times it won’t.  The only way to be sure you have it set is to reset it at the start of every round.  It’s not as difficult as it sounds and with some practice it becomes second nature but still there should be an easier way and there should be more consistency in whether or not the game saves your settings from round to round.  It should be mentioned that the reason the game needed this control change from previous versions is because for the first time, SOCOM has a sprint feature added to the control scheme.  This is a good addition and one that was and is needed in the SOCOM franchise.   

The sensitivity of the “look” joystick also feels a bit sluggish at times. I’ve noticed that I will be running, spot an enemy, stop to shoot him and my crosshairs will not be where I would expect them to be.  It’s hard to explain, but it seems like it’s just a split second late.  Almost like my mind and finger are processing what I want to do faster than the game can keep up.  The game does still have an option to turn up this sensitivity but for the life of me I can’t seem to find a spot where I feel completely comfortable.

Fun Factor – 8.0

Even with slightly sluggish controls and less than perfect graphics this game is a freaking blast to play.  Hour after hour it never really gets old.  The game offers several different ways to play each map.  You can play suppression, elimination, demolition, breach, control, escort, or extraction on each map.  You also have the option to play each one of the aforementioned scenarios in either day or night.  The game also has ranked medleys for those of us who want to play serious games.  The ranked games are preset and can not be modified in any way.  This is a direct result of the many rank up rooms in SOCOM 2.  So far the game offers a regular medley, demo medley, and elimination medley that Slant Six says they will add to in the future.  You can choose to play each one in a 4v4, 8v8, or 16v16 room.  The amount of players in the room determines the size of the map. 

The regular medley is more of a generic game.  It takes you through several of the maps each one a different scenario and size.  The demolition and elimination medleys are self explanatory.  The really cool thing about the medleys is that when ever you get tired of one you just change it up and the game is completely different.  I’ve yet to get even moderately bored with any of them.  It’s really cool to see how different tactics are used, depending on the objective of the map.  The only disappointment (and It’s a small one) is that there aren’t very many maps.  The developer has promised to release more maps down the road so I’m assuming this will not be an issue in the future. 

However, there is a downside.  The game is still flawed in many areas.  For one, lag is a constant problem.  At times it’s tolerable, other times it’s horrible.  I will admit that it seems to be slowly getting better the older the game gets, but be prepared for some frustration.  There are still tons of glitches throughout each map.  I don’t understand why this series is plagued with these problems but Confrontation is no exception.  Grenades are all but worthless.  Unless you actually hit someone in the head it, they are ineffective.  I’m not a fan of the sniper scopes.  The crosshairs suck, and having to press the D pad up twice to zoom in and out takes too much time.  The game will still freeze up on you from time to time.  This has been a problem since the Beta but with a few patches it has gotten much better.  The navigation in the menus is a complete joke.  For some reason you can not see what room your friends are playing in friends or clan list screens.  I’m ok with not being able to join a game with friends from the friends list, but I would at least like to know which game they are playing in so I can follow.  The way it is now you have to text them on the PSP network to find out which game they are in.  Even in the clan home page all it will tell you is that the player is in the “front end” but not what room.  There is a new patch coming out soon that is supposed to fix a lot of these problems, plus add in few more options.

The ranking system makes no sense.  This is a big issue with me and an area that I would like to see improved upon.  The whole point in the ranked rooms is to be able to compare yourself to other players.  With no explanation from the developer what the criteria is to move up in rank it’s impossible to know just how you stack up.  I’ve heard many theories including the number of kills, the number of games won, your hit percentage, the number of MVPs you have, the weapons used, ETC.  I’ve also heard it’s a combination or those, but to what that combination actually is, is a complete mystery.  Another annoyance is that any time you switch special forces your rank starts over?  This makes absolute no sense to me.

In this game you have the option of choosing between the French, German, Spanish, British, and US Special Forces when creating a clan.  This is something new to the world of SOCOM.  Each of the groups includes special weapons and body armor along with a few minor changes in appearance options.  The changes in armor are so minor that it’s not very noticeable, but the difference in weapons is very important.  Each group has a unique weapon that only that group can use.  For example the British have the IW-80, and the French have the FAMAS G2 as a weapon choice.  Both weapons are unique in their own way and offer different advantages and disadvantages.  It all factors in to overall game play.

Replay Value – 10

Obviously the replay value on this type of game is off the scale.  That is the intention of an online only game.  Total replay value because of the constant changing of gameplay against human opponents and the ability to download new content made available by the developer.  With the ability to constantly add new maps and features along with patches to fix problems, I could measure the playing time in years, not months.

Overall (An Average) – 8.6

It’s hard to know where to come out on the overall score of this game.  On one hand it’s got a lot of problems, on the other it’s got a ton of potential.  The way I look at it’s that even with the all the problems I’m still playing it almost daily.  I can’t find any other game that can actually suck you in so completely that it can actually be a huge adrenaline boost.  That feeling of being the last one alive on your team and knowing that everyone is watching your ever move to see how you play it knowing that your team is counting on you to win the game.  Then there is the bonus of making friendships over the years with clans staying together throughout the span of two different systems and 5 different games.  SOCOM Confrontation is far from perfect but it’s still one of the best games on the market today.

Second Opinion on SOCOM Confrontation

By Bill Tomer

SOCOM Confrontation is the game the [W] Clan has been waiting for.  SOCOM is the franchise in which the clan was created.  You can imagine the anticipation among this group of gamers.  Unfortunately, it’s hard not to feel mixed feelings about this game. 

On one hand we’ve been handed the next generation version of the series.  There are good advancements made to the game that include character customization, proximity chat, improved sound effects, a sprint feature, advanced ballistics and the improved graphics you would expect from a next generation console game.  The game is fun to play.  It is what you would expect from a SOCOM game.  There is a lot of tactical play and a lot of teamwork, and a team that does both the best will win each match.  That is what SOCOM fans were looking for. 

However, the game is marred by so many problems that there are times it’s hard to have fun playing the game.  Couple that with the missing features that were promised and are even listed on the game’s box, the slow production of the patches to fix the game, and the general lack of honest communication between the developers and the people who are playing the game, you’ve got a really tough pill to swallow.  Some people will see that the developers are writing blogs on SOCOM.com that explain what is going on and think that the developers are doing a good job staying in contact with the players.  Unfortunately, they’re only telling us about the features that will come out in the next patch that in reality should have been released in the game originally. 

It’s two months since release and we’re still talking about a lot of things completely missing in the game.  The game was supposed to have a clan ladder system, detailed leaderboards, highly detailed statistic tracking and a calendar for clan functions and events.  On the first day of the beta some of those existed, but they were cut out to help stop all of the server issues and haven’t been seen since.

The major argument against the game at this time is that it was released too early.  Sony made demands on Slant Six, gave them a deadline and Slant Six was unable to meet that deadline with a finished and polished product.  That is true.  Unfortunately, it seems that there have been no other resources allocated to the improvement of the game since release.  When the game was originally released, due to all the server issues, the game was practically unplayable for two weeks.  A patch was released and it fixed a lot of the connectivity issues that players were having.  Now it’s a month and a half later and we’re still waiting for the next patch.  Most of the players I’ve talked to have made it clear that they would have preferred smaller, more frequent patches than one major one that took a month and a half (maybe longer) to build and test.  Also, the next patch about to be released won’t even add all of the features that were supposed to be released in the game on the original release date.  At this point, a lot of hardcore SOCOM fans are feeling completely betrayed by the series and that’s unfortunate for a group that is so loyal.

With that being said as Matt stated earlier, this game shows a lot of potential.  The features that are supposed to be included in the game, when they are actually implemented, will make this game a must have for SOCOM diehards and newbies alike.