Reviewed: October 30, 2004
Reviewed by: Mongoose

Publisher
Eidos Interactive

Developer
Guerilla Games

Released: September 14, 2004
Genre: Action
Players: 1
ESRB: Mature

6
7
6
5
6.0

System Requirements

With no less than four Vietnam-inspired titles hitting shelves all within weeks of each other, military action gamers have some hard choices to make, unless your pockets run deep and your tolerance for mediocre games is high. After my 7-hour tour of duty in Guerilla’s vision of Vietnam, I was left as uninspired as the developers must have been making this game.

Before ShellShock, my only previous experience with a Vietnam game had been Gathering’s Vietcong: Purple Haze, outstanding on the PC, utter crap on the consoles. I was still in search of a good console war game that took me to the dangerous jungles of Vietnam, and unfortunately, I still am.

ShellShock tries to distinguish itself from its three competing titles by promising disturbing realism or as the PR hype would have you believe, "the shocking realities and tragedies of what actually happened out in the jungle." Admittedly, the cutscenes live up to their promise of brutality, and the salty language would have a sailor blushing, but once you get into the actually gameplay, things just fall apart.

After a few weeks of off-and-on playing on the unimpressive PS2 and Xbox versions I was admittedly a bit skeptical when I was asked to head into the jungles of Vietnam for yet a third tour of duty. Given only the extra few days of development time I wasn't holding out for too much enhancement for the PC version if any. My hopes were raised slightly when I saw the stiff system requirements - DVD required and they were recommending a system three times as powerful as the Xbox, but once I installed the game and started playing I quickly realized, nothing much had changed at all.

The promised “character growth” would have you believing there was going to be a skill system in place that would let you assign points, or at best improve various skills like shooting, stealth, bomb disposal, disarming traps, etc. No such luck. Yes, your character does get promoted from grunt to Special Forces, but this is only a superficial treatment through a cutscene. It has absolutely no effect on gameplay.

The core gameplay is more action-shooter than military-sim, not that I was suspecting anything along the lines of Full Spectrum Warrior mind you. You play from a third-person view but can aim down the site for a little first-person shooting gallery fun as you pop the Cong coming over the hills or peeking out of bunkers.

The damage model and health system is ridiculously forgiving, taking what little edge there may have been from the game and eliminating it entirely. The rest of your squad is pretty much impervious to damage so they can conveniently die in scripted cutscenes to fuel your rage and quest for vengeance, not that you’ll develop any emotional attachment to your men. You, yourself can magically heal by simply removing yourself from the action and keeping out of trouble for a few seconds. I was reminded of HALO where the shield recharges after a few moments of silence only now it’s your health.

AI is pretty weak. Your men don’t have to be smart since they aren’t going to die until the scriptwriter says they die. The enemy doesn’t have to be smart because they have an endless supply of screaming Viet Cong to throw at you. You might see the occasional “smart” one take cover and lob a grenade but most simply rush at you or run around in chaotic patterns making the whole game a big turkey shoot. ShellShock also employs scripted spawning, which means that enemies will spawn behind you after you’ve cleared an area - painfully annoying at first, but mindlessly predictable on future replays.

Control was "different" from the console versions but not necessarily better. The more responsive mouse did allow me to pivot and shoot those enemies sneaking up on my six and I was obviously much more precise in my targeting, but there is no mistaking this is a direct console to PC port. Stick a gamepad on your PC and you won't be able to tell you aren't playing the console version. Again, not a bad thing, but Nam '67 certainly won't meet the control and play dynamics that PC gamers demand.

While the missions try to offer some interesting objectives, the core of them all relies on you shooting just about everything that moves and possibly blowing up or securing a few key targets. Even when the mission indicates a bit of stealth would be useful, there is nothing built into the controls or gameplay to actually give the game any stealth quality.

All of the missions are linked through the central hub known as your base camp. This is an interesting concept, for about 15 minutes, then you have seen everything and talked to everyone, and it becomes more of a diversion, and even slightly annoying. You’ll get to hear some cool 60’s tunes over the PA along with some announcements. There is even a bartering system in place that allows you to trade loot taken from the enemy for chits, so you can buy things like drugs, postcards, and a pass off the base to enjoy some “female companionship”. I’m sure banging the local whores was a reality of war, but to include it in the game (nothing is even shown other than a shaking hut), and then to offer CG-rendered photos of the hookers as unlockable rewards just seems cheap. Vietnam was a war, not a peep show.

Buildings are as simple as it gets with no complex architecture or texturing. Huts, barracks, and anything else you can enter are simple box-like structures. There isn’t a lot of set dressing so most buildings are oddly empty or sparsely decorated at best. Despite the high-end video requirement for the PC version, the only thing improved is the resolution at which you can play the game. Naturally, the game looks a bit sharper, but nothing to justify the cost of the hardware required to run it.

Character design is very nice but some of the animation is just horrible. Headshots result in an explosion that looks like the target had an M80 in his mouth. Unless you are using a shotgun at close range heads just don’t “pop”. Limbs can also get blasted off by gunfire or explosions, but these animations pale to those found in even older games like Soldier of Fortune. In ShellShock, the limbs merely drop off like something in a Monty Python sketch.

I will give credit for some of the most brutal cutscenes I have witnessed in a video game. The horrors of war are brought to incredible life with violent and bloody animations that at times can get a bit gratuitous. One particularly disturbing scene of a hooker getting beaten and executed seemed to have been there only for the shock value.

Sound effects are good from an environmental aspect. There are traditional jungle noises, insects, trickling water, etc. but the game really suffers when it comes to the weapon effects. None of the guns in the game sound all that threatening, although explosions are powerful. I do have to take points off for not including any type of surround support. This is certainly a game that would have benefited from 3D or EAX surround sound.

The voice acting is good for the most part despite the heavy use of foul language. I’m no choirboy, but you can always tell when characters are cussing to emphasize a point, and when they are cussing to “shock” the listener. The quality of the voices can be a bit low at times, often hollow with even some static, and that’s the guy I’m talking to directly. It’s almost like all the dialogue was run through the radio filter.

The dozen or so missions will take anywhere from 6-8 hours and you’ll have no reason to go back and replay it anytime soon. If you want the definitive Vietnam experience on the PC then run out and get Vietcong: Purple Haze right now. If you want some killer multiplayer Vietnam action then go get Battlefield: Vietnam. If you won't some disturbing cutscenes, loads of swearing, and uninspired gameplay to tie it all together then go get Nam '67.

Some action gamers might get their money’s worth in a weekend rental or a budget purchase, but anyone looking for a quality squad-based military game had better look elsewhere. ShellShock might be shocking, but it wimps out where it counts. Save your chits for something else.