In the world of FPS, you better bring some quality to the table because it’s a flooded market. So how did a game like Rogue Warrior make it to retail? We’re not to saying that it's a horrible, broken mess or anything. The game just feels astoundingly generic and the single-player gameplay lasts like three to four hours. Also, it has two stock multiplayer modes--deathmatch and team deathmatch--neither of which are much fun. It's the sort of game that might make sense as a throwaway budget title, but at full price, Rogue Warrior is a jip.
Surprisingly the game is voiced by Mickey Rourke, who rambles all of his lines in a way that seems completely half hearted instead of hardcore. Rogue Warrior might be the filthiest, most curse-filled game to ever make its way onto console. Playing as Navy SEAL "Demo" Dick Marcinko, puts you right into a big ‘ol pile of poo. Almost every line of dialogue from Mickey Rourke is full of language you don’t want you mother or a child to hear. Half the time, the lines barely make sense when set against the action. That will certainly be a turn-off to those of you with more sensitive ears. But even if you're accustomed to the rough stuff, the way it's used in Rogue Warrior is only good at making the game a bit more laughable than it would be otherwise. Without the over-the-top language, Rogue Warrior wouldn't have any discernible characteristics at all.
As far as the story goes, you play as Marcinko immediately after he's inserted into North Korean territory, where he's planning to investigate a missile-building operation. In true Rambo-like fashion, Dick doesn't stand down after figuring out what's going on. Rather than waiting for backup, you'll infiltrate Russia, blow up some more missiles, destroy a bunker or a palace or two, and then get out. Right about that time, the credits roll. No seriously. It’s that fast.
The gameplay does allow for a bit of stealthy strategy and even packs in some melee kills which are just animations that play out when you get close to an enemy and hit the action button. These usually involve Marcinko burying his knife deep into the skulls or torsos of his foes, and they get repetitive quickly. Also, in multiple cases the icon for the kill move would appear, but hitting the appropriate button wouldn't actually trigger the animation. It all feels very sloppy.
The shooting isn't much better. The movement feels stiff, and motions like looking down the sights of your gun feel sluggish, like it's taking more time than it should. Also, the guns take up large portions of the screen when you're aiming down the sights, which can make it hard to line up headshots. I ended up playing most of the game with the default pistol, which is silenced and has infinite ammunition.
There is multiplayer which offers both deathmatch and team deathmatch with a small amount of maps to play on. Though you can perform the knife-based kill animations in multiplayer, it only takes a few bullets to drop an enemy. Also, I ran into an issue with the 360 version where, after a match ended, it rolled the credits and gave me an achievement for finishing a single-player level without dying. Since it played the amazing credit music again, I wasn't too bummed out about that. The multiplayer, like most of Rogue Warrior, is functional, but totally uninspired, with no hook to keep you coming back.
Graphically, Rogue Warrior sports some pretty awful effects. Though "Demo" Dick is supposed to be blowing things up left and right, the explosions look awfully pathetic. The animation is incredibly stiff and the enemy character models look really bad. Marcinko himself looks passable, compared to the rest of the game. Also, the frame rate is consistently low, with heavier dips during busy scenes or knife kill animations. The game is pretty much ugly from head to toe.
You’ve got to wonder just how a game like this gets past quality and assurance at a developer and publisher and makes its way onto shelves as a full-priced product. While there's some kind of ironic fun to be had by briskly completely the short campaign and hearing Mickey Rourke shout out curse words half-heartedly, it's virtually impossible to actually get $60 worth of value out of this disc. If you hate yourself, this might be the game for you. But considering the short length, fact that there’s virtually no replay value, this game is almost a practical joke on gaming. I say again; how did this game make it to store shelves?
Graphics | Audio | Gameplay | Replay | Genre | Final |
