Spec Ops: The Line PlayStation 3

Released on 29-Jun-2012

Dubai. A glittering beacon in the endless desert. Until the desert reclaimed it with a devastating sandstorm.

That was six months ago. And now, in Spec Ops: The Line on PlayStation 3, your mission is to head back into the city and locate the source of a mysterious radio signal...

Returning To Duty

Spec Ops: The Line marks the return of the Spec Ops series after a decade. This third-person shooter puts you in the role of Captain Martin Walker as you lead your Delta Force team through the sandstorm-ravaged streets of Dubai, evacuating any survivors. What sounds like a simple rescue mission turns into something far more complex, a city not only in ruins but in the grip of violence, with survivors battling for control. And at the heart of this darkness is the long-thought-dead Colonel John Konrad.

Crossing The Line

If you're looking for a tough, mature and narrative-driven game that pulls no punches, this is it. Spec Ops: The Line goes beyond simple 'right or wrong' decisions and into the moral ambiguities of war itself. Facing tough choices and impossible odds, how far will you go? Do you dare to cross the 'line' and do what has to be done? And who really is the enemy here?

Environmental Breakdown

The ruins and deserts of Dubai are a key part of Spec Ops: The Line. The once-opulent city would make for an interesting enough warzone before it's destruction, but the sand makes things so much worse, and seems to have a mind of its own, shifting in unpredictable ways, helping or hindering your mission. Storms and gales will whip up without any warning, paths can be cleared or blocked at a moment's notice and visibility reduced to mere silhouettes in an orange haze.

The city ruins provide key areas of cover, which match the third-person shooting perfectly. Much of the surroundings are destructible, too, adding an extra element of realism - and potential danger. But this can also be used to your advantage - take out a window or support beam and release an avalanche of sand to take down your opponents.

The 'I' In Team

As Captain Walker, you are flanked by two teammates who are as much part of the mission as you are. Combining squad control tactics with intelligent AI, you command your squad mates but they retain a certain amount of independence and character - characters who are also affected by the moral decisions that have to be made.

Spec Ops: The Line also features a host of multiplayer options for both competitive and co-op play and the chance to personalise and customise characters from both sides.

Preorder and receive the special FUBAR pack, including Double XP for one week, Officer Class bonus and extra weapons and accessories

• The Games We're Excited About!

  
  

  There are lots and lots of great games heading your way in the next few months, and here at gamestation HQ we're as excited as you lot are to give them a go.

  So, we went round the digital team with a prodding stick to find out just what games the team here are really itching to play...

  

  Ali - Queen of the Internet

  I am looking forward to LEGO Batman 2. My brother and I worked our way through the original LEGO Batman with a considered method of "shoot everything in the room first, think about the situation later" and it was amazing. It's also the only game where if you die you can still enjoy seeing Robin explode which I did on many occasions as Player 2. I can't wait to see what LEGO Batman 2 has in store!

  
  

  

  Louis - Merchandising Meddler

  Definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, Max Payne 3.

  After playing through 1 and 2 - which gripped me to the very end - I cannot honestly wait for 3.

  Max Payne's method of storytelling is awesome. The comic book cut scenes are stylish and effective, and are not afraid to poke fun at other, outrageous works of fiction (as well as itself). The noir style and twists and turns throughout provide a flourish of love which even the most dedicated of storytellers fail to keep up with. The ingredients are simple, but it's a recipe which works.

  The gameplay might not necessarily be innovative, but it will be intuitive. It might not change the way we think about games, but I know it's going to be a game through and through; fun, accessible and welcoming to noobs and veterans alike. Max Payne 3 is going to rock. Add online multiplayer to the mix, and I can safely say that I'm looking forward to blasting my way into June!

  (My second choice would be Aliens: Colonial Marines, but that's almost too far away to get excited about yet!)

  Kate - Affiliate Assassin

  Bioshock Infinite - Because of the amazing animation and design of the game. Oh, and Limbo 2 - if/when it comes!

  

  Jamie - Builder of Digital Dreamscapes

  I am looking forward to...

  Grand Theft Auto V: Obviously no one really knows exactly when this game is coming out but I cant wait! Seriously excited about a new GTA! Although I hope it is all of San Andreas and not just Los Santos.

  Madden 13: I always get Madden, and it was pretty much the game that made me buy my first proper games console (the SEGA Mega Drive). I'm particularly looking forward to this year's one as I'm hoping they have taken more of the good stuff out of NCAA12... and also because I can't wait for Madden on the PS Vita.

  Retro City Rampage: This is an indie game that just looks AMAZING! Kind of like a funny GTA but all totally 80s styled. It's gonna be on Xbox LIVE and PSN and I like the fact it looks like you might be able to get this digitally to play on your PS Vita too; it seems like the kind of game you could just lose hours in messing about!

  

  Carl - Design Doodler

  Halo 4. Why? Because it's the best freaking game there is! I'm a massive Halo fan and I'm really looking forward to the next instalment. And really looking forward to seeing Master Chief again. And now we know the release date i know what week to book off work!

  
  

  Aaron - Social Butterfly

  I almost squealed for joy when Luigi's Mansion 2 was announced (Okay, I actually did squeal...). The original Luigi's Mansion was the first game I got on launch day with my Gamecube. It was ALL about Luigi, sucking up ghosts with his Poltergust 3000. The sequel has me itching to play, it will have multiple mansions, a new Poltergust, new ghosts, new story AND it will all be in beautiful 3D. The Nintendo savvy amongst us will know that Nintendo originally planned to release Luigi's Mansion in 3D on the Gamecube but decided the 3D panel was ahead of its time!

  Who ya gonna call? Ghostb-- No, no wait, let's just get the Green hat-wearing Italian plumber from the Mushroom Kingdom instead. No danger of crossing the streams.

  

  Damien - Good Word Writing Man

  I'm actually really looking forward to Lollipop Chainsaw. I'm a big Buffy fan, so the concept of a blonde cheerleader fighting supernatural beasties is one that very much appeals to me. It just looks like it's gonna be oodles of OTT fun. Plus, y'know, the boyfriend's head just kicking around. What's not to like?

  As a stark contrast, I'm also a bit excited by Spec Ops: The Line. I don't usually get on with shooters, but having seen the trailer with the bodies-on-poles imagery, plus the obvious Heart of Darkness influence and the sense of "killing people may actually affect you", I really want to try this one out. I mean, who isn't at least intrigued by what appears to be an anti-war third-person shooter?

  

  James - Captain Category

  Diablo III.

   

   

  Because I've been waiting twelve years for it!

  
  

  So there we have it. These are the games we want to play - what about you? What forthcoming titles have got you so pant-wettingly excited to pre-order and play?

• Spec Ops: The Line - Preview

  
  

  

  War never changes, or so the gruff incantation that prefaces the Fallout games so famously says. True that, but the problem is that the unwavering nature of war doesn't half make for some boring videogames. Save one world from the clutches of some deranged despot and you've saved them all, and with the sheer abundance of copycat modern war games these days, all these heroics can get a bit tiresome.

  Thank the heavens for Spec Ops: The Line, then, a war game with a very real difference. It's a difference that rings through every fibre of its being too; here's something that should, at the very least, be a real tonic to the standard shooting fare.

  Just Deserts

  Set in a Dubai that finds itself ripped apart with conflict, the first thing that really marks Spec Ops out is its ingenious use of its locale. This is a Dubai seen through a twisted lens; the millionaire's playground is a jarring clash of rampant consumerism and Middle East culture.

  The theme's played well enough in Spec Ops: The Line - huge, opulent hotels with crystal giraffes in their lobbies sit awkwardly against an expanse of yellow and blue, while grand shopping malls have their pristine glass exteriors blown in by violent sandstorms.

  

  There's a conflict and contrast suggested by the setting that's carried throughout the game's story, character and themes. Following a barrage of catastrophic weather, Dubai is, quite literally, deserted, its occupants fleeing in fear. Chaos is left in its wake, with pockets of fighters left behind holding up against those wishing to loot the riches that are now unguarded.

  And at the heart of all this is a Colonel John Konrad, a Delta Force member who's holding fast and who, reports suggest, has become gripped by the insanity that's torn through the area. You play as Martin Walker, head of the eponymous Spec Ops unit, and you're tasked with pulling Konrad out.

  The Secret Agent

  It's a set-up that may sound more than a little familiar to many. Spec Ops: The Line leans heavily on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, and subsequently finds itself borrowing from the machismo schlock of Francis Ford Coppola's loose cinematic adaptation Apocalypse Now.

  Spec Ops is hardly the first to find inspiration from such sources - Ubisoft Montreal's Far Cry 2 could be seen to be studiously leafing through the same pages - but it does so with more conviction than its contemporaries.

  The conflict that's running through the area also runs through Walker, and as he finds himself going deeper and deeper towards Spec Op's own heart of darkness he finds himself confronted with ever more complex moral dilemmas - and finds himself face-to-face with horrors that he may well be complicit in.

  

  Cold-Hearted Killing

  So how does it play? Well, to be frank on the surface Spec Ops: The Line is a rote third-person cover based shooter, with you and your squad mates ducking between blocks of concrete to take down hordes of lookalike enemies. It's admittedly a little dry, but what threatens to make Spec Ops stand out is the sense of consequence to your actions.

  At one point late in an early demo of the game Walker - and subsequently the player - finds himself presented with a choice. There's a remote unit that can operate a gun that's filled with deadly phosphorous ammunition: do you use it to obliterate the camp in front of you, or do you choose to slowly stealth your way in, picking off the enemy one by one?

  Choose the former and you're presented with a rip of the famed AC-130 scene from the first Modern Warfare as you bring down death from above. There's a difference, though; in the hard glass of the screen there's a reflection of Walker's face, a study in cold calculation as he kills at the touch of a button. Once the area's been cleared out, you walk through the aftermath, a bed of twisted bodies and soldiers screaming in mutilated agony. And, it turns out, a handful of citizens who were caught in the crossfire, including a mother and child frozen in a charred embrace.

  It's chilling and effective, and potentially one of the smartest deconstructions of the shooter since BioShock came along. War, it seems, has changed.

• Spec Ops: The Line - Preview

  
  

  

  The games market is crammed with outstanding shooters and most of them are huge sellers, too. So any developer looking to bring a new entry to the genre needs to carve its own unique niche. Step out of the shadows Spec Ops The Line, a third-person thriller that brings the true 'horror' of war kicking and screaming to the forefront.

  Inspired by the brilliant 1979 movie Apocalypse Now and its source novel, Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness, The Line is a brooding, nerve-shredding shooter that marries tactical gunplay to the raw survival instincts of Resident Evil. But there aren't any ghosts or zombies lurking in its dark and sandy corridors; the terror in this game is of the real, very human kind. Scared? You should be petrified...

  

  Hello, Dubai

  While games like Call Of Duty and Battlefield focus on the chaos of the battlefield, The Line devotes its energies to crafting a terrifying adult story. You star as an army captain who is packed off with two fellow troops to Dubai to investigate the whereabouts of a missing US colonel called Konrad (note the literary reference). A year prior to the narrative, Dubai had been ravaged by a vicious sandstorm, forcing the nation to call America for help. But while Konrad was the man sent in as a saviour, he hasn't been heard of or seen since. Cue one big, scary mystery...

  As you enter the ruins of Dubai, it is very clear that Konrad has gone stark raving bonkers and established a violent yet primitive dictatorship over the city's survivors. Lawbreakers are hung from scenery, deadly warnings are scrawled on broken buildings, and opponents are brutally tortured, their screams echoing out of battered speakers that are strewn throughout the dusty environs. It's a far cry from the sunny paradise that's popular with holidaymakers today.

  

  War Games

  Its developer has already declared this game to "explore the dark realities of war" while placing players "in difficult situations where the line between right and wrong become increasingly blurred". And its many trailers have shown stark and disturbing scenes of hostages being executed, and piles of haggard corpses propped up against decaying walls.

  In one gut-wrenching scenario, you encounter two prisoners hanging from a bridge, and with Konrad's menacing tones delivering orders through crackling speakers, you're charged with deciding which of the two men is to die - or, if you're brave (and/or foolish), trying to take out the hidden sniper.

  With its battered, sun-scorched setting, eerie locales and realistic fire-fights, Spec Ops The Line is a raw and unflinching experience. Gun ammunition is at a premium, and you can't recharge your health like you do in Call Of Duty. There are hard decisions to make as the story unfolds, and some of its set-pieces are amazing. Just be warned though: Spec Ops The Line is a game that wants to do more than thrill you - it wants to haunt you too.

  Published: 19/06/2012

• The Games We're Excited About!

  
  

  There are lots and lots of great games heading your way in the next few months, and here at GAME HQ we're as excited as you lot are to give them a go.

  So, we went round the digital team with a prodding stick to find out just what games the team here are really itching to play...

  

  Ali - Queen of the Internet

  I am looking forward to LEGO Batman 2. My brother and I worked our way through the original LEGO Batman with a considered method of "shoot everything in the room first, think about the situation later" and it was amazing. It's also the only game where if you die you can still enjoy seeing Robin explode which I did on many occasions as Player 2. I can't wait to see what LEGO Batman 2 has in store!

  
  

  

  Louis - Merchandising Meddler

  Definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, Max Payne 3.

  After playing through 1 and 2 - which gripped me to the very end - I cannot honestly wait for 3.

  Max Payne's method of storytelling is awesome. The comic book cut scenes are stylish and effective, and are not afraid to poke fun at other, outrageous works of fiction (as well as itself). The noir style and twists and turns throughout provide a flourish of love which even the most dedicated of storytellers fail to keep up with. The ingredients are simple, but it's a recipe which works.

  The gameplay might not necessarily be innovative, but it will be intuitive. It might not change the way we think about games, but I know it's going to be a game through and through; fun, accessible and welcoming to noobs and veterans alike. Max Payne 3 is going to rock. Add online multiplayer to the mix, and I can safely say that I'm looking forward to blasting my way into June!

  (My second choice would be Aliens: Colonial Marines, but that's almost too far away to get excited about yet!)

  Kate - Affiliate Assassin

  Bioshock Infinite - Because of the amazing animation and design of the game. Oh, and Limbo 2 - if/when it comes!

  

  Jamie - Builder of Digital Dreamscapes

  I am looking forward to...

  Grand Theft Auto V: Obviously no one really knows exactly when this game is coming out but I cant wait! Seriously excited about a new GTA! Although I hope it is all of San Andreas and not just Los Santos.

  Madden 13: I always get Madden, and it was pretty much the game that made me buy my first proper games console (the SEGA Mega Drive). I'm particularly looking forward to this year's one as I'm hoping they have taken more of the good stuff out of NCAA12.

  Retro City Rampage: This is an indie game that just looks AMAZING! Kind of like a funny GTA but all totally 80s styled. It's gonna be on Xbox LIVE and PSN and I like the fact it looks like you might be able to get this digitally to play on your PS Vita too; it seems like the kind of game you could just lose hours in messing about!

  

  Carl - Design Doodler

  Halo 4. Why? Because it's the best freaking game there is! I'm a massive Halo fan and I'm really looking forward to the next instalment. And really looking forward to seeing Master Chief again. And now we know the release date I know what week to book off work!

  
  

  Aaron - Social Butterfly

  I almost squealed for joy when Luigi's Mansion 2 was announced (Okay, I actually did squeal...). The original Luigi's Mansion was the first game I got on launch day with my Gamecube. It was ALL about Luigi, sucking up ghosts with his Poltergust 3000. The sequel has me itching to play, it will have multiple mansions, a new Poltergust, new ghosts, new story AND it will all be in beautiful 3D. The Nintendo savvy amongst us will know that Nintendo originally planned to release Luigi's Mansion in 3D on the Gamecube but decided the 3D panel was ahead of its time!

  Who ya gonna call? Ghostb-- No, no wait, let's just get the Green hat-wearing Italian plumber from the Mushroom Kingdom instead. No danger of crossing the streams.

  

  Damien - Good Word Writing Man

  I'm actually really looking forward to Lollipop Chainsaw. I'm a big Buffy fan, so the concept of a blonde cheerleader fighting supernatural beasties is one that very much appeals to me. It just looks like it's gonna be oodles of OTT fun. Plus, y'know, the boyfriend's head just kicking around. What's not to like?

  As a stark contrast, I'm also a bit excited by Spec Ops: The Line. I don't usually get on with shooters, but having seen the trailer with the bodies-on-poles imagery, plus the obvious Heart of Darkness influence and the sense of "killing people may actually affect you", I really want to try this one out. I mean, who isn't at least intrigued by what appears to be an anti-war third-person shooter?

  

  James - Captain Category

  Diablo III.

   

   

  Because I've been waiting twelve years for it!

  
  

  So there we have it. These are the games we want to play - what about you? What forthcoming titles have got you so pant-wettingly excited to pre-order and play?

  Published: 17/04/2012

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