Previously on Rainbow Six

Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow game review

Tom Clancy is the master of the spy thriller and is becoming synonymous with games based on that genre, you can’t look at the Xbox now without seeing his highly acclaimed gaming titles gracing the top shelf of many a game store.

And why not, after all they’re usually excellent games and the Rainbow Six series on Xbox is no exception.

If you’re looking for more Rainbow Six fun, then the fourth in the series: Lockdown should provide you with ample opportunities to gun down some Tangos.

Story

Legion, a super weapon…a bio-engineered virus capable of killing millions has been formulated, tested and developed in South Africa. Under the cover of an attempted Coup a canny group of terrorists has stolen it and now plans to unleash the virus unless they can be stopped. Enter Rainbow, the crack anti-terror squad, their mission is to uncover the group behind it and stop them at all costs before the virus is released.

Gameplay

The core gameplay of Lockdown hasn’t really changed all that much and the series is starting to feel a little bit more like a repeat. It feels a lot like the previous games and no real advances have been made in the actual control of your team, the only difference this time around apart from a few menu changes and tweaks is that you get to play as either Ding leading a 3 man element or the sniper Dieter Weber as he covers the element from the rooftops.

My problem with this is that I love being a sniper but the sniping side of Lockdown actually feels like its taken a step back, it should handle more like say, Silent Scope or some of the Time Crises games but with enemies appearing from odd locations and annoying RPG firing goons showing up with little or no warning, it becomes an exercise in trial-and-error, taking the fun away.

You can give the whole gamut of orders that you could before, ordering your men to advance, hold and scout. If you’re armed with a headset you can even give these orders via voice.

As in the previous games, the A button whips up the quick order interface and that allows you to assign commands, order your team and is based on a context sensitive cursor.

Zulu codes are implemented, allowing you to set up actions with your men and coordinate attacks.

There are a few nice actions that you can use in the singleplayer side of the game, such as breaching a door with a battering ram, blowing off the door’s hinges with a shotgun and of course using a breaching charge. But overall the game plays in a similar way to the previous Xbox games and not much has changed, apart from it does feel a lot more arcade-ish this time around.

You’ll find the new motion-sensor equipment that has been added to the game a great help and this tool becomes invaluable later on, especially if you’ve been shot to ribbons and are on your last vestiges of health, it allows you to get a heads-up on what’s behind that closed door and while tangos can move after the reading has been taken you’re at least clued in to what could be waiting for you on the other side.

As per usual in the Rainbow Six games there is a plethora of weapons and gadgets, with a points based currency to gain more weapons as play progresses, you’ll be exploring the maps for extra points and goals just so you can get the bigger and better toys.