Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix

Having been into computer games and video games from the age of 6 (in the mid-80s, rat tail on my head and all) I can say yes they are getting more and more realistic. From the original graphic titles like King's Quest to the most modern pieces of industry the video games we play are evolving into their own world. Soldier of Fortune 2 is no exception.

First let's deal with the realism. From the sounds of the guns reloading to the physics of knifing a man's hand off (it's all possible, trust me) the game stays true to it's element. Violence isn't rewarded and unlike the extensive and painful animations done in Soldier of Fortune 1, this game views it as what it is, a death animation. Nothing elaborate, but done nicely just the same. Walking straight up to a man and looking at his face you can see light sources reflecting off of their eyes, stubble on their chins, and expressions on their faces. Not since Max Payne have I seen such wonderfully done skins on a character.

The voice work is top notch. My favorite voice work actor of all time (Cam Clarke) does a wonderful job here while leaving his typical sound. I didn't recognize the voice honestly, where I usually jump on it. Gone is Freddy Pharkas and Die Flauder Mouse. Mark Hamill makes a vocal appearance as well and pulls off the slightly uptight assistant director part he has well. Don't think Luke, think Mark. He's done a wonderful job in voice roles from Gabriel Knight to this.

Finally a personal view. This game is very realistic in it's portrayal of violence. You can shoot someone in the face and tear off the greater part of their head, then walk up and knife their chin off, which was conveniently left. This is not a title for kids in any sense of the word. I'm 19 and it's enough for me. So anyone out there looking for a review, hope this helps. 7 out of 10 stars. The story needs touching up.

I love this game. I also love horror movies and movies with lots of action and this game is just great. The graphics are outstanding, especially later in the game. The first few levels look like just about any other first person shooter but after that it's great. Tall grass swaying in the breeze. They say they use the G.H.O.U.L. system to realistically portray damage which is done to the models and it looks gruesome enough. If mixed with Unreal Tournament 2003's ragdoll physics it would be even more awesome. Of course the better it looks, i.e. more realistic, the more the anti-gamers complain. It is mostly the same people who complained about Dungeons and Dragons but thanks to the recent school shootings, their numbers have swelled. I notice it is usually people who have NEVER played video games and who don't want to, who are the biggest complainers. Some of the school shootings were done by children who played video games but ALL of the shootings were done by children who attended school, so we could say that attending school may cause you to become a mass murderer. Well, I love these games from Doom to Soldier of Fortune 2, I'm 36 years old and I love my family, both my children and my parents and I've never killed anyone nor do I want to. I would tend to agree, however, that violent entertainment may desensitize people, particularly children to violence. I think there is a correlation there even to boys who see their dads hit their mothers and then they grow up to be wife-beaters. While this may be true, and I believe it is, I don't feel it would be in the best interest of freedom in America or the world for that matter to have others who dictate what we can read or watch. But I digress, Soldier of Fortune 2 is a fun game, a realistic shooter and well worth up to about 50 dollars.

Soldier of Fortune 2 is one of the best games I've played. A storyline you can actually follow, good graphics, and even (relatively) realistic graphics and effects. The physics system, while not the best in the world, is quite realistic, as are the baddie's reactions when you hit them (well, kinda; sometimes, they don't react at all, which is somewhat annoying, but you get used to it) It's theme of one man against half the Soviet army in the late 80's, a Colombian rebel group, a drug lord/arms dealer from the same country, and a good-sized terrorist group, (wait'll you find out who runs it) all of it centering around a genetically engineered uber-virus, is both intriguing and thought-provoking. (Could this actually happen? Would anyone know about it?) While many people bash the game, and others of its genre, (first-person shooters) due to it's realistic portrayal of violence (for instance, shooting a guy in the head with a shotgun stands a good chance of removing the head entirely), few laud its well-thought-out storyline (for which we can thank the real John F. Mullins, who was a consultant to the developers). I'd like to see this game converted into a movie, but one that actually FOLLOWS THE PLOT OF THE GAME (subtle hint, movie makers!), instead of making up a whole new plot just for the movie.

I don't know about today's standards, but by 2002 standards it was a 10/10 game.

The first game I ever paid. I had to order it from a computer shop, took them a month to get it for me.

Got action, the graphics was great too. The game's story, excellent.

Beside the story mode was other single player modes too.

The game generated infinite ! Number of random maps. For both single player and multiplayer. Today's games not doing such. You have like 5 multiplayer maps, then you have to purchase more of them. In SoF2 you got infinite maps.

The multiplayer was perfect, no clumsy shooting, the guns in the game had great sound, and they "felt" real.

The game was moddable too. I made many skins for multiplayer. I even made maps for single player.

Nowadays they make a kind of unfinished game with full of bugs that they fix or not, they release a few additional maps, 6 months later something DLC but the game becomes irrelevant, as next year the next game comes from the same company.

SOF 2 came out and people were playing it 10-12 years later. A few years ago did check it, people were still playing deathmatches.

Sure, by today's standards it's old and not looking good. However the technical factor of the game is still better than today's FPS games.

If you want a game thats main characteristic is violence, SOF2: Double Helix is for you.

I remember buying this game last year and being absolutely amazed by the realism, but I would say the game goes slightly downhill during the course of it.

The main problem with SOF2: Double Helix is that it is riddled with bugs. You shoot some guy in the head and he falls down with a lot of realism, but about 3 seconds later he goes into a "stiff" state and sometimes slides along the floor in a very mysterious way... Also if you shoot someone sitting down they just freeze.

Buggy or not, it is a good enough game in my opinion, and it's one that I played over and over again. Buy it! 7/10