If polish is the game's first strength, depth and customization are the second and third. Take the audio: SOCOM: Confrontation has something called true sound propagation, which is a very eggheaded way of saying noise will bounce and echo around the level's architecture just like it would in real life. If you hear gunfire, you'll be able to tell if it's coming from right behind you, a window to your upper right, or an alleyway ahead and to your left just because of the sound it makes, let alone its place in the surround sound field. You'll even hear your spent shells hit the ground, and they'll stick around for awhile, so if you or someone else runs through them, they'll make noise. How cool is that?
This depth extends to the player's gear and appearance as well. There are more than 30 weapons and you can modify them with attachments like a scope or foregrip to achieve real benefits - with trade offs. For example, some weapons will accept a silencer, but that saps the range, velocity, and penetration power of the shots.
You can choose light, medium, or heavy armor for the first time in the series, but watch yourself - the game has dynamic encumbrance, so it knows how much weight you're carrying and will modify your movement speed accordingly.
You can even choose the meaningless details like what kind of sunglasses you want your character to wear. Then, you can save your whole loadout on a per-map basis - so you can have a totally different look and arsenal without having to re-outfit yourself every match.
Speaking of matches, there's a new in-game calendar that should help clan-leaders schedule tournaments and the like. It also functions as a diary or sorts, showing you what you've done in the past as well as what you're planning for the future. There are a ton of strong shooters coming up, including two from Sony itself, but it's clear that SOCOM Confrontation is coming strong.
May 16, 2008
