It’s 2014 along the U.S./Mexico border. A massive 1,900 mile wall has been built to keep the sides away from each other, but Mexican rebels have been creeping over. Obviously heavily armed, the rebels are a force to be reckoned with, so the Ghosts are deployed to keep things from getting antsy. As the Ghosts trek further into Mexico, the battlefield will change from cities to burnt out towns, mountains and deserts.
Like GRAW, GRAW 2 will get the double-feature treatment. Swedish developer GRIN returns as the developer for the PC version while Ubisoft Paris has developed the console versions. Also like GRAW, the PC version will have custom features not seen in its console counterpart — like the return of the FPS view and a different control and UI scheme. While the Xbox 360 version has been out since March, the upcoming release of the PC version should bring multiplayer gaming goodness back to its roots.
The shift to continually improve the multiplayer is one of the highlights of GRAW 2. One of the new team-based gameplay mode is called Recon vs. Assault. Both sides have different character classes (classes are a brand-new addition, too) that players can choose from, and players on each side divide into the two to complete objective-based missions. The character classes for the Recon side are Rifleman, Sniper and Scout. For the Ghosts, Riflemen are armed with M8 carbines, Snipers are armed with M14 rifles for the long-range kills and M9 pistols for close encounters, and Scouts are armed with MP5 submachine guns and smoke grenades.
In addition, each class has special items to use while in the field. For example, Ghost Scouts have heartbeat sensors, which can tag enemy players. Once tagged, the enemy players will appear on all allied players’ HUD. Not only are their location is revealed, but also their distance, so make sure to be on your toes when these guys start to appear on your mini-map.
Then what about the Rebels? To combat the Ghosts’ Scouts and their heartbeat sensors, Rebels can use their Scramblers to, well, scramble their location and the heartbeat sensor. A Rebel on the Assault side can play the Assault class, who have G36K assault rifles, or the Support class, who have MK 46 light machine guns.
Don’t forget that there’s also your standard team-deathmatch. There are only five classes in this mode for each side: Assault, Rifleman, Demolition, Support and Sniper. The Assault class is armed with M416 rifles and an MP5 sidearm, Rifleman are armed with Beretta Rx4 rifles and a Glock 18 sidearm, and the Demolition class are armed with the SCAR assault rifle (complete with the barrel-mounted grenade launcher) and an MP5. In addition, these three classes come with frag grenades.
As for the visuals, the PC version of GRAW 2 will run on GRIN’s Diesel Engine version 6. Details on weapons and soldiers’ uniforms have been increased, and explosion and smoke effects have been enhanced for the "hot damn" factor.
In the single player aspect of the game, special attention to your squad’s AI was made. I remember in GRAW my squad would foolishly run straight into a warzone without using cover and just get annihilated. This time around, they’ll outright refuse to move into the hot zone if it looks too crazy or if there’s no cover.
Your squad will also step out of cover briefly to take shots at the enemy. In GRAW they would just shoot towards the direction of the enemy — even if there was a wall in the way. This time grenadiers won’t blow up your entire squad just be shooting at a wall; they’ll step out to launch a grenade.
GRAW 2’s single player portion will also include more vehicle and aircraft support. While there was a little bit of that in GRAW, it’ll be amped up in GRAW 2. There will be more vehicles to control and more stuff that’ll go boom. After seeing the various gameplay videos of helming the mini-gun on a helicopter and seeing the beautiful explosions, GRAW 2 looks to be the awesome fun many people have been waiting for.
