Many are familiar with the series Red Orchestra, since 2006, bringing to the masses the idea of ​​“hardcore with a human face”. Despite the meticulous adherence to military realities (death from one or two bullet wounds, reliable weapons and equipment, the influence of morale on a soldier’s actions and many other aspects), the work of Tripwire Interactive did not turn into a dull action with fighters shaking for their virtual lives, not sticking out from behind cover. On the contrary, there has never been such an eventful spectacle in the surroundings of the Second World War at that moment in time. This is why they loved RO.

We also loved the second part, which became a little more pop, but retained the spirit of the original. And it seems that nothing stopped the developers from forging iron further – just make maps, add weapons and equipment, introduce new game modes. But somehow it didn’t work out: with a few exceptions, all innovations were limited to the authors’ promises to release an addition to Heroes of Stalingrad dedicated to the war in the Pacific. And now, a year and a half after the release of RO2, Rising Storm finally saw the light.

Flags not of our fathers

The transfer of the game’s setting from the banks of the Volga to the Pacific islands, where American and Japanese troops clashed in mortal combat, is quite understandable – abroad the theme of Stalingrad is not as popular and not as well known as, for example, the Battle of Iwo Jima or the Guadalcanal Campaign. On the contrary, it seems strange that Tripwire at one time she chose the Eastern Front, and not, for example, the landing in Normandy, popular in action movies (and already sick of everyone). Now the time has come for the American Marines and Japanese infantrymen, whose battles were in no way inferior in ferocity to what happened in Stalingrad.

For those who are already familiar with the series Red Orchestra, it won’t be difficult to figure it out Rising Storm. There are practically no changes in the game mechanics: there are still two opposing sides striving to win on a relatively small map, division into classes, the use of cover, that very “moderate realism” and the huge influence on the outcome of the battle of the commander’s orders and the accuracy of their execution (and not at all the ability of ordinary shooters to hit the target).

But the weapons, maps and models of soldiers are now completely different. The American M1 Garand rifle with the characteristic ringing of a fired clip, the Japanese Arisaka Type 38 and 99, the famous Thompson submachine gun, the BAR light machine gun, the M12 shotgun… But, in the end, it’s a rifle in Africa too—these samples have nothing significantly new compared to the weapons from Heroes of Stalingrad.

However, there are also completely new weapons. For the Americans, this is a flamethrower, perfect for smoking enemies out of bunkers and buildings, and the Japanese infantry received a new mortar class with a small hand-held mortar. Thanks to it, you can “cover” targets across half the map without exposing yourself to bullets. This class is especially effective if the actions of the mortarmen are coordinated by the commander (however, this is also true for all other fighters), indicating where artillery support is needed. In addition, Japanese soldiers can set small booby traps, and their officers have a katana at their disposal, with which they can cause a lot of trouble for the enemy during close combat.

The mortar is useful both https://11iccasino.co.uk/mobile-app/ in attack and defense. The main thing is to learn to calculate the lead and know the map like the back of your hand.

The bullet is a fool, the bayonet is great!

In general, hand-to-hand combat Rising Storm paid much more attention than in its predecessor. It is known that during the Pacific War, the Japanese often used the tactics of so-called “banzai attacks” – a sudden assault on enemy positions using edged weapons, which escalated into brutal hand-to-hand combat. The name comes from the cry "banzai"!"(something like our "hurray!"), which the fighters shouted during the attack. At first, this tactical technique, unusual for that war, justified itself: a long and heavy rifle in the hands is not the best help in close combat against a bayonet and a sword, which easily cut through the barrel of a weapon. Do not forget about the psychological factor – hand-to-hand combat, perhaps more than any other type of combat, requires a soldier to have strong fighting spirit and physical stamina. However, the Americans soon developed effective counter tactics, and by the end of the war, “banzai attacks” were more reminiscent of mass suicide than imposing their fighting style on the enemy – machine guns, shotguns and rapid-fire machine guns turned out to be stronger than Japanese steel and the dedication of the emperor’s soldiers.

IN Rising Storm the Japanese are able to successfully use bayonets, rifle stocks and officer’s katanas against US Marines. As soon as you hold down the melee button, the soldier will take a position for a bayonet attack and shout something inspiring for the feat in the name of the Motherland in Japanese. The more of these possessed people gather in one place, the more powerful their onslaught will be: during a “banzai attack,” the running speed increases, the enemy begins to get nervous (this is expressed in a decrease in the “fighting spirit” indicator, which causes the screen to lose color, and it becomes more difficult for the player to aim and shoot). The emperor’s subjects, on the contrary, do not notice their wounds and can sell their lives at a high price even in conditions of numerical superiority of the enemy.

But here, as you probably already guessed, the lion’s share of success depends on the commander. Correctly determining the strength and direction of the blow, waiting for the right moment and giving the order for hand-to-hand combat is a non-trivial task even for veterans Red Orchestra. You can even lead your soldiers into battle with a katana at the ready – it’s still fun, believe me.

In a short hand-to-hand fight we managed to recapture the pillbox from the enemy. Red Orchestra is worth playing if only for episodes like these, reminiscent of scenes from good war films.

Jungle War

The design of the maps, as in the original, replicates real-life battlefields, but the small islands in the Pacific Ocean are not at all similar to the huge city on the Volga. If in Heroes of Stalingrad most of the locations were urban areas, here almost all the fighting takes place in the open air, among trenches and dugouts. There are a minimum of high-rise buildings, and those that exist are dilapidated buildings with many entrances and exits: you won’t be able to sit in a secluded place, shooting at oncoming enemies (as often happened on the maps “Apartments” and “Pavlov’s House” in HoS).

Playing as a sniper has become noticeably more difficult, and the Americans were especially unlucky in this regard: having thoroughly studied the map, enemy mortarmen “work” from time to time without even seeing the enemy, simply firing at places where accurate shooters might be located. And if a sniper is noticed, then a “gift” in the form of a mine will not be long in coming. It’s a little easier for the Japanese, but they shouldn’t yawn either – being carried away by shooting at distant targets, it’s easy to miss a flamethrower who, with the proper skill, can easily burn out everything and everyone.

But now there are no armored vehicles at all, which is sad. Even if there weren’t any particularly epic tank battles during the Pacific War, we don’t need that; just one or two cars per side is enough – and it will be a completely different battle. Maybe over time they will add tanks, but in the current relatively cramped locations there is nowhere for them to deploy – the maps that exist now are intended purely for infantry battles.

RO2 holders can also take part in battles on the Pacific front. To do this, it is not at all necessary to have the addition itself – the original will suffice. True, it will be possible to fight only as an ordinary shooter, without the ability to “upgrade” weapons and skills. But this is quite enough to get an impression of the addon.

But you shouldn’t do that. The next moment my comrades, concentrated for the attack, will be covered by mortar fire.

Nothing radically new from Rising Storm you shouldn’t wait: the game is good, but it’s still the same “Heroes of Stalingrad”, adjusted for the change of location. As a supplement R.S looks rather weak, especially considering the time it took to develop it – in just a year and a half it was possible to add something more significant than other models of soldiers and several locations. But after the release of RO2, it seemed that we should wait a little, and new maps, weapons and “units” would get to us as patches, and not add-ons, for which they would save something more important. Instead, the authors were too lazy to correct even clearly visible flaws – for example, the camera in the mode of observing another player is still incredibly annoying with its “jerky” behavior, and sometimes you can get stuck in the textures.

Anyway, alternatives R.O Not yet. This makes it even sadder that the developers are in no hurry to develop their brainchild. I’ll have to accept Rising Storm as she is and hope that Tripwire Interactive still, one of the best multiplayer action films on the theme of World War II will not be ignored.

Pros: the cinematography of what is happening; original maps; "Banzai attacks" of the Japanese.
Cons: most changes are purely cosmetic; same bugs as before.