Conflict: Denied Ops (Sony Playstation 3, 2008)

For the fifth game in a series, Conflict: Denied Ops sure doesn't show any signs of evolution. This might actually be the simplest edition of the shooter franchise that developer Pivotal Games has produced, with gameplay so out of date that it might as well be wearing a plaid flannel shirt and listening to Alice in Chains. But even though the action is a good decade behind the times, the game's rapid-fire pace blurs the fact that you're shooting the same bad guys over and over again. Attractive visuals feature diverse terrain spread all over the globe. Co-operative play is another highlight, which earns the game some applause all by itself, given how this shooter feature is so often asked for and so rarely delivered. So even though nothing here is going to slow down traffic--let alone stop it--such a speedy mindless shooter like this is ideal for those moments when you want to switch off the synapses and play Rambo for a few hours.
The gameplay is stuck in the neutral zone between one-bullet-and-you're-dead hardcore shooters and the more absurd stuff where you can soak up lead like a sponge before meeting your maker. The story in the campaign is typical to these middle-of-the-road shooters, with you taking charge of a pair of special forces operatives working behind the scenes in 10 missions spread across the globe to unravel a nuclear arms conspiracy. Perspective has been switched to first-person from third-person, however, and your squad cut back to two commandos from the four featured in previous Conflict games. Being able to switch between sniper Graves and heavy gunner Lang is actually so seamless that you might as well be playing a single character.

That said, teamwork can be a key component of Conflict: Denied Ops. Your buddy can be ordered around and healed with quick clicks of the right mouse button. The smart artificial intelligence adeptly handles firefights as well. Storming enemy-occupied rooms, for example, is a snap. Just send Lang up to the doorway where he'll automatically lay down suppressing fire while you sit back and shoot survivors with Graves' scoped sniper rifle. The only problem here is that your squadmate takes orders too seriously. He typically won't yield the position you've ordered him to assume even if you're trying to get past him, causing congestion in tight corridors until you issue a new movement command. And you have to be careful when directing your pal when he's at the wheel of the hovercrafts or other drivable vehicles in the game because he is more than happy to roll right over you if you get between him and his assigned destination.

Level design is the very definition of routine, although the campaign is jazzed up somewhat with the ability to choose the order in which you handle some assignments. The graphics are detailed and attractive, with the missions featuring varied scenery. These represent such diverse locales as the Venezuelan countryside, a Siberian castle, an icy Russian whaling depot, and the dusty streets of a Rwandan city.

Further excitement is provided by being able to blow up damn near everything. Levels are strewn with barrels, gas cans, and propane tanks ready to go boom at single shot.

Multiplayer is another plus. A co-operative mode lets you play through the solo campaign with a friend over LAN or the Internet. Because so few shooters offer this feature these days, it's awfully welcome here, even in such a simplistic game.

Poor audio quality is another drawback.

I have loved this series since it was on PS2. My friend and I have played every single title and with the development of this one, we have decided that this is the best yet. The graphics are awesome and the shooting is great. I liked how you could control two people in the other one, when playing co-op but I liked the focused on just one character. Would recommend this game to mostly the shooter genre players.

February 18, 2008 - Conflict: Denied Ops was doomed from the start. The core gameplay isn't good. From there a series of uninspired levels were slapped together and some ugly graphics were put in place and a budget title was born. And it was dead on arrival.

The game follows the travails of special agents Graves and Lang as they attempt to avert all manner of WMDs from being unleashed on the earth at the hands of a Venezuelan dictator. One is black and carries a machine gun and says things like "bro" because he is "hip." The other is white, prefers a sniper rifle and doesn't like his rookie partner. What both of them can agree on is their weapon of choice. They love them so much that they literally can't put them down. That's right, you can't switch weapons in Conflict: Denied Ops. Each agent gets special attachments and upgrades to add a small amount of variety to the game as you progress from one level to the next, but what you start each level with is what you get. Graves has a sniper rifle. Lang has a machine gun. End of story.

I've been a great fan of the Conflict series since I played Desert Storm. Each subsequent release only heightened my anticipation until now.
If this game wasn't actually listed on the Conflict site I would think I had made a mistake thinking it to be in the Conflict series like I did with Conflict Zone.
This is nothing like the play on any of the previous releases, It's an entirely different play and controller button format and the graphics are still PS2.
If they release another Conflict game I'll be sure to rent it before buying it and if they stick to the new format I'll be moving on to something else to spend my money on.

THERE ARE VERY FEW CO-OP ON THE SAME SYSTEM GAMES OUT THERE. THIS ONE IS SUPERB. TONS OF WEAPONS, LOTS OF BLOWING-UP OF STUFF, LOTS OF REPLENISHING AMMO. THIS ISNT ROCKET SCIENCE, ITS PLAIN OLD FUN - ACT AS A TEAM, AND GO TO IT! NOTHING FANCY. ALSO THE LOW PRICE YOU CAN PICK THIS GAME UP FOR MAKES IT A WINNER! IF YOU DONT LIKE IT, YOU COULD PROBABLY SELL IT FOR PRETTY MUCH WHAT YOU PAID FOR IT.