Spec Ops: The Line Preview

Spec Ops: The Line has been around for such a long time you probably think it’s something made up. To put the record straight, it isn’t.

A third-person shooter with squad-based tactics – you know the drill – there’s been plenty of skewed comparisons as the gaming public tries to figure out exactly what sets it apart.

‘BioShock with sand’ was a popular frontrunner, closely followed by the likes of ‘Gears Of War in Dubai’. Although on a basic level they’re fair assumptions, the truth of the matter is that Spec Ops: The Line is trying to achieve something many of its competitors have never truly been able to: engage the player emotionally. 

Before you start rolling your eyes, walk away to hit a punching bag and spit, it’s an interesting point to consider. We all watch films, willing to be moved should the narrative possess enough power to do so.

Where games are concerned, however, as soon as a gun is put into an individual’s hand we expect nothing more than to shoot a man through the head. While there’s certainly plenty of that in regards to Spec Ops, it’s attempting slightly more to boot. 

From the moment you indulge in what Spec Ops: The Line has to offer it’s clear not everything is as it seems. The genre has gone through quite the evolution over the last few years, it’s mammoth success proving strong enough to convince most developers to follow a very strict pattern, especially when it comes to controls.

Yager has seen fit to take its own path, a decision that, seemingly deliberately, shifts you out of your comfort zone. The first few minutes with Spec Ops: The Line, due to this, are slightly unwieldy.

Environments are also prone to destruction, the most heroic moments usually coming when sand is involved. 

Commands aren’t where you’d expect them to be and the shooting mechanic is different enough to force a remapping of your expectations somewhat.

Ultimately, this is exactly what happens and once your brain is comfortable with the layout all of Spec Ops: The Line’s other facets start to make a whole lot of sense.

Top of the that list is the game’s pacing, Yager understanding when to ramp up the action and slow it back down in order for you to process just in the hell what happened.

A particular scene, culminating in you having to shatter a 20-foot high window dumping sand and burying the ever-increasing enemy threat, is evidence of just that.

It’s imperative, though, mainly due to the story mechanics mentioned earlier. The war being fought in Dubai isn’t your standard good vs bad affair.

Shades of grey is a term thrown around with little to no thought, but it’s a phrase which bests describes Spec Ops’ approach. This is fuelled forward by the three men constantly at the heart of every event, lead by one Sergeant Walker.

Stepping into his shoes, the numerous choices the player is faced with always spark some sort of reaction from the group. While your gut reaction will obviously be to agree or decline, it’s how these decisions play out where you really start to be dragged in.

Spec Ops: The Line is filled with surprising areas of artistic direction and a heavy use of coloured fog.

A scenario that will be sitting pretty in the minds of those who have been keeping an eye on Spec Ops: The Line is the hunting down of CIA Agent Gould and the problem of having time to only save him or a group of innocent civilians – this is nothing new.

There’s no guarantees regardless which direction you to choose to go in, and following your instincts will alienate one of the men who stand behind you. The real kicker is what happens later.

It would be wrong of us to spoil how our demo ended here as the hard-hitting and, frankly, shocking nature of it would taint the experience for those wanting to experience it fresh.

Mature it most certainly is, and the horrific realisation quickly dawns on you that your previous supposed ‘good’ choice helped set these horrendous chain of events in motion. Not everything happening in Spec Ops: The Line can be controlled. 

There’s no getting around that we left with the sensation of wanting to play more, genuinely intrigued about how Spec Ops’ plot and interesting choice dynamic would evolve throughout an entire game.

While there’s every chance the most poignant and affecting bits exist within the segment that we were given to play, if it continues in this fashion and finds a way to constantly surprise and stun, Spec Ops: The Line may very well be the sleeper hit of 2012.