GR: Island Thunder First Look(new price and maps)

**Brevity** · 04-28-2003

More tactical combat that'll make your Xbox Live subscription worthwhile.
$19.99 - New Price

April 28, 2003 - Xbox Live owners made Ghost Recon an immediate smash hit when the online gaming service launched last November. Give credit to Ubi Soft for being quick on the call to bring the first "campaign disk" --known as Ghost Recon: Island Thunder for GR to market less than nine months later. The trick here is to get consumers to understand that it's a standalone disk that doesn't require the original Ghost Recon to function --like a PC expansion pack-- but it doesn't carry enough content to be labeled a full sequel. You get the benefit of additional Xbox Live functionality with Island Thunder but the new content is limited to maps and levels found in the two Ghost Recon PC expansion packs Desert Seige and Island Thunder. Confused yet?
To clear things up we'll first list the entire rundown of maps in GRIT for the Xbox:

Market
Beach
Train Depot
Ghost Recon
Battlefield
Embassy
Castle
High Sierra
Plantation
Military Camp
Bridges
Swamp Airfield
Polling Center
Beach Resort
Island Village
Mt. Stronghold
Hunting Lodge
Island
Prison
Wilderness
You'll notice that four of those levels are leftover from the original Ghost Recon on Xbox. Those are the levels you voted for here on IGN back in March. The rest are areas that PC fans of Ghost Recon will recognize from the Island Thunder, Desert Seige expansion packs.

For the solo gamer, the story campaign of Island Thunder follows the events of post-Castro Cuba in 2006. A power vacuum has lead to warring factions literally fighting for the votes of the Cuban people. The Ghosts are sent in to minimize the intimidation and brutality that's threatens the election process. Covert operations around Cuban market places, polling facilities and scenic coastal areas will characterize the Island Thunder campaign. There are no Desert Seige solo campaigns but you can play the Mission game type in Desert Seige environments.

Gameplay types are divided into Solo, Team and Co-op with some maps unique to each. Those are sub-divided into Mission, Firefight, Recon, Defend, Siege, Hamburger Hill, Domination, Last Man Standing, Search & Rescue, Cat & Mouse and Sharpshooter. Obviously, not all sub-game types are available under all of the major game types but you're getting at least four types of games for Solo, Team and Co-op styles.

You'll still be able to play head to head games over Xbox Live, just like in the original, but now you'll be able to download new content like additional maps and new gameplay types found in the Desert Siege and Island Thunder PC expansion packs.

Don't expect any upgrades to the visuals of GR: Island Thunder. The original Xbox game was popular enough and the turnaround time is too brief to squeeze in a major graphics overhaul. The tropical environments of Cuba lend themselves to visuals that would seem even darker and more muddied. Gamers were willing to forgive the low budget graphics in favor of fun the first time around, so it will probably work the second time around with Island Thunder.

IGN will have more on Ghost Recon: Island Thunder in the weeks leading up to its vague Summer 2003 release date. Be sure to check out the media section for the most recent screens and movies.

-- IGN