Xboxaddict.com Article
E3 2006-Day 1
by Tony IngrassiaGreetings from E3, day 1 of the actual show was a busy one for us; we had appointments most of the day and some hands on with some great titles. I think the best way to break down the events is to take them one at a time. So here is our day stop by stop, enjoy.
UBI SOFT
Rainbow Six Vegas: Much more tactical than earlier installments of the game offering multiple access points in missions, snake cameras to peek under doors and a new function called “Tagging” which tags which enemy your individual squad will take out. A brief example would be a room with 3 enemies to take out; you can tag the one on the left, the one on the right and leave the one in the middle un-tagged. When you breach the room your only concern will be the enemy in the middle, the other two will be secured by your fellow agents. Access points also include repelling the sides of buildings and such, you can also repel head first if needed, you can then crash into areas again utilizing the “Tagging” method for the best attack method. Visually the game looked phenomenal and offered plenty of bump mapping and real time lighting. Vegas will defiantly fill the needs of all Rainbow Six fans past and present.
Open Season:An “E” title based and developed in conjunction with the movie release this September. Unlike the typical kids game of collecting items and running a given path, Open Season has taken a new direction, and an entertaining one at that. In the game you play as Boog and Elliot and you need to find your way back home, but its hunting season and Boog is a Bear. In this dilemma Boog utilizes some of the forest creatures as his arsenal to scare off hunters clearing the path home. His arsenal consists of “Skunk Bombs”, acorn-firing squirrels, and “Cross Hares”, basically projectile rabbits. Again, a step up from your typical kids platform and I found it highly entertaining.
Splinter Cell Double Agent: Sam’s back and looking to get rid of the nightmare of his daughter being killed by a drunk driver by asking to be sent on the most dangerous missions the NSA has to offer. Sam must now infiltrate terrorist factions and choose sides as he undertakes missions. Each decision will effect the games pace and direction depending on the choice made, being asked to kill an innocent civilian do you kill them proving your loyalty to the terrorists your infiltrating or do you spare them possibly blowing your cover. Another change of pace in the game are a lot of daylight missions, no more hiding in the shadows for Sam, which I have to admit brought an entire new life to the game. Some new moves for Sam are the addition of underwater scenarios. Sam is now able to swim, and in certain levels able to see his enemies through the very amazing looking Ice and bust through pulling enemies under and slitting there throats. One of the nice things noticed was the ability to control Sam’s action even during some of the “Cut” scenes making the game more seamless and continuous. Visually the game is pretty remarkable both in the character design to the locations, another solid installment for UBI. Splinter Cell Double Agent will be released this September.
