Hands On With Spec Ops: The Line

Today at PAX East 2012, the Mind Of The Geek staff got their hands on the upcoming title from Yager and 2K Games. Spec Ops: The Line is a third-person shooter set in the near future where Dubai has been ravaged by war, and on the brink of civil war.  Spec Ops: The Line is a modern take on Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. You play the role of Martin Walker, a member of Delta Force Bravo Team in search of John Conrad and the 33rd Division.

The game mechanics were solid, and smooth. Fans of Gears Of War should have no issues with Spec Ops: The Line, as the control scheme and mechanics work much the same way. The cover system was flawless, and worked very well. You are able to give your squad commands to take out certain targets and other tasks with the click of a button. The gun play was smooth and realistic, giving you the feel that you were in control of the weapons the entire time. The development team did a great job making Spec Ops: The Line an easy game to learn to play.

What really impressed us with Spec Ops: The Line was its art direction and sense of realism. The environment was very gritty, much like you would expect in the middle of the desert. The city of Dubai looked war-torn and ravaged, rather than shiny and new. We also enjoyed how the environments and cover areas felt organic, like they should be there not a random metal crate or box sitting out in the open.

We also enjoyed the banter between the characters which added a sense of realism along with some humor to this otherwise very dark and serious story line. Spec Ops: The Line hits store shelves next month, and any fan of the shooter genre should pick up this game. While we weren’t able to see multiplayer mode, one would assume we will see much of the same modes we’ve come to expect from modern shooters, and perhaps maybe some new ideas from Yager and 2K Games.