Men of Valor Preview

It seems as though the game development community has been listening when gamers started saying "ENOUGH WWII FPS GAMES ALREADY!" Yes, they sure were listening - they found a whole new chapter of historic warfare to exploit like mad. That's right folks; we're looking at yet another first-person shooter set during the Vietnam War. Presently, 2015, the crew responsible for Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, is deeply involved with the development of Men of Valor and is getting ready to confront a whole bunch of top-notch FPS action games, slated to come out at approximately the same time. Some of you may know that the game was primarily scheduled for a launch during Xmas 2003. With a firm ambition of enhancing every aspect, from gameplay to the engine code, 2015 and VU Games agreed to prolong the development process, and surprise, surprise... the project is now targeted for a release some time during the second half of 2004 for PC and Xbox platforms.

Where are you off to? The action’s this way, pal!

Copy, I need two large fries and a diet coke, please!

So, why would anyone be interested in this game when there are titles like Battlefield Vietnam, Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault, Half-Life 2, and Doom 3 on the horizon? The biggest reason of all is the fact that Men of Valor is in the hands of such a capable development team. After all, let's not forget that MoH: Allied Assault was one of the best first-person action games in its time. (And let's pretend that Infinity Ward [ex 2015 guys] had nothing to do with it. - 2Lions) Next off, the game features thirteen intense missions which take place throughout 65 maps, and there's just over 20 different, handy weapons and explosives for players to try out. For what it's worth, you'll also be treated to a hefty class-based multiplayer which supports up to 16 players with a dedicated server (eight players via Xbox Live). Several modes are available such as Team Deathmatch, standard Deathmatch, Search and Destroy, Recover the Documents, and Objective-based online multiplayer modes. The game's MP mode involves seven unique troops on each side - ranging from Green Berets (US), heavy gunners (US), NVA (Communist), etc. That's not all though. Anybody who might need assistance completing the main campaign is welcome to try the whole thing out in coop. Not too shabby... These are all pretty much standard facets in FPS's nowadays. There are certain aspects of the game, however, which we did find a bit more interesting than your usual dose of action-oriented first-person madness.

Extensive research was conducted by a team of writers and game designers to recreate a realistic interpretation of the Vietnam War. Books such as James Webb's Fields of Fire, Mark Baker's 'Nam, Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, and Michael Herr's Dispatches, were all used as inspiration for the game's setting. In any case, as a rather elegant switch from the usual blue-eyed hunk with tattoos and a well-tended coif, Men of Valor fits you into the army boots of a spirited African-American volunteer, named Dean Shephard. In spite of what some people may think, ethnic differences were not that big of an issue between soldiers who were miles away from their homeland and enlisted to fight in harsh conditions. There were even some rumors at the time indicating that North Vietnamese and Viet Cong encouraged black soldiers to relinquish their support for a country where blacks were socially unequal to white folk. Allegedly, this is why the Viet Cong targeted white soldiers more often. But keep in mind, no one that wasn't there at the time really knows for sure exactly what went on, so there's no way of telling whether such propaganda actually played an important part during the war. Nonetheless, drawing on an authentic portrayal of this turbulent period of Vietnam's history, this game will also evoke certain delicate racial disputes that were present in the US at the time. Some of these matters have been broached during cut-scenes and dialogue between squad members. Furthermore a great deal of the dialogue includes offensive language and profanity. I guess you could say it's quite a valiant effort in terms of storytelling. Still, gamers shouldn't misinterpret this dramatic plot as some kind of statement that infers any kind of racial discrimination. It was simply incorporated to enrich the whole experience by bringing a realistic presentation of the story and characters involved in it.

Sound processing also promises to be one of the game's distinguishing characteristics. Achieving top-quality audio is one of the main reasons why the game was delayed. The development team invested a lot of extra time in tweaking ambient sounds, the game's soundtrack, and voiceovers. Yep, characters voicing will also be an enjoyable aspect of the game. (I hope, I hope, I hope.... - Six)

Realism lies squarely at the core of Men of Valor. The very beginning of the game seats you in a Huey, hovering above the dense Vietnamese jungles. Everything appears hunky-dory until the gunner gets shot. The chopper swings around and from then on all hell breaks loose. You'll be spraying a rain of bullets at hostile targets on the LZ, making sure your character stays in one piece. Drama is a significant part of the whole experience and is present through most of your assignments. It will be easy to notice that the enemy's favorite strategy is the element of surprise. In one particular mission Dean (the main character) and his squad-mates must protect a convoy on the move. The group of unperturbed soldiers chats away, waiting for the convoy to go on. One of the troops accidentally steps on a land mine, triggering a tremendous explosion and alerting Viet Cong snipers in the nearby area. At this point, players will immediately grasp the importance of environmental camouflage. Concealing yourself from enemy fire can be done in numerous places around the map - behind trees, bushes, plants, and so forth. Once out of sight of hostiles, Dean will be able to recuperate a specific amount of health by bandaging his wounds. Anyhow, as soon as the area is swept of all enemy snipers, all surviving soldiers will be obliged to continue the pursuit for Viet Cong troops deeper in the jungle.