Army of Two: The 40th Day Review

On the positive side of things, the game looks way better than its predecessor, as the two mercs blast their way through crumbling buildings, wrecked streets and narrow alleyways. Explosions and screams echo through the city, as survivors desperately try to avoid capture and execution. This time around, areas not only look better, but they were also designed to make each shootout more fun and challenging. The sound and music fit the atmosphere perfectly, and the voice acting is fairly good.

It looks like a no-way-out situation to me.

Not a pretty sight these guys. Mean... to say the least.

I like what EA had done to the weapon customization system. There's a great deal you can do to alter each weapon; adjusting stuff like accuracy, handling, damage and so on. Switching between different weapon parts makes a difference during combat, which is a great plus and further motivates players to improve their primary, secondary and special weapons. This particular feature is a very important part of the co-op experience too. If you plan things out carefully, you can set the perfect combination of weapons and work as an unstoppable two-man team.

Multiplayer can be quite fun and features three modes for up to 12 players, which, I'll admit is a solid improvement over the original. There are several modes you can enjoy. Co-op Deathmatch puts teams of two against other players (also in teams of two). The 'Control' mode represents a cool CTF variant. 'Warzone' is an objective-based mode, with goals that change dynamically throughout the course of the match. There's also 'Extraction' that has teams of four fighting off waves of increasingly powerful soldiers until the map is cleared. Most of the multiplayer action is very engaging, albeit lag issues happened during a lot of our matches, which is surely going to put off many players.

At times, Army of Two: The 40th Day seems like a well-polished action game, suitable for gamers who are into cooperative play. Still, even those who are determined to play the game all the way to its very last mission might be disappointed with a variety of technical problems including somewhat awkward cover mechanics, in addition to lag difficulties in online multiplayer matches. While it's easy to be drawn in by fancy visual effects and on the whole enjoyable co-op play, The 40th Day only slightly improves upon its mediocre predecessor. Players looking for a captivating story will be sorely disappointed. There were some honest efforts to integrate an interesting narrative through comic-book inspired cut-scenes. The results, sadly, brought about nothing more than an unclear storyline with a weak and confusing moral structure.