Hour of Victory - ZTGameDomain.com Preview

Hour of Victory - Preview

System: Xbox 360

Publisher: Midway

Developer: nFusion

Release Date: 06/25/2007

Players: 1-12

Words By: ZeroTolerance

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Are you sick of the WWII FPS genre yet? Well, Midway and developer N-Fusion certainly hope not as they put the finishing touches on their latest title Hour of Victory for the Xbox 360. Recently we sat down with the newly released demo available on Xbox Live Marketplace and put it through some vigorous play time.

The demo features two action-packed levels that you can progress through with one of three playable characters. This is one of the most interesting aspects of Hour of Victory. From the outset you can choose between three distinctly different avatars; all of which possess separate abilities and traits. The first is the obvious Commando Ross; he is generally stronger on the battlefield and can last longer against waves of enemies. You also have a sniper named Bull; which as you guessed it is a marksman who eliminates his enemies from a distance. The final character Taggart; is a sort of stealth operative who carries knives and a silenced pistol.

Aside from each character having different abilities and traits, the game also accommodates each protagonist on the battlefield. For instance during my short tour of duty I came across a set of barbwire that could only be accessed by Taggart, so I started over and decided to give the stealth option a run. What I realized is that by taking this path I was able to sneak around behind my enemy and thin out their numbers using cover and silence. This dynamic really adds to the game and makes me dream of three player co-op over Xbox Live with two buddies and the AI set to ridiculous.

As for the core game, I couldn’t help but feel like the entire game resembled another WWII FPS almost a little too much. From the objectives on the map down to crosshair aiming Hour of Victory borrows heavily from (arguably the best in the genre) Call of Duty series. The level designs are pretty standard with lots of crates and walls to provide cover and the weapons are all authentic firearms from the world’s most revisited war. In addition to simply blasting your way through the rubble you also have the option to melee oncoming enemies by tapping the right bumper, while the left bumper allows you to enter a temporary sprint mode. Grenades are handled with the left trigger and while you can jump, it is almost useless as your vertical reach is disappointing to say the least.

The health system is also very similar to the aforementioned title. Instead of a typical health bar your character will notice damage taken by onscreen cues. The more damage you take the more red you see cluttering the screen. When this happens you need to find some cover and heal yourself. Each one of the different playable characters can sustain different amounts of damage so choosing one that best suits your mode of play will be pivotal.

Just like any other WWII FPS, you will spend the bulk of your time moving from cover to cover trying to get the drop on the enemy. The cool part about Hour of Victory is the dynamic of three unique protagonists that handle every situation in a different way. This is the one area where HoV could set itself apart from the herd if it manages to pull it off throughout the rest of the game.

The latter part of the demo also gives you a chance to take one of the vehicles for a spin. In this case it is everyone’s favorite automobile of destruction, a tank. The controls are simple; using the left stick to move around the right stick to move makes it feel like more of an arcade experience than anything else, but I wasn’t expecting a simulator so it gets the job done. It’s also worth noting that the physics of the tank seem a bit off right as even the slightest bump could easily flip my massive vehicle of obliteration. Regardless these vehicle segments, if implemented well, could provide a nice distraction from the monotony that can ruin good shooters over time.

Visually the game looks good; running off of Epic’s acclaimed Unreal Engine 3, gives the developers to show of some truly gorgeous texture and lighting effects. Enemy bodies will toss into the air when tagged by a grenade and the smoke and particle effects from the gunfire are also nice touches. The game certainly has miles to go before reaching a Gears of War level of visual fidelity, but as it stands the frame rate is smooth and the environments sport some truly nice texture work.

While not everyone may be excited about yet another WWII FPS, Hour of Victory has the opportunity to break the mold if it executes its strong points well. Having three playable characters will do wonders if the game is balanced well and the focus on a more arcade experience as opposed to a simulator may really help when it comes to the multi-player aspect of the game. We will reserve judgment for the final review when the game launches in just a few short weeks, but we definitely recommend giving this one a whirl by downloading the free demo via Xbox Live Marketplace. It is well worth checking out and may end up surprising even the most jaded of gamer.

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