BeserkWraithlor
16th Aug 06, 8:13 PM
Year of Release:2006
Development House:Tripwire Interactive
Publisher:Valve
Website:http://www.redorchestragame.com/
Game Score:86
Graphics:4
Sound:5
Gameplay:4
Concept:3
Execution:5
Controls:3
Enjoyment:5
Replay Ability:5
Difficulty:5
Learning Curve:5
*Score are out of 5*
Patch Version:1.2
Bugs:2
Modability/Community Support:5
Review
Red Orchestra began as an Unreal Tournament 2004 and Unreal Tournament 2003 mod, and it won the $1,000,000 Make Something Real Contest. The game then turned into a Stand Alone game in 2006, distributed by Steam and Retails. Anyways, its time for me to put on my combat boots and get into the game's review.
The game focuses on the Russian Front of WW2, where Germany invades Russia. You can play as 2 Factions, the Allies, (Russians)or Axis (Germans). This game focuses on tons of realism, and is by far the most realistic WW2 game so far. The game has 16 unique vehicles and 30 firearms.
The first part of my Review List is the graphics. The game uses an Enhanced Unreal Engine 2.5, and might be a bit outdated, but they are still beautiful, but don't expect it to be in the level of Half Life 2. Still, the models and water looks very realistic, and when a greande or rocket explodes near you, the entire screen shakes, and becomes blurry, and when bullets buzz by and whizz near you, the screen is blurry, which adds the suspense, and surprises. The animations are great, and the person's eyes move around, but I think it needs a little more work, because the movement is quite sluggish, and you walk as if you are skating on ice. When you die, you slowly fall down, and the screen turns bloody red, and you have a small glimpse of your bloody hands and fingers before the screen fades into blackness. The game contains lots of gore and violence, (which you can turn down) and it makes war seem brutal and gory. When somebody gets shot by a gun, there is little blood, but if you are hit by a greande, your limbs blow off, and your body is crispy and black. When you zoom up on a person why has been hit by a greanade, you see his bloody face and his eyes, and you actually feel sorry for him. When you get hit by artillery or by a rocket, the person's body is reduced to blood and chunks of meat rain down from the sky, as if his entire body turned into red liquid. Getting shot by a High Calibur Rifle will result in blown off limbs, and decapitated heads. Another nice feature is that you can see the interior of the vehicles. No vehicles look the same from the outside, or inside. I find looking inside the Armored Half Track Vehicle very cool, because you can see soldiers doing silly stuff, like picking there nose, or clapping there hands and occasionaly, barfing. The weapon models look polished, and very detailed, and they put graphicly superior FPS game weapon models to shame.All these things added into the game's graphics show how much detail and time the developers put into this game. My only complaints is that the game's physics system is pretty goofy, and that the grass and trees look like plastic and rubber.
The game's sound is also very impressive. In most war games, all the sounds come from the backround, and the actual players don't make much noise, but in Red Orchestra, all the sounds are from the actual guns and cannons the players use, and makes the game feel even more like WW2, with artillery shells exploding near your face, or gunshots heard far away. The noisy weapons simply soar and scream throughout the map. When you hear people talk via radio they either speak Russian or German, which makes the game feel like the Russian Front. The only problem is there is no music, but it does make lots of sense. Soldiers don't carry an Mp3 player and Ipods everywhere they go. The noise of the weapons really stand out, as they all sound different. I really like the reload sounds (I have a bad habit of reloading guns in every FPS game at the wrong time).
Now, what makes every game a game, Gameplay. The Gameplay is awesome, with dozens of Weapons and vehicles to control. You can pick classes, from the Expert Rifleman, to the Brave Assault Troopers, and bossy Officers. Piloting vehicles in this game is innovative, and makes you feel like you are really using that tank or transport. You drive the vehicle in 1st person, and you can bearly see anything. The 1st person for vehicles make you feel very limited to vision, making you rely on the vehicle commander to guide you (As he can see the best).You can climb up to the top and take a view of the front, or stick your head to the window, but you risk yourself from enemy fire that way. What is special about vehicles is because of its lack of vision, it makes you feel very cautious of getting into the hot spot,as infantry can easily flank you and hit your weak points. You can see what tank crews had to suffer in the actual war. You can also shoot from a cannon, but you have to adjust the range and weapon to do the most damage. Vehicles normally have no weak spots in games, and they take the same damage, no matter where you hit it, but in Red Orchestra, every vehicle has a weak spot, either the engine, or the exposed driver. If you shoot a tank in the front, where it is armored, you won't do much, but shooting the engine will disable or destroy the vehicle. When aiming with a gun, there are no crosshairs, so you use Iron Sights to aim. When you shoot a guy in the leg, he will slow down. Shoot somebody in the arm, and they will drop there weapon, which makes it rewarding shooting somebody then simply aiming for heads. Each class has weapons that truly are different. Bolt Action Rifles lack firepower, but they are accurate, and have bayonets for stabbing. SMG's have massive firepower and resonable accuracy, but the SMG's have massive recoil, making burst fire a must. A nifty feature they added was that pulling the mouse down when shooting will reduce recoil. Machineguns have tons of firepower and accuracy, but they need to set up before they shoot, and the gun's tracers will reveal your position. Shooting too much will make your gun overheat, reducing accuracy, and sometimes disabling the gun. Semi auto rifles carry more ammo, and shoot faster than standard rifles, but they are less accurate, and they sway more. Pistols are inaccurate, but they pack a huge punch, and reload quickly. Your gun will be unsteady if you get tired by running, or if you are standing, so you need to rest your gun on something, or crouch down for a better aim. You can rest your gun on a cow! However, don't expect this game to be a run and gun game like Counter Strike, where you can run around and kill everybody by bunny hopping. In Red Orchestra, you rely on lots of teamwork, more than any other FPS game. If you are a lone wolf, you will go down quick, so be sure you have a buddy with you. You don't win for killing people, you need to capture enemy points, or defend yours.
Also, the game uses Realistic bullet and projectile ballistics, so aiming at enemies will be Much different from games like Counter Strike. In Counter Strike, your bullet goes at lightspeed, and you can easily hit your enemy by pointing and shooting, even from an insanely long range. In Red Orchestra however, you need to time your shot, and even aim in front of the enemy. When a guy is running from a far range, and you shoot him, you will miss. Now, aim several feet in front of him and shoot, and he will run into the bullet, instead of the bullet coming to him, so you need very careful timing for both the infantry and tank combat, so the shooting is much more than pointing and shooting with ultra fast reflexes.
The game's concept is rather simple. A WW2 game about 2 sides fighting each other, but its the game's execution that makes the game such a winner. Many games have tried to become realistic, and turn out to be another bunny hopping deathmatch, but Red Orchestra does so well in making the game like the actual war.
Originally posted by:Red Orchestra Tutorial Other games make you feel like you are in the war movie, Red Orchesta makes you feel like you are in the war
The Game's controls are like any other FPS games, but it can be hard doing stuff like radio your allies and taking cover at the same time, and you feel much better making your own controls. They seemed to add more depth in realism in guns. Like for Automatic guns, pulling the mouse down when shooting reduces recoil, and you need to bolt the rifle after you shoot, allowing you to take cover to smack a nearby opponent.
The game is very entertaining and fun, thats if you like Realistic games. If you are looking for a Counter Strike/Deathmatch type of game, you came to the wrong place. You will get killed many times, or kill your allies many times, until you get the hand of the game. You need to spend time on Red Orchestra if you want the most enjoyment, don't be thinking you are going to get tons of headshots on your first hour. With all its classes and authentic vehicles, this game is a big keeper for fun.
The game has alot of replay value, and there are so many choices. The game has an excellent community, and there are many custom maps to download. You always learn in this game, and find ways to do more.
The game may be difficult for the casual or "noobie" players, because there is so much to master and do. The game has veterans, and they can easily beat you, do don't get angry if you keep on dying. The learning curve is steep, which is why you can practice with Bots in single player. There are always tutorials to help you become a better player.
Bottom Line:A must have for players who want realistic games, or love WW2, or people who want to try something new and challanging. Its the Only WW2 Shooter that is set in the Russian Front. Only around $20 on Steam, or retails! It also has 16 Vehicles, over 30 infantry weapons, and 15 maps!
Good Stuff:Realistic, and lots of vehicles and weapons and classes. Great Graphics. Quality maps. Useful Pistols.
Bad Stuff:Large learning curve. Stupid Bots.
Reviewer System Specs (Recommended:CPU:2.4 GHZ,Video Card:128 MB DX9 Complaint with PS 2.0 Support, Sound card:Eax Compatible.)
CPU:2.4 GHZ
Ram:512 MB Ram
Video Card:64 MB DX9 Complaint (ran game with 1250x1024)
Sound Card:Eax Compatible
Other Reviews:http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/review.html
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/redorchestraostfront4145
Screenshots:http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/screenindex.html
Gameplay Videos:Tank Combat (some infantry) (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/video_player.html?id=InQ3kGaq5bMOszU)
Infantry Combat (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/video_player.html?id=KnUwxGH-5bMOszE)
Fall Trailer (http://www.redorchestragame.com/index.php?categoryid=3&p13_sectionid=3&p13_fileid=39)
Lyes Krovy Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mATLtZFPU1A)
Previews:
Exclusive Preview of Next Update (http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/741/741779p1.html)
Developer Interview (http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/721/721049p1.html)
Game Informer Interview (http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Story/200602/N06.0208.1901.19923.htm)
*edited review, after playing the game a bit longer, and playing the new patch, added more info on weapon ballistics and projectiles
Development House:Tripwire Interactive
Publisher:Valve
Website:http://www.redorchestragame.com/
Game Score:86
Graphics:4
Sound:5
Gameplay:4
Concept:3
Execution:5
Controls:3
Enjoyment:5
Replay Ability:5
Difficulty:5
Learning Curve:5
*Score are out of 5*
Patch Version:1.2
Bugs:2
Modability/Community Support:5
Review
Red Orchestra began as an Unreal Tournament 2004 and Unreal Tournament 2003 mod, and it won the $1,000,000 Make Something Real Contest. The game then turned into a Stand Alone game in 2006, distributed by Steam and Retails. Anyways, its time for me to put on my combat boots and get into the game's review.
The game focuses on the Russian Front of WW2, where Germany invades Russia. You can play as 2 Factions, the Allies, (Russians)or Axis (Germans). This game focuses on tons of realism, and is by far the most realistic WW2 game so far. The game has 16 unique vehicles and 30 firearms.
The first part of my Review List is the graphics. The game uses an Enhanced Unreal Engine 2.5, and might be a bit outdated, but they are still beautiful, but don't expect it to be in the level of Half Life 2. Still, the models and water looks very realistic, and when a greande or rocket explodes near you, the entire screen shakes, and becomes blurry, and when bullets buzz by and whizz near you, the screen is blurry, which adds the suspense, and surprises. The animations are great, and the person's eyes move around, but I think it needs a little more work, because the movement is quite sluggish, and you walk as if you are skating on ice. When you die, you slowly fall down, and the screen turns bloody red, and you have a small glimpse of your bloody hands and fingers before the screen fades into blackness. The game contains lots of gore and violence, (which you can turn down) and it makes war seem brutal and gory. When somebody gets shot by a gun, there is little blood, but if you are hit by a greande, your limbs blow off, and your body is crispy and black. When you zoom up on a person why has been hit by a greanade, you see his bloody face and his eyes, and you actually feel sorry for him. When you get hit by artillery or by a rocket, the person's body is reduced to blood and chunks of meat rain down from the sky, as if his entire body turned into red liquid. Getting shot by a High Calibur Rifle will result in blown off limbs, and decapitated heads. Another nice feature is that you can see the interior of the vehicles. No vehicles look the same from the outside, or inside. I find looking inside the Armored Half Track Vehicle very cool, because you can see soldiers doing silly stuff, like picking there nose, or clapping there hands and occasionaly, barfing. The weapon models look polished, and very detailed, and they put graphicly superior FPS game weapon models to shame.All these things added into the game's graphics show how much detail and time the developers put into this game. My only complaints is that the game's physics system is pretty goofy, and that the grass and trees look like plastic and rubber.
The game's sound is also very impressive. In most war games, all the sounds come from the backround, and the actual players don't make much noise, but in Red Orchestra, all the sounds are from the actual guns and cannons the players use, and makes the game feel even more like WW2, with artillery shells exploding near your face, or gunshots heard far away. The noisy weapons simply soar and scream throughout the map. When you hear people talk via radio they either speak Russian or German, which makes the game feel like the Russian Front. The only problem is there is no music, but it does make lots of sense. Soldiers don't carry an Mp3 player and Ipods everywhere they go. The noise of the weapons really stand out, as they all sound different. I really like the reload sounds (I have a bad habit of reloading guns in every FPS game at the wrong time).
Now, what makes every game a game, Gameplay. The Gameplay is awesome, with dozens of Weapons and vehicles to control. You can pick classes, from the Expert Rifleman, to the Brave Assault Troopers, and bossy Officers. Piloting vehicles in this game is innovative, and makes you feel like you are really using that tank or transport. You drive the vehicle in 1st person, and you can bearly see anything. The 1st person for vehicles make you feel very limited to vision, making you rely on the vehicle commander to guide you (As he can see the best).You can climb up to the top and take a view of the front, or stick your head to the window, but you risk yourself from enemy fire that way. What is special about vehicles is because of its lack of vision, it makes you feel very cautious of getting into the hot spot,as infantry can easily flank you and hit your weak points. You can see what tank crews had to suffer in the actual war. You can also shoot from a cannon, but you have to adjust the range and weapon to do the most damage. Vehicles normally have no weak spots in games, and they take the same damage, no matter where you hit it, but in Red Orchestra, every vehicle has a weak spot, either the engine, or the exposed driver. If you shoot a tank in the front, where it is armored, you won't do much, but shooting the engine will disable or destroy the vehicle. When aiming with a gun, there are no crosshairs, so you use Iron Sights to aim. When you shoot a guy in the leg, he will slow down. Shoot somebody in the arm, and they will drop there weapon, which makes it rewarding shooting somebody then simply aiming for heads. Each class has weapons that truly are different. Bolt Action Rifles lack firepower, but they are accurate, and have bayonets for stabbing. SMG's have massive firepower and resonable accuracy, but the SMG's have massive recoil, making burst fire a must. A nifty feature they added was that pulling the mouse down when shooting will reduce recoil. Machineguns have tons of firepower and accuracy, but they need to set up before they shoot, and the gun's tracers will reveal your position. Shooting too much will make your gun overheat, reducing accuracy, and sometimes disabling the gun. Semi auto rifles carry more ammo, and shoot faster than standard rifles, but they are less accurate, and they sway more. Pistols are inaccurate, but they pack a huge punch, and reload quickly. Your gun will be unsteady if you get tired by running, or if you are standing, so you need to rest your gun on something, or crouch down for a better aim. You can rest your gun on a cow! However, don't expect this game to be a run and gun game like Counter Strike, where you can run around and kill everybody by bunny hopping. In Red Orchestra, you rely on lots of teamwork, more than any other FPS game. If you are a lone wolf, you will go down quick, so be sure you have a buddy with you. You don't win for killing people, you need to capture enemy points, or defend yours.
Also, the game uses Realistic bullet and projectile ballistics, so aiming at enemies will be Much different from games like Counter Strike. In Counter Strike, your bullet goes at lightspeed, and you can easily hit your enemy by pointing and shooting, even from an insanely long range. In Red Orchestra however, you need to time your shot, and even aim in front of the enemy. When a guy is running from a far range, and you shoot him, you will miss. Now, aim several feet in front of him and shoot, and he will run into the bullet, instead of the bullet coming to him, so you need very careful timing for both the infantry and tank combat, so the shooting is much more than pointing and shooting with ultra fast reflexes.
The game's concept is rather simple. A WW2 game about 2 sides fighting each other, but its the game's execution that makes the game such a winner. Many games have tried to become realistic, and turn out to be another bunny hopping deathmatch, but Red Orchestra does so well in making the game like the actual war.
Originally posted by:Red Orchestra Tutorial Other games make you feel like you are in the war movie, Red Orchesta makes you feel like you are in the war
The Game's controls are like any other FPS games, but it can be hard doing stuff like radio your allies and taking cover at the same time, and you feel much better making your own controls. They seemed to add more depth in realism in guns. Like for Automatic guns, pulling the mouse down when shooting reduces recoil, and you need to bolt the rifle after you shoot, allowing you to take cover to smack a nearby opponent.
The game is very entertaining and fun, thats if you like Realistic games. If you are looking for a Counter Strike/Deathmatch type of game, you came to the wrong place. You will get killed many times, or kill your allies many times, until you get the hand of the game. You need to spend time on Red Orchestra if you want the most enjoyment, don't be thinking you are going to get tons of headshots on your first hour. With all its classes and authentic vehicles, this game is a big keeper for fun.
The game has alot of replay value, and there are so many choices. The game has an excellent community, and there are many custom maps to download. You always learn in this game, and find ways to do more.
The game may be difficult for the casual or "noobie" players, because there is so much to master and do. The game has veterans, and they can easily beat you, do don't get angry if you keep on dying. The learning curve is steep, which is why you can practice with Bots in single player. There are always tutorials to help you become a better player.
Bottom Line:A must have for players who want realistic games, or love WW2, or people who want to try something new and challanging. Its the Only WW2 Shooter that is set in the Russian Front. Only around $20 on Steam, or retails! It also has 16 Vehicles, over 30 infantry weapons, and 15 maps!
Good Stuff:Realistic, and lots of vehicles and weapons and classes. Great Graphics. Quality maps. Useful Pistols.
Bad Stuff:Large learning curve. Stupid Bots.
Reviewer System Specs (Recommended:CPU:2.4 GHZ,Video Card:128 MB DX9 Complaint with PS 2.0 Support, Sound card:Eax Compatible.)
CPU:2.4 GHZ
Ram:512 MB Ram
Video Card:64 MB DX9 Complaint (ran game with 1250x1024)
Sound Card:Eax Compatible
Other Reviews:http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/review.html
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/redorchestraostfront4145
Screenshots:http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/screenindex.html
Gameplay Videos:Tank Combat (some infantry) (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/video_player.html?id=InQ3kGaq5bMOszU)
Infantry Combat (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/redorchestraostfront4145/video_player.html?id=KnUwxGH-5bMOszE)
Fall Trailer (http://www.redorchestragame.com/index.php?categoryid=3&p13_sectionid=3&p13_fileid=39)
Lyes Krovy Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mATLtZFPU1A)
Previews:
Exclusive Preview of Next Update (http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/741/741779p1.html)
Developer Interview (http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/721/721049p1.html)
Game Informer Interview (http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Story/200602/N06.0208.1901.19923.htm)
*edited review, after playing the game a bit longer, and playing the new patch, added more info on weapon ballistics and projectiles