Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel
Reviewed By Tristan Tancredi
First things first, here's our recommedation on how best to enjoy Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel - Grab a 6-pack of CC & Dry, call up a mate of similar (or thereabouts) gaming talent and settle down on a comfy couch for a pretty enjoyable co-op Third Person Shooter.
The Devil's Cartel is a pure Co-Op Experience (Loners fear not, you can play solo with an AI partner). In our opinion however, the game is more enjoyable playing with a mate, whether it be via split screen or online modes.
Developed by Visceral Montreal and published by EA, The Devil's Cartel is the third game in the Army of Two series. Set in Mexico, gamers play the role of two new members, Alpha and Bravo as they take on La Guadana (A nasty drug cartel).
Running for the first time on the Frostbite 2 engine, The Devil's Cartel follows TWO (Tactical Worldwide Operations) masked new recruits Alpha and Bravo on various missions that centre around a vicious drug cartel in Mexico. Missions range from rescuing hostages and politicians and tracking down Cartel leaders ... Predominantly however, the story centres around ripping the Mexican Cartel to pieces.
We figured out a story twist about 20 minutes into The Devil's Cartel, so the game is a little bit predictable. There is also nothing unique about the script of The Devil's Cartel, it's the same ol' drug cartel scenario. Cartel leader... Damsel in Distress... Two men against thousands of Cartel....
It isn't always mindless shooting, there are Co-Op situations that are best approached via a tactial method.
Devil's Cartel utilises specific Co-Op scenarios, yet these appear only sparesly throughout the extended playthrough. These specific Co-Op missions include; Someone clearing out the cartel on the ground whilst receiving cover fire from their partner with a sniper rifle. Someone rescuing a damsel in distress, whilst their partner holds the fort (Players can choose who does what). You get the picture..
Considering that these missions offer a great tactical alternative to the constant and simple slog through enemy cartel, it's disappointing that they are too few and far between.
The majority of the game finds gamers clearing out areas via massive gun fights. Co-Op tactics such as flanking and timed assaults are essential to gaining upmost enjoyment. Extra points are awarded for planned out assaults and tactical manouvres. Gun fights are essentially a hell of a lot of fun yet become a tad tiresome over time.
Repitition is perhaps the games weakest aspect. Too many missions are too similar in such a way that the game edges very close to becoming boring. In a "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" kind of way, we prematurely thought we finished The Devil's Cartel about four times.
Making a return is "Overkill". Fans of the series will remember Overkill from the first game in the Army of Two series. By killing heaps of cartel, the Overkill meter slowly builds up. Pressing R2, gamers enter Overkill mode and become invincible for a period of time. Also, during this time, gamers firepower increases significantly to create more mayhem.
Blood and gore is on offer in abundance with The Devil's Cartel. Decapitations, machetes through skulls, you name it.. There's a good reason the classification board rated this one R18+.
Hand to hand combat also exists. It is incredibly easy to overcome an onslaught of enemies via this means. (There is a pretty awesome level whereby hand to hand combat is the only means of attack thanks to flammable barrels occupying the scene). Button mashing is the technique here.
The Devil's Cartel looks great, albeit the majority of environments are very "samey". The multitude of enemy cartel are well designed, as are the main characters; Alpha and Bravo.
The voice acting is decent and the banter between the two main characters is entertaining. Character development is a little lacklustre as we (both my mate and I) didn't really give a rats about either character. The character development of the main enemies is also quite shallow.
Nontheless, Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel provides mindless fun for a co-op Third Person Shooter. If you disregard the weak story and repetitive missions, there is fun to be had with ridiculously over-the-top, wild shoot outs. Be prepared to rip apart the drug cartel... literally.
Game: Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel
System: PS3
Developer/Co-Developer: Visceral Montreal
Publisher: EA
