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Silent Storm Review


Slaughter

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For those of you that spent the last three years under a rock, meet Silent Storm. This tactical turn-based game is set during the World War II, and you lead a small group of brave saboteurs through a series of difficult missions. This game is a must buy for any Jagged Alliance or X-COM fan! Please allow FullAuto explain why in the StrategyCore review.

 

By far the best thing about the battlefield is the physics. Rather nice rag-doll physics are prominently on display, exaggerated to make common events spectacular. Bullets punch enemies off bridges and explosions hurl them through windows, often leaving them in humorous positions that anyone as immature as I will find hilarious. But this is small potatoes compared to the fact that the environments are completely destructible. Bullets punch through doors and walls, smashed glass sprays everywhere, explosions bite roaring great chunks out of structures. Bigger explosions can simply collapse entire buildings. This freedom lends an unpredictable air to every battle, and can often influence even scripted events. Can't get through that door without getting shot? Blow a hole in the wall with a machine gun and pitch a grenade through. Sniper holding the floor above you? Shoot up through the ceiling and make him dance the lead fandango. So it has a very real effect on the gameplay, always allowing you another option as the damage you do not only opens up sightlines for shooting, but also avenues for escape or advance. The drawback is that occasionally you do too much damage to a vital structure and it collapses, and it's Game Over, baby. Ixnay on the inway. But that doesn't happen very often.

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You can find the slightly more (less?) mature version of this review at our sister site The Last Outpost. If you do the sane thing and buy the game, make sure you get "Silent Storm Gold" (includes the expansion as well). If not, crawl back under your rock!

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I loved this game (a couple years ago) and can't believe that they haven't started a true sequel (and not another add-on or spin-off).

 

If they could update the graphics while keeping the game-play (or even improving it slightly) with larger maps I would gladly give them some more of my cash. But after Night Watch and buying Hammer & Sickle just to help fund the next Silent Storm... well I have given up waiting for another game that is as good or better than S2 from Nival.

 

Ah, hell... if I can hold on and remain hopeful that Fallout 3 will be better than Oblivion with guns I can hold out for Nival to do a proper TB game again. :)

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To be honest I get the impression there's more than a few sequels planned for Silent Storm. I got the impression it was going to be an ongoing storyline but couldn't get anything out of the devs to confirm this either way (I can't imagine why :)).

 

Nival does seem to be quite large as development companies go with a whole arsenal of decent games under their belt so I guess they're just busy with other things at the moment.

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I know I'm probably the only one on the planet that thinks so but there are so many things in this game to dislike.

 

Okay the physics are great and I have to say the best part of the game for me is the vandalism I can cause, but I would have thought that the developers would have put more time into testing if they wanted to get it just right.

 

It's buggy and "gamey" and the tenuous link to aliens doesn't do a thing for me.

 

I know I'm just a whisper in the wind but is has to be said that the game has it's share of problems.

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Ah, hell... if I can hold on and remain hopeful that Fallout 3 will be better than Oblivion with guns I can hold out for Nival to do a proper TB game again. :)

Patient sort, eh? :) I sure hope you're right! I would hate to see another Fallout: POS.

 

@Pete: I think part of the problem is that JoWooD owns the Silent Storm licence, and they didn't make a lot of money from it I believe. Unless Nival buys the license back I think it's more likely we'll see a new franchise using the same mechanics, if at all.

 

@uriaheep: The AI turns take way too long at times, and there are surely some detection problems and so on at times. Still, that did little to ruin my enjoyment of the game, but I can see how it might for some.

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  • 2 years later...

Slaughter, you will be happy to hear I finally purchased the Gold edition today. (Yes, all that nagging finally paid off). :laugh:

 

Anyhow, should be here in a week or two as the seller was from Britain. Can't wait to try this game out. :D

 

- Zombie

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You mean you've never played it? :)

I almost ordered it a year ago but realized my computer wouldn't even run the game. With a recent upgrade in memory my computer should be able to handle the specifications. Like Slaughter always said: "It's a resource hog". :D

 

I had a standing pending ban aimed at you Zombie, so you just saved yourself.... Enjoy! Do tell us how you like it :D

Whew! :laugh: I guess I dodged a bullet then. :) I'll be sure to report back when I play it. Probably going to have 1001 questions too, but hopefully the forums will help with that. :)

 

- Zombie

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