[ArmA] Especas Commandos by Shark Attack

Review by Cheetah

Overview

As this mission is designed for multiplayer there is no overview. This shouldn't be a reason for skipping this mission in SP mode as it's playable on your own. Adding an overview to an MP mission is recommended though, as it adds additional information and looks better in SP mode.

Intro

There is a mission intro present, just long enough to introduce the player to the mission. You can hear and feel the jungle atmosphere that the author wants to set in the mission, but the camera stays too long at certain positions.

Briefing

The objectives of this mission are described in the plan section of the mission and should be clear for anyone to understand the goals of this mission. Working markers visualize objectives on the map to get a better understanding of the mission. Some people might not like the layout of the briefing plan, for me it was what an MP mission should offer. The plan could have been a bit shorter, possibly with a link to an extra page of information for the Coop-clans out there who like to play a mission with a detailed story.

In the notes section, information is given about the situation in the jungle and enemy compounds. A weapon selection is present and offers most of the SLA weapons, though most people will probably just go with the default layout, which is fine as it consists of silenced weapons, which are valuable in this mission. When playing in SP mode, it's good to have expert teammates and that's what this mision offers to you. If you prefer playing this mission in singleplayer mode, then there are three expert commandos ready to join you on this hazardous mission.

Mission

As soon as the mission loads you feel alone, despite having some teammates around. The dense jungle will ensure that you will have to be on your guard. As soon as the first firefight ensues you will find yourself in deep trouble. Your enemy, rebels supported by US Special Forces, don't make easy targets and are decent shooters. A direct route will most probably lead you right into an ambush or heavy firefight, in which casualties will most likely occur on both sides.

You will notice that you get alerted by titleTexts when something happens. For example to take your NVGs off, or upon the completion of an objective. Instead of these, I would have liked to see a radio message, alarm or shouting rebels instead.

Especas Commandos is a pretty long mission, four objectives have to be completed after which the extraction has to succeed in order to complete the mission. The objectives are all more or less of the same type, attack / destroy this or that, but you won't be bothered by that as the route to each of the objectives is different. In SP mode this mission is challenging in it's own way, the AI teammates are good shooters, but tend to have some trouble with the environment.

One thing the author overlooked is the use of vehicles, they are all locked whereas they could add a new element to the mission.

Outro(s)

None.

Special

The most notable special of this mission is its atmosphere, further increased by encouraging the use of silenced weapons by using eventHandlers to determine if a player uses loud weapons like the AK74. Once they are fired by the Especas, hell will break loose as reinforcements will start moving towards the objectives and your enemies get alerted. Don't be surprised when some rebels suddenly pop up on your flank in the jungle, after firing your SVD Dragunov.

Even though these eventHandlers work, a lot of them are used for the same purpose - to detect if loud weapons have been fired. Luckily the mission doesn't lag and the mission isn't a huge CPU eating monster.

Overall

By using custom sounds of monkeys and the dense forests in the east of Sahrani you actually get the feeling to be in a tropical rain forest - or a jungle. With all the enemies running around there is enough to keep you busy and sharp during the mission. Don't underestimate the enemy forces, the difficulty of this mission is best described as "hard".

Technically the mission is mediocre. There are no flaws during the MP play nor in SP mode, but the mission can't be considered as an advanced one. It lacks additional scripts to increase the gameplay like an AI enhancement script. Overall this mission is decent and will entertain you if you like Special Forces missions. If you can find people to play with, try this one in MP and you won't be disappointed.