[OFP] Village De-Pacification by RKurtzDmitriyev

Review by Walter_E_Kurtz

Overview

The picture is great and the text succinct. The image makes use of the larger space provided for overviews by the WGL mod. As it is an in-game shot you will become familiar with the scene portrayed.

Intro

In the manner of a multiplayer mission, the Intro takes the form a cutscene after you click 'Continue' in the Briefing. Correctly, the game is saved immediately after this is completed.

The Intro is not overly complex, taking in the Russians loitering in their positions and a justifiably anxious-looking civilian.

Briefing

For a mission in which you play the resistance side, the Briefing outdoes even Victor Troska in terms of military exactitude. The information provided is useful and, more importantly, understandable. It should make you more confident about knowing what to expect, both from your own men and from the enemy. In short: comprehensive and comprehensible.

Naturally there is a weapons selection, if you should feel the need to alter your team's loadout. The choice is suitably constricted to reinforce the idea that your side is dependent upon scavenging from the enemy. However, it is a disappointment to me that mortars are not included as they are one of the ways in which WGL is different from plain OFP.

Mission

The setup is fairly simple: you are the leader of Abel squad; another squad like your own, named Beast, starts on the opposite side of Larche. The Radio Menu gives you very basic control of Beast: they can either attack or retreat or even, when both squads are depleted, join yours.

I have nothing much to say about the mission itself except: Do not make the mistake of thinking you can relax, not even for a moment. The circumstances are liable to change quickly and, at some point, every man will require you to rearm him.

If you can complete this assignment having felt comfortable with the situation all the way through, I doff my cap to you. In itself, finishing is not an accomplishment; having a squad left is.

Outro(s)

Again, like the Intro, the Outro is part of the mission, appearing before the debriefing screen. There are two and your achievements determine which is shown. Both are concise affairs, but after some intense close-quarters combat it is difficult to work up much enthusiasm for them.

Special

A functional mission for the WarGames League mod - it might just give you the appetite to try online co-ops.

Some of the scripting is so subtle you will either not notice it or it will strike you as obvious. For instance, the WGL Mod provides rucksacks which allow more rifle magazines to be carried in pistol magazine slots; your men are capable of helping themselves to this extra ammo.

Overall

In order to undertake this operation you should be a seasoned player, comfortable in leading a squad. Prior experience with WGL would be an advantage. Failure to exercise your command wisely will incur many needless deaths.

This mission does not deserve an outright score of 8 as its replayability is not high enough; 7.5 would be more appropriate. However, the implementation is near faultless and all the basics of mission-making are presented in an exemplary manner. Thus, with mild reluctance, the overall score can be rounded up.

PS. I think most people who have tested this mission have suffered a game-freeze (CPU usage tending towards 100%) at some point. This was even reported in earlier versions that had less scripting, making the WGL Mod the likely culprit. The mission-author has provided a number of automatic saves at appropriate times; however, sometimes freezes appear to be inevitable and even reverting will not get you past them. In these situations a complete restart seems to be called for.