Gi-Yo,
Just had a crack at Pebble (
). To summarise what I thought - great fun to play and really well thought out. There's one or two minor criticisms which are going to seem really picky now, but here goes.
Installation - no problems, but the zip file contained a user mission rather than a .pbo file, so I had to open the editor and do 'save to single missions'.
Overview - Good picture but needs a border and shadow. These can be added in pretty easily with a basic image editor. The text was fine.
Intro - There wasn't one. Although not an essential, an intro showing the powerful Russian air group inflicting heavy losses on the Resistance and/or US forces would give a good sense of why the mission is so important, but this can always be added in later.
Briefing - No worries here. All the objectives on one page is good, and a short paragraph gave a good summary. The only thing I would say, and I'm going to sound like your English teacher here, is that maybe you could improve the notes page by breaking up some of the long sentences. But considering that this is a complex mission, it all makes good sense.
The Mission - Took me four or five goes to get to the end and left me wanting another crack - it's challenging, but not too tough, and the radio chatter, helicopters buzzing overhead and resistance tanks on their way into battle made me feel like I was part of a major operation. I'll run through how it went for me:
Destroy the Shilka: We rumble up the beach in the M113. Our gunner kills an enemy patrol for us and we pile out. We head for the town and make contact with the enemy as we approach the first lighthouse. I get so specific orders so I put down covering fire and kill one enemy. As we press forward, one of the other LAW soldiers outflanks the Shilka and destroys it. Objective clear, but two of our men are dead. Some nice touches here, such as the sandbag emplacement for the Shilka. We head out of town to meet the M113, and see some resistance units on the way to join the diversionary attack. Pile into the M113 ready for:
The Spetsnaz Camp: As we move on, helicopters pass low overhead and we roll into the desolate valley south of the airport. A well placed game save makes me breathe a bit easier as the squad disembarks and we move on the camp. The spetsnaz fight fiercely, but they're outnumbered by our two squads and quickly overcome. The camp is very well put together and looks convincing. Right now I'm feeling totally immersed in the game.
The Airfield: The Russians in the valley bring our advance to a stop, but with a bit of nifty marksmanship from me (three enemy killed) and the squad moves forward. A BMP turns up and is quickly knocked out by the other LAW soldier. We move towards the airport, taking sporadic fire. Another BMP emerges and I run to wreck of the first to ambush it, but super-LAW soldier gets there first. He kills the BMP but goes down to a stray bullet. I line up my LAW on the nearest Mi-17 and KERBOOM! What was in those helos? The order comes in to move to the evac point. The Blackhawks come in and we run for them, scenting victory. And as I am about to embark, I get splatted by a sniper. Damn!
Overall then, I really enjoyed this mission. A great choice of location, tough but possible objectives, three very different fights and the feeling of being part of something bigger. The casualties mount as you go, and you are really on the edge by the time you hit the airfield. The balance between movement and action is about right, and the save points are right where you want them.
I don't think there's anything much in the mission itself that needs changing. If you can make some custom radio voices, this will add a lot to the atmosphere, but that's about all. Some tweaks to the briefing and overview and the addition of a short intro and this will make a really great level.
Not a scooby why it's called 'Pebble' though. Ah well...
Ade
;D
Topic: (Review Completed) [SP] Pebble - airfield assault (Read 8170 times)