By now, I'm sure we've all played BOII, and we've all played the much-anticipated Strike Force missions, too. I think it's fair to say that the reaction to Strike Force has been rather mixed: on the one hand, you've got the players who loved them -- they're the closest thing to total freedom that the CoD campaigns have seen, and the players praise Treyarch for making one of the biggest innovations in CoD to date. On the other hand, you've got the players who say they were a complete flop -- that poor level design and crappy AI grunts combined to make a disastrous mode.
Both sides have convincing arguments, and I'm going to discuss them here. So... Strike Force. Was it a good idea or a bad idea?
Well, personally, I thought that SF was a great idea, and that it was executed very nicely too. It's a wonderfully refreshing change of pace to be able to complete a mission as you see fit, as opposed to following a pre-designed path that the devs laid out for you beforehand, and it gives you a much larger sense of achievement when you get the job done. The streamlined controls make it all the more better -- switching from foot soldier to quadrotor to WALL-E with a blood lust can be done at the touch of a directional button. And come on -- who doesn't like the idea of tearing enemy troops to shreds with a CLAW?
But what's that? You're feeling lazy today, and don't really feel like getting your hands dirty? Not to worry -- you can just hop into Overwatch mode and command your forces in real time, letting them do all the hard work for you! Then you can sit back, crack open a Pepsi, and watch with grim satisfaction as your JSOC boys duke it out with SDC soldiers.
Now, the only serious complaint that I'd have about SF is that you can't always 100% rely on your AI teammates to get the job done. I adore CoD's single player, but even I'll admit that the game's AI aren't the brightest lamps in the shop. You sometimes have to hit a command two or three times before your forces will actually start moving towards it. Still, these situations are mercifully rare in my experience. Besides, if your team gets into trouble, it's as simple as taking direct control of a unit and lending them a hand yourself.
So, I love Strike Force. But what about you, dear reader? And you, cheap reader (cwutididthar?)? Cast your vote, and voice your own opinion in the comments!