SOCOM Confrontation Review PS3

SOCOM is a tactical 3^rd person shooter game series that started on the Playstation 2 and is making its debut on the Playstation 3 with an online only game. The game is a stark departure from previous games in the series that provided both a single player and multiplayer experience. This newest iteration has no single player element at all. Two packages exist, one that includes just the game for $39.99 or a bundle package that includes a Playstation 3 Bluetooth headset for $59.99. I would highly recommend the latter for those who want a quality headset for cheap and if one does not like the game, it can be sold on EBay, which makes the headset come out to about $30. SOCOM is not wholly a bad game contrary to the press releases all over, but at the time of release it had major lag issues which have since been corrected.

Graphic and sound:

The graphics in SOCOM Confrontation are not next generation nor should a player expect them to be so when 32 players are simultaneously online in enormous maps. Bandwidth would be choked if levels looked like Resistance 2, but with the enormous size of SOCOM maps and 32 players online. Although Resistance 2 claims to have 60 players online, the player never encounters all 60 players as they are sectioned off in other areas as opposed to in SOCOM, all 32 players are able to be encountered within the map. The maps in SOCOM Confrontation are well designed and balanced providing very few advantage areas, which can be easily overrun with a well placed grenade. Sound effects sound great when connected to a surround sound system and immerses the player in a war zone.

Gameplay and controls:

SOCOM Confrontation is an online tactical shooter that provides the player with a small amount of customization in terms of faces and uniforms, but it does have a variety of weapon loadouts that can be created to give the player control over what weapons they wish to be equipped with. There are seven online match modes which are: Breach, Control, Escort, Extraction, Demolition, Suppression, and Elimination. Breach mode sets up objectives to the team to accomplish and the winning team will have either completed all the objectives or eliminated the opposing team. Control mode consists of teams controlling five points on the map or eliminating the opposing team. Escort mode involves escorting VIP NPCs to an extraction point before the enemy team eliminates them or the player’s team. Extraction is the same as VIP except that one team is rescuing hostages and leading them to an extraction point rather than guiding VIPs. The team can rescue 2 or 3 hostages to win and the opposing team wins if they eliminate the hostages or the rescue team. Demolition mode consists of one team planting a bomb while the opposing team attempts to thwart them. Suppression is basically a Team Deathmatch mode where opposing teams compete for the most kills. Elimination is basically a Deathmatch mode where every player is in a free for all and the one with the most kills wins. There are many ways to customize these games modes including spawn options, timers, etc…  The game also has a ranking system and leaderboard to track the best players, trophies, clans, and an in-game calendar for organizing events. Controls in the game are very easy to use although swapping weapons is delayed at times.

Overall thoughts:

When SOCOM Confrontation was first launched it had many issues. Massive lag was apparent and the game would crash at times while loading a map or while playing. I quickly sold my game a month after release, because the issues had not been fixed at the time. I recently repurchased SOCOM Confrontation for a bargain at $15 and was pleasantly surprised that the lag and crashing issues had been fixed. Many people play this game online as it is a very fun tactical shooter. I highly recommend grabbing it online for a bargain and not paying full price for it.