Dustwind Reviews

This game looks like THE spiritual successor to "Fallout: Tactics" -- and indeed it could have been. The combat mechanics are pretty stellar actually -- and if you only care about shootouts in online multiplay you won't be disappointed. However, I bought this game for the campaign... which for a score of reasons is REALLY weak... obviously an afterthought to a game that was going great up to that point. First of all, no co-op for the campaign. second -- I'm like 20 missions in and I have yet to get a squad member... even though I've done a few escort missions and several (boring and repetitive) defense missions. the maps are fun but there is no glue holding it all together. Post apocalypse is a theme or flavor for this game -- there is no narrative or atmosphere holding it up. The best thing about tactics (and I bet multiplayer) is squad mechanics... but it's not there in the campaign over 15 hours into the game, which makes me question if it's there at all and if so, why so late? There's also vehicles with multiple driver/gunner/passenger seats... but without squadmates this is a wasted mechanic. They also forbid you from using your vehicle even if you want to swap from driver to gunner by gating in your vehicle with impassible terrain so really it's just a glorified closet for storing your loot. Low enemy diversity is not a problem when you're fighting raiders with all sorts of different weapons, but after you kill your 1000th mutant dwarf (I should mention that some of these dwarfs are giant, as big as the player or larger -- so why call them dwarfs?) There are robobabes called valkyries but no attempt is made to explain who or what they are or why their in the "wasteland" ... and "Frogpigs"... but that's about it for monster diversity this far in. Really, a game of this era should have to show a lot more to have a string of solo missions be worthy to be called a campaign. They shouldn't have bothered. So again, like I said -- if you just care about combat mechanics, pick it up cheap and hope people are playing it online. Otherwise, take a pass.

very nice game like fotactics