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Publisher: 2K Games
Genre: Video GamesThird-person shooter
Release Date: 06/26/2012
Platform(s): Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows
Online Enabled: No
ESRB Rating: M
ESRB Explanation: For Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
Price: 59.99
Common Sense Says: Gory military shooter tackles difficult questions about war.
Common Sense Rates It:
Parents need to know
Parents need to know that Spec Ops: The Line is a third-person military shooter brimming with graphic, blood-soaked violence. Unlike many such games, much of the violence presented here is crucial to a complex commentary that focuses on the nature and potential atrocities of morally grey conflicts and how such situations affect their participants. This pensive narrative actually intensifies the emotional impact of the horrors depicted, making it all the harder to watch scenes in which civilians are killed and trained soldiers go mad with misgivings. This is a game with extremely mature themes intended for adult audiences only.
- Families can talk about the impact of violence in media. Can violence ever serve an important narrative purpose? If yes, what is the impact on age appropriateness?
- Families can also discuss online safety. How can you tell if the strangers you chat with online are safe? What precautions do you take when interacting with others in text lobbies and while using voice-enabled headsets?
What's the story?
Inspired by the book Heart of Darkness, SPEC OPS: THE LINE is a third-person shooter in which players command a squad of three soldiers. The once-opulent city of Dubai lies in ruins, a victim of terrible, ongoing sandstorms that forced most of its inhabitants to flee months ago. The last American troops to enter the decimated metropolis simply disappeared. It's up to your squad to discover what happened to them. However, as your trio of troops journey into the depths of the city they discover horrors that they never could have imagined, leading them to question their mission, their loyalty, and even their sanity. Outside of the story mode lie a collection of online multiplayer games that offer familiar objectives and rules.
Is it any good?
This tactical shooter is, weirdly, the polar opposite of most modern military games. It lacks the sort of Hollywood glitz and graphical polish that has come to be a signature of most games in the genre. Its cover-based shooting mechanics are clunky to the point of being occasionally frustrating. And its online mode seems more of an afterthought rather than the focus of the experience. As a game, it's below average.However, it excels as an interactive story. The game boldly presents a variety of compellingly horrific and morally grey situations that draw players ever deeper into the twisted world that this Dubai severed from civilization has become. Part Lord of the Flies, part Apocalypse Now, it depicts some of the worst things that people can do to each other and shows in unflinching detail the consequences felt by both victims and perpetrators. Spec Ops: The Line may not be much fun to play, but there's little chance you'll forget the dark and thought-provoking tale it tells.
How to play
Playbility: Standard third-person shooter controls mean experienced players will be able to hit the ground running. However, enemies are smart and bullets can be scarce, making much of the action harder than you might expect.
The Good Stuff
Messages: This shooter presents terrible moral dilemmas without easy answers and brazenly questions the military's role in certain kinds of conflicts. Its imagery centers on terrible violence and death, but with the express purpose of showing the player that these things are horrific rather than thrilling. This message is seemingly at odds with the player's actions, which generally involve shooting and killing people, but it makes players more aware of what they're doing, leading them to question the morality of what their squad is doing.
Role Models: The game's three lead soldiers begin as professional troops sworn to duty, but slowly transform into people who react emotionally to the horrors they see and things they do. Players wouldn't want to emulate these characters, but they may well learn something from what their actions.
Ease of play: Standard third-person shooter controls mean experienced players will be able to hit the ground running. However, enemies are smart and bullets can be scarce, making much of the action harder than you might expect.
What to watch out for
Violence Players use a range of modern military hardware to attack and kill enemies in this visceral third-person shooter. Rifles, grenades, and other weapons tear foes apart, resulting in spattered blood, severed limbs, and screams. Close-range kills see players snapping enemies' necks, and slow motion effects serve to intensify the action. Players can kill unarmed civilians and will encounter heaps of corpses -- some terribly burnt -- of people already dead.
Sex: Not an issue
Language: Strong language can be heard throughout the game, including the words "f--k," "s--t," and "ass."
Consumerism: This game is part of the ongoing Spec Ops series of military shooters.
Drinking, drugs & smoking: Not an issue
