World in Conflict (DVD-ROM)

Christmas has come early with World Conflict, which does to the real-time strategy (RTS) genre what Bioshock did to the first-person shooter. It redefines it. Set in a hypoethical 1989 when the USSR invades both Europe and America in a startling World War III to prevent its internal collapse, the game puts you in the shoes of Lieutenant Parker, tasked to help defend American soil from Mother Russia. In between, players also get the chance to play on the European front where Nato forces are holding the line. How World in Conflict differs from other RTS - and extremely well so - is by doing away with base building and focusing on a reinforcement system. Players spend an allotment of points on units, and if they die, the points slowly trickle back for you to order in more. The units are split between Air, Armour, Infantry and Support, each with its pros and cons. Players pick a path and can buy a small number of units - ranging from heavy tanks to light transport vehicles - from them. So, gameplay is fast and furious, consisting of squads working in tandem (often with AI-controlled allies) to achieve goals. While the story alone is worth the price, it's the multiplayer scheme you'll be coming back for. With a full in-game client, Voice-over IP, buddy lists and ladder rankings, it's clear that a lot of thought went into the game before it even shipped.

Diving in, you'll find a choice of the four paths to choose from - the Air, Armour, Infantry and Support. Players will need to divide themselves well in order to succeed by supporting each other in battle. On any one map then, you'll often have up to 16 other players in any of those classes trying to battle it to help take objectives, but World in Conflict isn't geared for solo heroes. Players will absolutely need allies. For instance, tanks will chew up enemy armour and fortifications, but anti-tank infantry and choppers will make mince-meat out of them, requiring two or more players to tag along with each other for proper fire support. If you find yourself alone and outgunned though, all is not lost. The other resource in the game is called tactical points, gained by capturing specific locations on the map, completing your objectives or simply killing enough enemies. These give you the chance to call in various arsenal - from napalm strikes that can burn down forests shielding infantry to the ultimate graphical glory - a tactical nuke.

Most online players seem to be playing Domination right now, which pits both sides in a race to own more tactical positions and forces the other side out. As a testament to the balance of the game, fighters can go on right up to the last second for last-gasp victories. it would be remiss if I talked about all that and missed out the first thing you'll love in World in Conflict - the graphics. Even on a mid-range system running a GeForce 7600, the game looks jaw-droppingly realistic. Zoom in all the way and tiny details like canteens on infantry can be seen. Zoom out and watch the landscape get blown up. with Company of Heroes, players were already shouting for joy at being able to level buildings and create new paths to enemies. Here, levelling forests, bridges, buildings and more are so routine, it makes me wonder why I didn't miss this feature before in other real-time strategy titles. In short, if you're any sort of RTS fan who's always believed that more players fighting really wins the war, this is your battle, this is your victory.