The James Logan Courier

By Howard Yang, Courier Staff Writer

In today's fast-paced gaming industry, tactical shooter fans are hard pressed to find a high quality game that offers both depth of gameplay and long term replayability. Luckily for gamers, the United States Army has the answer they are looking for. America's Army: Special Forces is a online multi-player tactical shooting game that rivals the greatest titles from its genre, and best of all it's free!

Developed by the U.S. military, America's Army offers unparalleled authenticity and realism. Take the gameplay, for example, a new player must first pass a series of basic training courses in order to be given a rank and be permitted to participate in online gameplay. For those who wish to explore further, the game allows players to take on a grueling special forces training regiment that would frustrate even the most seasoned gamers. In order to become a medic, for example, the player must take an injury treatment course and even pass an exam!

The bread and butter of this game is its multi-player component. Staying true to the Army's teamwork spirit, the game places a tremendous amount of emphasis on planning and cooperation. During the course of an online match, each team is given objectives that require great care and coordination to complete. As a recruitment tool for the army, Special Forces succeeds in showing gamers a glimpse of what it's like to be a soldier in the U.S. military.

The graphics in this game is excellent given the fact that its free. Some may even find some pleasantly surprising details such as a rag doll physics model to achieve realistic damage affects. Hardcore tactical shooter fans will also appreciate the authentic weapon models and sounds.

If you have a relatively fast internet connection, an up-to-date computer, and 3.5 gigabytes of hard drive space, head on over to americasarmy.com and pick up the latest version of America's Army: Special Forces, its free!