Although Delta Force: Black Hawk Down isnt based on Ridley Scotts 2001 movie, it shares the same triumphs and failings as its explosive namesake.
Set in Somalia in 1993, it follows a group of US troops as they make daring raids on warlords in and around Mogadishu. Like the movie, the game puts players at the heart of the action, the intense, relentless combat capturing the thrills and terror of contemporary urban warfare.
The battles are staged in a series of beautifully-realised environments from haphazard shanty towns to bewildering urban sprawls each populated by dozens of armed fighters and civilians, forcing players to make split-second decisions to avoid opening fire on innocent Somalis. But, like the film, the game fails to engage players with a cohesive story, lurching between missions without giving gamers a chance to bond with the soldiers theyre controlling or give a damn what happens in the next gung-ho sortie.
Theres been enough of this kind of thing on TV recently, but at least here the only collateral damage is sore fingers.