As they did last April, EA recently flew a few members of various gaming websites to Montreal to check out Army of Two: The 40th Day. This time around, though, the focus was on the three multiplayer modes and the new Extraction co-op mode. After spending an afternoon running, gunning, and ducking through the streets of Shanghai with just my co-op partner by my side, it became very clear that EA Montreal has not only improved on the original title, but they’ve created a shining example of why couch co-op can never be replaced.
The original Army of Two offered three multiplayer modes in addition to the full co-op campaign: Warzone, where teams of four would need to complete randomly generated objectives in order to score points; Bounty, where players hunted down the leader of the opposing force to turn them in for money; and Extraction, where players would need to rescue VIPs and get them to the extraction point. The sequel keeps the Warzone multiplayer mode, but ditches the other two. In their place, EA Montreal has created a new Co-Op Deathmatch mode, where up to four teams of two players each face off to see who can rack up the most kills, and a king-of-the-hill type mode called Control. In addition to these, they added the “name’s the same, but the game’s changed” Extraction mode, the four-player co-op survival mode that had Jim all aflutter when it was announced back in October.
Before delving into the nitty gritty details about each of these modes, there are a few general gameplay aspects that are present in all of these modes to talk about. First, all of the multiplayer modes have a splitscreen with on-line option so you’ll be able to play with your buddy on the couch next to you while you join up with, or face off, against other players on-line. For those of you out there with two systems and two TVs to play them on, there is, unfortunately, no system link option. If you go the splitscreen option, just know that multiplayer stats, campaign progress, and any custom masks you download are tied to the first player’s XBox LIVE/EA.com account. All of the multiplayer modes can be public or private games and also allow players to drop-in/drop-out at will, which means that should your partner drop in the middle of a Co-Op Deathmatch you’ll be without a partner until another player joins up or you invite someone in to help you out. Finally, each of the multiplayer modes have matchmaking lobbies where, depending on the mode, you can set each team’s size (multiples of two only), move players around on the teams, and get geared up for the match.
Packed in one room with all that multiplayer goodness lead to some very fun and very entertaining smack talk
Speaking of gearing up, players select a primary and alternate weapon from a set list of combinations that cover a few different play styles, such as a powerful sniper rifle paired with a silenced pistol, an AK-47 paired with an SMG, and a pump-action shotgun paired with a handgun. In all of the modes, Co-Op Deathmatch in particular, talking with your partner about who’s picking which gun combination is key to victory. After all, you don’t want to both be looking through a scope when the enemy sneaks up on you from behind. This does mean that the gun customization feature, as well as any additional guns you may unlock in the single-player mode, is absent in multiplayer; however, it only makes sense considering how ridiculous you can make some of those weapons. Another feature present in the single-player mode that’s missing from the multiplayer modes is the “co-op playbook,” although it wasn’t always that way and in my interview with lead multiplayer designer Eric Chartrand (which will go up tomorrow) we talk a bit about how and why that decision was made. Two features from single-player did make it through to the multiplayer modes, fortunately. The first is the ability to revive your partner if he’s downed, which is particularly crucial in the Co-Op Deathmatch as partnership isn’t truly down until both players are down. The second is the ability to use the GPS system, a HUD that highlights foes similar to Halo 3: ODST’s VISR system only sans the light amplification. In addition to being the source of your good health and revival, your partner is also the source of ammo and grenade refills. As you’re only given one grenade at the start of a match, and bullets tend to get used up rather quickly, sticking with your partner in these modes helps ensure prolonged survival.
With all of those details hashed out, let’s talk turkey about these modes: specifically, how each one works, what to expect, and which one had those of us at the Community Event shouting across the room at each other.
Extraction
As I mentioned before, the new Extraction mode continues the co-op survival legacy that we’ve seen in Left 4 Dead 2, Halo 3: ODST, and Gears of War 2. Players will progress through a series of four very cramped arenas within a map (with four maps total to choose from) in order to reach the extraction point. Each of the arenas is different so there are essentially a total of 16 unique arenas through which players can battle. Enemies will enter into these arenas in waves from a few fixed spawn points, with each wave being a little tougher than the previous one, and each arena being a little tougher than the previous one. Thus, by the end of a map, you’re facing off against some rather tough enemies that are coming at you with RPGs instead of AK-47s. Many of the arenas play like a third-person Smash TV where the same number and type of enemies come out of the same spawn point for that wave, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. While this retro-inspired mechanic lends itself to a solid co-op experience with players calling out where enemies are coming from, it is quite possible to learn the enemy spawn patterns for most of the arenas after a few playthroughs. This may lead to a quick loss of interest, as the survival mode becomes more of an exercise in knowing where to be and when than trying to just make it through to the next round. Compared to the other survivor-type modes that are out there, Extraction feels a bit more like a precursor than a descendant. Certainly there’s a fair amount of promise in this mode through potential future patches/updates and DLC, but only time will tell if this latest in the survival modes ranks up there with its predecessors.
Somebody wasn't watching his partner's back...
Co-Op Deathmatch
Players who are eager to dive into the other multiplayer modes that The 40th Day offers should start here. Not only is it incredible fun, it also serves as a nice tutorial (of sorts) for how to succeed in the other modes. Unlike other Team DMs, where one or two outstanding players on a team can make up for others who are apt to shoot their toes off, The 40th Day’s Co-Op Deathmatch really does place an emphasis on working with your partner to effectively pick off the opposing foes. The ability to instantly revive a fallen comrade and to replenish your ammo/grenade supply only work when you’re close to one another, so running off on your own in the hopes of being able to take down everyone else single-handedly will quickly get you killed and leave your partner feeling rather frustrated. Additionally, as the developers who were there with us were quick to point out, it’s easier to take someone down when both people are firing at them. Downing an enemy player nets you four points, killing him or her nets five, and if you’re able to kill both members of a partnership before the other respawns, you get a 10-point bonus - a feat that can be achieved solo, but is much easier to do when you have a partner’s help. The partnership at the end of the match with the highest number of points wins the round. Even though Co-Op Deathmatch falls into the realms of competitive co-op, it’s still quite a lot of fun and fully embraces the co-op aspects of its title.
Control
As with so many other king-of-the-hill type modes, the focus of The 40th Day’s Control mode is for one team of four to occupy a certain point for a set period of time. Once one control point has been captured, a new one generates somewhere on the map and the process continues until one team reaches the predetermined number of points and wins the match. A circle with two bars extending from it keep track of the progress of how far along a team is to capturing the control point; the more members of a team that are occupying the control point, the faster it fills up. Opposing team members standing in the control point cause progress to halt and should all members of the leading team be removed from the control point, their progress starts to diminish and the usurping team’s bar starts to fills. This visual representation of a team’s progress leads to an overall “tug-of-war” feeling to the match. As that bar edges ever closer to one side, the opposing team is not without hope of snatching victory away at the last minute through a well-coordinated team attack that ousts the controlling team and establishes a firm defense to stave off the eventual counterattack. Once again, EA Montreal showed how truly co-operative a competitive mode can be with the right mix of game mechanics.
Making use of flanking tactics is a quick and easy way to bring down an enemy force
Warzone
If you played any of the multiplayer modes from the previous Army of Two, you likely are familiar with Warzone, which pits two teams of up to four players against one another in alternating attack/defend scenarios. At the start of a match, one team is given an objective, such as plant a bomb, kill the VIPs, or capture the intel, while the opposing team is given the counter-objective, i.e., defend the position/VIPs/intel. The attacking team’s objective must be completed within a certain amount of time otherwise the defending team gets a point. Whatever the resolution, once a team scores a point, each team is given a new objective and the timer starts over again. This shifting of objectives, as well as shifting of who’s on the attack and who’s on the defense, helps keep the match fresh and lends that same tug-of-war feeling that was present in Control.
As I mentioned earlier, our group played all of these modes in the same room, side-by-side, shouting and encouraging other the whole way through. I somehow have a hard time imagining having as much fun as I did if we were all playing over the Internet talking into headsets as such a method of play would make it hard to high-five and fist bump our victories. Indeed, the one feature present in the single-player campaign that felt oddly missing was the ability to have your in-game avatars congratulate one another in a similar fashion. Still, whether it’s on the couch or over the web, The 40th Day’s multiplayer modes were a blast to play and just as fun and co-op focused as the single-player parts Jim and I got to play back at PAX.
The eternal struggle between red and blue continues...
With all of four of the multiplayer modes tackled, our group was treated to a new, never-before-shown single-player level. However, the details of that will have to wait just a little while longer. Be sure to check back here at Co-Optimus over the next few days for new details, some more impressions, and the answers to all the questions you had for the Army of Two: The 40th Day developers!