Fortunately that was only the first coat of paint. Brute Force offers more than people think and I believe there are going to be a lot gamers who are caught by surprise with this title.

Brute Force is the name of your tactical squad which was put together by the Confederation in order to exterminate any threats to our planet or system. Each member has his/her personality, strengths and specialties that you will need to learn in order to complete your mission. Consisting of a sniper, scout, heavy assault trooper, and a shock trooper, there is very little which can stand in the way of the four most talented troops the Confederation has to offer.

The single player campaign of Brute Force allows you to control any members of your squad. While it might seem confusing or just a bit intimidating, it’s what makes Brute Force so damn fun. It becomes more than just an action shoot-em-up game. You need to think, and dare I say it, strategize at times when blasting your way through won’t cut it. This is an action game with a slight twist.

Each member has a special ability that will come in handy in almost every mission. Hawk, who is a stealth specialist (and who I used the most), has the ability to cloak herself and go into enemy lines undetected. She also has a power blade that can slice through enemies like a hot knife through melted butter. Flint is the sniper of the group. Able to aim further than anyone else in the squad she has the ability to zoom up twice as far and put a well placed shot into someone’s skull. She also has the skill to auto aim while running. For the males of the group we have Brutus and Tex. Brutus, who is of the feral species (big lizard men), has the instinct and strength of an animal and can call upon the power of Vengar. Vengar is a feral’s deity which infuses Brutus with self healing powers. It also allows him to pick up the essence of a creature allowing you to aim better in foggy atmospheres. And finally, for our gun loving gamers, there’s Tex. He is our quintessential “gun blasting, shoot them until they stop moving” hero. Tex has the very fun talent of using two guns at once, being able to blast through hordes of enemies.

The developers of Brute Force (Digital Anvil) did a good job of working in each character and his/her special ability. At the beginning of the game you start out with just Tex. This allows you to get familiar with his character and the little knick knacks of Brute Force. Each mission brings another member to the group, and not until you have all four does the real fun begin. In order the experience the most out of Brute Force you need to grasp the squad command feature. With this feature you can tell your squad to follow behind, stand their ground, fire at will (not recommended in most cases), and to move to a specific area. You also have control of their special abilities. So if the situation requires you to use Tex’s two-gun wielding attack while you snipe with Flint you can. The squad listens very well to each of their instructions. There’s no need to worry about having someone get stuck behind or have someone not fire during a firefight. Your squad will dive out of the way of a grenade and let you know if they’re taking fire or in need of help. They’ll even use medical kits if needed, but will save the last for you! Now that’s good teamwork. The enemy AI acts just as well. Seeking cover during a grenade, sniping from afar, and running away if outnumbered. Though it seemed almost impossible to sneak up on enemies without the use of Hawk’s cloaking ability as if they knew where you were all the time. As impressed as I was with Brute Force’s AI (for both your squad and enemies) there are a few things that had me baffled. There were times that a teammate was taking fire from a sniper or a turret and they wouldn’t move unless told so. I watched Tex take a few bullets to the head and he just stood there sucking up my medical kits until I placed an order to move. It’s not without a few flaws but the AI still manages to be stellar.

The game has you going on 18 missions in 6 different locations. While the game only took around 10 hours to beat, you're looking at your basic seek and destroy mission objectives. The reason Brute Force is so fun is that with you have so many ways of infiltrating and destroying when using your squad’s special ability. Adding the ability of playing co-op with a few friends greatly extends the life and fun, especially when set on a hard difficulty setting.

Brute Force also shows off some very splendid graphics and environments. Each world you encounter will be glossed in some very nice texture work. Whether it was the jungles, island, or an asteroid, Brute Force looks great. I was especially happy to look up in at the beginning of each level to see a spectacular display of artwork. I thought I was looking at a painting. The skies looked breathtaking, even if they didn’t move or have clouds rolling above; it was still a pretty site to look forward to in each mission.

Each character looks very good. One of the first things I noticed was Tex’s arm and how he has a vein going right along his bicep. Hawk’s cloaking ability as well as Brutus’ Vengar move also allow for some very nice displays of eye candy. The characters even display a very detailed shadow. Except for one comical thing, the animation is also on cue and done well. That one thing happens when you kill an enemy or one of your teammates die. If you get a chance to look at a fallen comrade they seem to bend and contort in a way that just isn’t physically possible. I guess it’s the drawback for having some very fluid and realistic animations. Enemies fling into the air from a grenade, get shot backwards from a rifle, and duck and cover after taking fire.

My only other complaint is that the worlds even though were done very well, got a little boring after awhile. Eighteen missions in six worlds really means eighteen missions in six different environments. Using the word “worlds” can throw some people off and just know that you won’t be experiencing a “world” like in Halo. You’ll be experiencing places with different textures and lighting effects. Not a bad thing, just don’t want people to be fooled.

Hey look at this, an action game that actually has some very good voice acting and not some monkey reading from a script! Each character portrays his/her personality very well. Tex has his broody, tough accent while Hawk acts more accordingly like a soldier. Flint acts calm and cool, while Brutus acts as a faithful comrade and occasionally lets loose with a big roar. You’ll also hear chit chat between players during the missions and the only thing that can get annoying is their verbal confirmation of the commands you give them. Listening to anyone say "I’m in position" 100 times can get a little annoying but it never made my ears bleed and only became noticeable towards the end of the game.

The ambient sounds and effects really takes off in Brute Force. Players that have a DD surround setup will be treated with some very cool jungle sounds as well as birds chirping, winding howling, and fire crackling. The ambiance really sets the tone for the mission. The sound effects are also done well and listening to grenades go off, or Tex’s mini-gun spout bullets all over the place set the mood perfectly. Whether it was hitting pipes, wood, or metal, the sound effects were on cue and didn’t disappoint.

The only thing I was disappointed with was the music. What’s there is actually very good and reminded me of Halo in a few ways. The problem is that music isn’t used enough and the ambient sounds take over for most of the game. When you are treated to music, usually during a big action scene, take advantage of it and listen well because there are some very cool tracks.

Being able to system link for an eight player deathmatch or four player co-op is a very nice feature. The Dolby Digital surround sound is also another feature to smile at, especially in a game where you want to hear everything around you. Like the gun shots, voices, and bullets ricocheting off of armor. There is also an option to download content but as of now there isn’t anything up yet. Expect new multiplayer maps and hopefully some single player missions.

I’m very pleased with how Brute Force’s interface is set up. It allows for a very quick and easy way of getting around, without being too confusing. Your health and special ability meter are on the top left hand corner of the screen. On the top right hand corner you’ll have access to both of your weapons and available ammo. Your item list will be located on the bottom right hand of the screen. Holding the B button will allow you to extend the item list to see what available grenades, medical kits, and other items you have. The most important part of your interface is your radar screen, located on the bottom left, which allows you to pinpoint your checkpoints, squad members, and enemies. You also can see their health level and the last command that was issued to them. Controlling four players can get very tedious but this outline makes things a lot less painless. Nothing here to get confused by and gamers will find themselves completely at ease.

Brute Force surprised me that it’s not just a shoot-em-up game that requires no thought. The strategy part really made it fun and each character’s ability also add to a very good game that is worth anyone’s attention. Back it up with some nice cut scenes before every mission, good (and believable) voice acting, and nice graphics, there isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t go out and at least rent this one, especially if you're one of those people who have access to a system link party.