Jagged Alliance 2 Wildfire

Rating:
Summary: That Other Guy Was Nuts
Review: I have played all of the games in both the JA series and Fallout series and find them both to be quie enjoyable. However, anyone who claims to be a "fan of the Fallout series" and sees NO similarities between the original JA 2 and the Fallout series (especially: BOS) needs to reevaluate. The fact that turn-based/squad-based tactical combat is a common staple in both games would only escape the most undiscerning eye. The fact that the storyline in JA 2 is, shall we say "less creative", only confirms the fact that the Fallout series is a better crafted game. This is to say nothing of the arkward interface of JA 2, which does take some time getting used to.

Anyway, this review should be taken as a warning to all those gamers who see the line "Two exciting games in one box!" which is written in bold letters on the back of the JA 2 - Wildfire package. There are not 2 games in this box, only 2 versions of JA 2. The game they called "Wildfire" is merely a revamping of the original JA 2 by the Canadian design team at SIRTECH and while those who have never played the orignal JA 2 may enjoy the revamped edition, those who have played JA 2 will ultimately feel cheated.

The orignal JA 2 came out in 1999 and was lauded by many critics as being a solid "Fallout" type squad-based turn-based combat game. In sum, JA 2, while a great game in its own right, is arguably the "poor-man's" Fallout. Wildfire's packaging is very deceiving to those gamers who were hoping for a an expansion or even a sequel to the orignal game. It is JA 2 on steroids, offering the gamer more weapons, more advanced a AI opponents, and improved graphics, but the plot and characters are exactly the same as the orignal. Every line of dialouge is even word for word.

I am familar with the addage "If it ain't broke don't fix it", but what baffles me most is how after 5 years, the programmers couldn't (or didn't want to) come up with a decent sequel using the orignal JA 2 engine. Perhaps someone at Sirtech saw an opportunity to capitalize on the recent cancellation of Interplay's Fallout 3? Whatever the case, I was very dissapointed.

Rating:
Summary: JA 2 - Deja Vu?
Review: I have played all of the games in both the JA series and Fallout series and find them both to be quie enjoyable. However, anyone who claims to be a "fan of the Fallout series" and sees NO similarities between the original JA 2 and the Fallout series (especially: BOS) needs to reevaluate. The fact that turn-based/squad-based tactical combat is a common staple in both games would only escape the most undiscerning eye. The fact that the storyline in JA 2 is, shall we say "less creative", only confirms the fact that the Fallout series is a better crafted game. This is to say nothing of the arkward interface of JA 2, which does take some time getting used to.

Anyway, this review should be taken as a warning to all those gamers who see the line "Two exciting games in one box!" which is written in bold letters on the back of the JA 2 - Wildfire package. There are not 2 games in this box, only 2 versions of JA 2. The game they called "Wildfire" is merely a revamping of the original JA 2 by the Canadian design team at SIRTECH and while those who have never played the orignal JA 2 may enjoy the revamped edition, those who have played JA 2 will ultimately feel cheated.

The orignal JA 2 came out in 1999 and was lauded by many critics as being a solid "Fallout" type squad-based turn-based combat game. In sum, JA 2, while a great game in its own right, is arguably the "poor-man's" Fallout. Wildfire's packaging is very deceiving to those gamers who were hoping for a an expansion or even a sequel to the orignal game. It is JA 2 on steroids, offering the gamer more weapons, more advanced a AI opponents, and improved graphics, but the plot and characters are exactly the same as the orignal. Every line of dialouge is even word for word.

I am familar with the addage "If it ain't broke don't fix it", but what baffles me most is how after 5 years, the programmers couldn't (or didn't want to) come up with a decent sequel using the orignal JA 2 engine. Perhaps someone at Sirtech saw an opportunity to capitalize on the recent cancellation of Interplay's Fallout 3? Whatever the case, I was very dissapointed.

Rating:
Summary: Can't top the original JA2, but certainly gives a try
Review: In the land of strategy games in 1998, overpopulated with the same tired retreads of aliens fighting humans, came Jagged Alliance 2. Although not equipped with skirmish options or multiplayer play, the game was brilliant for its real-world locale, wonderful characters, vastly original gameplay and great story. Today we are inunduated with yet more cliched strategy games, and it is certainly good to see a newer form of Jagged Alliance 2.

All the weapons from the original have been revamped with more accurate statistics and sounds (which are wonderful to hear), as well as a great number of new guns to replace some of the unentertaining old ones. Every sector has been redesigned, and the level of difficulty is significantly amped up from the original JA2 (which was quite difficult in and of itself). During one successful battle I took my soldiers and swam over half the map just to avoid being pinned down by snipers.

On the other hand, the storyline from the original has been downplayed, and although there is supposed to be a new angle to the story in which drug cartels play a large role, this is poorly (if at all) developed. Moreover, there are no new mercenaries, NPC's or enemies. The plot which was so integral to the original JA2's beauty has been stripped.

Nonetheless, this game is unbeleivably fun, and one of the best playing time/dollar ratios of any game out there; due to its huge size and non-linear gameplay, this game can entertain for weeks and weeks.

Fun: 8/10 Overall: 7/10

Rating:
Summary: JA 2 - Deja Vu?
Review: Okay, this review should be taken as a warning to all those gamers who see the line "Two exciting games in one box!" which is written in bold letters on the back of the JA 2 - Wildfire package. There are not 2 games in this box, only 2 versions of JA 2. The game they called "Wildfire" is merely a revamping of the original JA 2 by the Canadian design team at SIRTECH and while those who have never played the orignal JA 2 may enjoy the revamped edition, those who have played JA 2 will ultimately feel cheated.

The orignal JA 2 came out in 1999 and was lauded as being a solid "Fallout" type squad-based turn-based combat game. In sum, JA 2 is the "poor-man's" Fallout. Wildfire's packaging is very deceiving to those gamers who were hoping for a an expansion or even a sequel to the orignal game. It is JA 2 on steroids, offering the gamer more weapons, more advanced a AI opponents, and improved graphics, but the plot and characters are exactly the same as the orignal. Every line of dialouge is even word for word.

I am familar with the addage "If it ain't broke don't fix it", but what baffles me most is how after 5 years, the programmers couldn't (or didn't want to) come up with a decent sequel using the orignal JA 2 engine. Perhaps someone at Sirtech saw an opportunity to capitalize on the recent cancellation of Interplay's Fallout 3? Whatever the case,
I was very dissapointed.

Rating:
Summary: That Other Guy Was Nuts
Review: The reviewer of this game who suggested that Jagged Alliance 2 is a "poor man's Fallout" is completely and utterly wrong. Jagged Alliance 2 is a strategy game with some roleplaying elements, not a roleplaying game with guns. While I'm a big fan of Fallout, this comparison is so ludicrous I have to laugh - buying any Jagged Alliance game with the expectation of getting an experience like Fallout is as silly as buying a ticket to Boise and expecting to visit the beach.

I can't speak as to the quality of the Wildfire expansion, but the original game (which you get in the box anyway) is one of the all-time great strategy games. It's not a poor man's Fallout - if anything, it's a worthy competitor to X-COM and Civilization.

Let's put it this way - of all the games released before the turn of the century, how many are still on sale in their original form? I can think of two - Half-Life, and Jagged Alliance 2. That should say something.

Rating:
Summary: JA2 again, but a little bit different
Review: Well well well... It's been coming up to six years since the original Jagged Alliance 2 was released. In 2004 Strategy First (now a dead company from what I've heard), got a fan of the game to produce a modified version of the original.

Unfortunately in pretty much every way it's identical, same map, same characters, same quests. To be fair, the latest version of the code has been used which had improvements to the AI (as seen in the last UB mod from Sirtech). Plus, the author has made a few modifcations to the graphic elements used in the Island world of JA2. Probably the most sought after aspect of this modded version is the updated weapon/ballistic stats, to hopefully reproduce the real-world weapons more accurately. The guy has done a good job in this respect, and also managed to maintain a good gameplay curve.