Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands (PS4)

Note: I haven't played any of the precious Ghost Recon games so this review won't be compared to those. I've seen reviews that say Wildlands has lost its touch from the prior Ghost Recon games and I can't comment. This is a review of the game itself from the perspective of someone who hasn't played the others.With that out of the way, holy ****, I'm addicted! I've been waiting for this game ever since the E3 reveal and it has just taken over my life. I was worried that it would be a bit like The Division and just be another failure (for me) but I was utterly wrong, and I'll happily admit that. The beta in itself I enjoyed more than playing The Division.So far, I've only played single player as I just want to do my own thing without having anyone else ruin it but the Multiplayer aspect does allow you to hop in and out pretty freely.The map is huge with around 20(?) regions. It's fun to explore and there's ALWAYS something to do. That's something a lot of games can't pull off - the ability to keep you engaged and immersed. This game, for me, is incredibly immersive and I've spent so many straight hours playing it and it's only been out for two days! You will never find yourself getting bored. One particularly great thing is that you're not forced to stick to one region, even if you haven't completed the previous one. You're completely free to explore as you wish.The story is pretty interesting and I'm enjoying it so far. I do enjoy the little bits of dialogue the characters share between each other, although at times it does bug out which can ruin your immersion.One thing I enjoy is your ability to tackle missions in your own way. You can customise your loadout to suit you and your needs (although mods and weapons will require unlocking which you can either buy or explore and retrieve). You can go stealthy and strategically, or you can just run and gun, spray and pray and hope for the best. A great feature is that you can remove your suppressor on-the-fly so you don't suffer a damage penalty (if you don't have the advanced suppressor) if you do go loud from stealth. You are able to completely customise the weapon on-the-fly too (touchpad > loadout > square) but you probably won't use it much once you have a loadout you're comfortable and happy with.The player and weapon customisations are limited to what's provided but that's fine, can't expect too much or be upset really. It's more than enough for me.One criticism is the vehicle mechanics. I always compare an open world game's vehicle mechanics to GTA's because that's the pinnacle, really, and they don't really compete. However, the vehicle mechanics aren't completely terrible and you can definitely survive with them, although I find it easiest to control a vehicle when it's at its peak speed (weirdly). The easiest, for me, is the helicopters.Ultimately, it's a great game and I'm definitely not disappointed. I may even buy the season pass! Now, if you'll excuse me, back to the game!I should add, unlike other games that ask you to liberate a city or country, this doesn't "free up" areas as you go along, by which I mean you don't liberate bases and strongholds to make them rebel-run. So, as you're going through the campaign, there will always be cartel resistance and you won't be able to take over bases to make an area easier to complete. I like this aspect, as a guy who normally liberates a whole area and then proceeds to do the story, as it keeps the challenge alive. You can never just walk through a place in utter naivety because you can't guarantee you're safe.Also, the platinum [trophy] is fairly easy to get if you want it, the maximum level is 30 and you can definitely replay the game. I played it solo initially and am now enjoying the experience of co-op with friends.

One of the best games I've played in a long time! Open world tactical shooter with plenty to do. With an offline solo mode which is rare in these games these days. Really thoughtful tactical shooter. Rush in and you'll likely end up dead. Slow and stealthy tends to be the winning strategy. Scope out the enemies and their resources before you attack.*Great graphics that still hold up years later.*Good sound.*Large map with rivers, mountains, forests, tundra, desert.*drive cars, bikes, helicopters, planes and boats.*Plenty guns to find and skills to upgrade.*command your NPC squad to help aid you in offensives.*Just a few hours or 2? you can jump on and play infiltrating a base or enemy post.or if you have longer you can play continuously for hours completing the story missions and other side quests if you like.

The game is good, sometimes performes a bit slow but is usually fine

Fun game, large map and diverse world with entertaining scenes.

Absolutely brilliant game and the price was great also. I recommend this game to anyone who enjoys a really good game.

Good game according to my nephew

Oh Ubisoft...why are all your games essentially the same thing? This basically feels like 3rd person Far Cry 4 with an element of The Crew thrown in. The plot is pretty terrible and missions start to feel samey very quickly. The redeeming quality of this game is the multiplayer. Without it, I wouldn't even bother to play. There's a good learning curve to the game and it does handle some things like bullet drop quite well and emphasis on stealth make it a challenging game at times. But besides this, it feels like a typical Ubisoft game: full of unnecessary clutter, noisy UI and a glut of similar missions. There just isn't enough depth to this game to make it engaging for long periods of time and the single player is so weak, it lets the game down massively. The game itself just feels quite clunky and slow. The time taken to go into aiming mode takes a heartbeat too long. If you get shot you have to wait a full minute before respawn which is just ludicrous (it should offer the chance to wait or immediately respawn). And vehicles just feel very unsatisfying to drive/pilot. They feel heavy with poor handling. The helicopter feel like it has 2D controls. Vehicles are just a boon in this game and are a tiresome method of travel. The open world itself doesn't seem to offer any distinctive areas that especially stand out; it's all one giant expanse of sparse vegetation and rocks.There was some controversy about how Bolivia is presented in the game and this controversy isn't without merit. The game makes it out to be full of drug dealers on every corner and the landscape suggests it has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. The plot just feels very weak as if it was an afterthought. They have a disclaimer at the beginning of the game but it's a futile gesture in the face of a game that simply seems to be a Ubisoft take on Team America: World Police.At the heart of Ghost Recon there is a game that could be really good if only Ubisoft had not put all their trademark noise and guff in it. It's a game that pretends to be better than it is and ends up falling flat.