Close Combat: First To Fight

Reviewed by Derek Meier

Close Combat: First To Fight (FTF) is the latest in the Close Combat series that began with Close Combat which covers the Normandy Campaign in World War II. Originally the series started by Microsoft goes from World War II to today’s modern combat.  The series has quite a following with a total of 7 games with the name Close Combat. The eighth game Close Combat: First To Fight is a First Person Squad based First person shooter from Destineer. One of the first games I have seen released around the same time as the Windows and Xbox version having been used to see Mac releases around the time the Windows version hits the bargain bin. It’s something I really enjoy seeing.

GAMEPLAY

Leading your team of four into hostile combat in the street of Beirut. Your team relies on each other to provide coverage from all directions. There is no “army of one” here unlike other first person shooters.  Keeping you team alive is the key to winning. The tactics used by the team members are managed by the game’s excellent AI. You issue commands to your fire team from a radial menu. The enemy AI gets better as you select higher levels of difficulty from Recruit to Marine to Gunny then to Simulation. They will try to flank you and move positions. If they can’t get a good shot, they will also run for cover. You will use the system developed and used by the Marine Corps called RTFA (Ready Team Fire Assist). RTFA has basically the goal to provide 360 degree coverage. You don’t have to micro-manage the team, which is nice because it would severely detract from the game. Also, you never fight alone in FTF.  You will be able to call in support from snipers, mortar support as well as air support. A few things to remember to win; don’t die, don’t let more than two of your fire team members get killed, don’t shoot your team members or civilians and don’t kill surrendering opposing forces. Have any of these occur and you will loose the game. The After Action Reports (AAR) are very informative and give you a good idea on how you performed.

The multiplayer aspect of First to Fight is a really fun experience using  GameSpy.  You can play users on other platforms. Two methods of play are available; Multiplayer Cooperative and Fire Team Arena. In Cooperative, 4 players join a team taking part on the single player missions. Fire Team Arena or FTA allows you to get up to eight players four in each time in a death-match arena trying to frag each other until all players have reached their max lives or times runs out.

GRAPHICS

The Graphics in First to Fight are very impressive. And it does not take the latest and greatest to run the game itself. Even on my Mac mini, it performed quite well without sacrificing the graphics quality even with the paltry 32MB 9200 ATI Radeon video. The Marines and the enemy soldiers are nicely detailed. When you take out the enemy, their death feats are nicely rendered and realistic looking.

SOUND & MUSIC:

The sound is done very well. Guns sound realistic and give you an immersive effect of being really there getting shot at. The voices in the game are pretty decent as well. The music in the game fits in well with the environment and gives it a more realistic effect.

VERDICT:

Close Combat: First to Fight is an exceptional squad-based First Person Shooter. Having been helped be created by actual members of the Marine Corps I am sure has brought a lot to the games realism, so a big thank-you to them, wherever they are. The enemy AI is great and gets smarter at higher difficulty level. The graphics quality is undemanding, while still being very good on the eyes. The sound and music bring added realism to the game. Multiplayer is fun and gives it some great replayability.  First to Fight would be a welcome addition to any wargamers arsenal. So move out soldier and grab yourself a copy!