Rogue Spear (GBA) (Rogue Spear (GBA))

Member Name: thole09

Product:	Rogue Spear (GBA)
Date:	28/05/09 (15 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Some accurate graphics

Disadvantages: Some gameplay

"Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear" is a video game released for the Gameboy Advance console in 2002 by Ubisoft. It is a tactical shooting game based on a computer game of the same name. In the United States, the game received a rating of "T" by the ESRB panel which deemed it suitable for teenage years and above due to its violent content.

Rogue Spear follows the events of the world's most elite counter terrorist squadron as they travel to the world's most hostile areas and eliminate forces which are perceived to be a threat. The player builds a team of up to four professional operatives and guides them on an assortment of missions to neutralize insurgents in different areas of the world. Each of the operatives are skilled in certain areas, such as snipers with superior marksmanship or riflemen with higher health ratings, and can be called upon to complete certain missions that may require their expertise. I found the top four riflemen to be sufficient for all levels but one must be careful as if they are killed in action that would remove them permanently from the player's ongoing campaign, and as the names become inaccessible the player can be left with generic "recruits" of lower skill.

At the time of Rogue Spear's release, I was quite the fan of the PC CD-ROM version. It is unfortunate that the visuals were not ported to the Gameboy Advance's release. Instead of using the first person perspective which the Rainbow Six games are known for, Rogue Spear for the Advance opted to use a top down perspective which focuses on the player's characters. This creates a popular environment for a more vintage game but is difficult to control under today's more modern gaming conditions. Targeting is automatic and represented by a large red crosshair which illuminates against an enemy's presence, and this allows the player to quickly react before taking hits. The scenes are very simple and do somewhat reflect their computer counterparts. I was able to identify the "desal plant" and "nuclear storage facility" with some success. The characters are small and only come across as being black covered sprites holding small weapons. The soundtrack is comparably simple with gunshot accents following the player throughout.

Overall, Rogue Spear is a game which I would be hesitant about recommending to prospective buyers. To me, it is not "Rogue Spear" in the true sense of the game but does present a suitable adventure worthy of the Tom Clancy branding.

Summary: Thumbs in the middle