Bumble in the Jungle- Raven Squad Review

In gaming, warfare is usually presented in one of two distinctive perspectives. Titles like Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty and Command and Conquer helped popularize the omniscient, sky-high view common in real time strategy games. In these diversions, the player’s lofty vantage point allows for a comprehensive view of the game world; which is advantageous for large-scale tactical skirmishes.  On the other hand, first person shooters employ a more immersive and realistic approach, as the player looks down a rendered gun barrel. Here, the shape of the television screen helps simulate a sector of fire, allowing the player to see only what is directly in front of them.

Recent release, Raven Squad, valiantly attempts to marry these two divergent viewpoints. It’s a concept rife with possibility- while RTS games are strategically gratifying, they lack the adrenaline-inducing intensity a shooter provides. 2004’s Full Spectrum Warrior showed how a change in perspective could elevate the RTS genre. Yet, for a ‘real time strategy shooter’ to truly succeed, each of the game’s two components should be compelling enough to work as a stand-alone title; that’s not the case with Raven Squad.

The control mechanics of both sky and ground perspectives are easily understood. While in RTS mode, you control two three-man squads, toggling control between the two teams with a downward press of the directional pad. Most of the time, gamers will be directing squads across the map, directing them to a destination with a single button press. Using the title’s RTS mode had two distinct advantages: it allows players to foresee enemies lurking in the environment, and frees gamers from having to slog through the game’s typically empty woodland corridors. As real time strategy titles go, Raven Squad is frustratingly linear, offering the perks of combat at mostly predictably located camps and bases. 

Each of the game’s twelve missions takes place in a lush Amazonian setting, filled with an immersive amount of flora, muddy creeks, and dusty roads. While the game’s locations are proficiently drawn, an additional location would have alleviated the tedium of the jungle setting. By the sixth mission, I had seen most of what Raven Squad had to offer visually; subsequent levels offered little diversity.  While the occasional shine of sunlight, or a blooming lens flare elevates the game’s visuals, the game’s primitive character animations seemed woefully last-gen. The game’s voice-overs are particularly amateurish, as the title’s oft-repeated phrases are delivered with the cadence of a non-native English speaker.

With a real time strategy perspective most useful for bypassing monotony, and a first-person shooter vantage point that’s woefully inaccurate, Raven Squad is a perplexing hybrid. While enjoyment can be mined from the title’s distinctive fusion of genres; at fifty dollars for a five hour campaign, this gratification comes at a heavy premium. Even the inclusion of lag-free co-operative mode can’t allow me to recommend the title as its current MSRP; like the ‘B’-movie action flicks that Raven Squad recalls, wait until this one hits the bargain bins.