Commandos 3: Destination Berlin

Commandos 3: Destination Berlin
Developer(s)	Pyro Studios Zonic Limited (Mac OS X)
Publisher(s)	Eidos Interactive Feral Interactive (Mac OS X)
Designer(s)	Ignacio Pérez Dolset
Series	Commandos
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X
Release date(s)	‹See Tfd› NA: October 14, 2003 ‹See Tfd› PAL: October 24, 2003
Genre(s)	Real-time tactics
Mode(s)	Single-player video game, multiplayer

Commandos 3: Destination Berlin is a real-time tactics video, the third installment of the Commandos series. It is developed by Pyro Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. The game is the first in the series to use a true 3D engine, and the last to use real-time tactics before being converted to a first-person shooter genre.

The Mac OS X version of the game was released in May 2005 by Feral Interactive along with Commandos 2: Men of Courage as part of the Commandos Battle Pack.^[1]

Gameplay

The game contains very similar gameplay to the previous games, with the similar 'point and click' approach. However, it has fewer hotkeys compared to the previous instalment, and the user has to press buttons at the bottom of the screen on the action bar.

The player is able to see all enemies on the map, follow their movements, and make attacks depending on their behavior. There are a few differences, such as the addition of an assault rifle, a weapon less powerful than a rifle, but more powerful than a pistol. Also, all units are able to use weapons such as the grenade, rather than just the Sapper as in previous games. The previous "knapsack" setup, simply showing a picture of all the items the currently selected commando has in his possession, superimposed over a picture of a rucsac, has been abandoned in favor of a "box".

When searching enemies bodies or supply crates, a similar, but smaller box is shown for their capacity. Commandos such as the green beret or spy, who in earlier games have only been armed with the regulation pistol, can now use almost all the small arms available, except for the sniper rifle. While adding realism (the commandos are no longer useless outside their area of expertise), some players complain that this robs the commandos of their individual roles within the group, making them more generic. This does however, make the missions less linear, because the same job can done by different commandos.

The new "cover mode" ability allows the player to leave commandos waiting at a door or behind cover ready to shoot at any enemy that comes within range, often with more accuracy than when controlled manually. This gives the option of ambushes, and more defensive tactics.

Commandos 3 is broken down into three campaigns: Central Europe, Normandy and Stalingrad; each containing a various amount of missions, some shorter than others. Each campaign has different players involved but not all. Destination Berlin has a time limit on most missions.

Synopsis

Characters

There are six commandos in Commandos 3: the Green Beret (Jack O'Hara), the Sniper (Sir Francis T. Woolridge), the Marine (James Blackwood), the Sapper (Thomas Hancock), the Spy (René Duchamp), and the Thief (Paul Toledo).

Plot

The tutorial begins with Jack O'Hara clearing out a bunker, Sir Francis T. Woolridge killing a few German soldiers with his sniper rifle and Thomas Hancock destroying a Panzer III tank with explosives. The game then shifts to 21 February 1939, where René Duchamp and Paul Toledo infiltrate the German Embassy in London and steal documents from a safe.

Stalingrad

In the Battle of Stalingrad, Woolridge kills an elite German sniper, lifting the siege of a Soviet command post at the Barmaley Fountain. A General Franklin O'Donnell then arrives for a meeting with Soviet personnel, accompanied by Hancock and O'Hara. A massive German airstrike ensues followed by airdrops of the Fallschirmjäger. In an effort to protect the General, the commandos repulse waves of infantry attacks including a 7.5 cm Pak 40 anti-tank gun. When the meeting ends, O'Donnell crosses behind German lines and boards a Junkers Ju 52, much to the commandos' confusion. When they too enter the aircraft, O'Donnell orders the Germans to arrest them.

While in an underground prison cell, O'Hara subdues a jail guard and frees Woolridge and Hancock, telling them of O'Donnell's betrayal. When they make their way through the sewers, they run into René Duchamp, who informs them that O'Donnell plans to reveal top secret information to the Germans. Unknown to the three, Duchamp tells them they are in Berlin. The player is then given three tactical ways to kill O'Donnell before a timer initiates, after which he would appear. After O'Donnell is assassinated, the four commandos enter a Kübelwagen and escape the capital.

Central Europe

In Saint-Avold, René Duchamp and Paul Toledo board an armoured train carrying stolen artwork but are discovered. The Germans warn the next station and they try to derail the train using explosives. Jack O'Hara discovers this and he single-handedly clears the area before boarding the train just as it passes. Together with Duchamp and Toledo, the three take control of the train. The Germans, however, destroy an incoming railroad bridge, forcing O'Hara to stop the locomotive. Duchamp and Toledo are captured and loaded onto a truck along with the artwork, while O'Hara hides in the back of another truck.

With the German convoy scheduled to pass through a small town in Forbach, Sir Francis T. Woolridge and Thomas Hancock eliminate the town of all German resistance, allowing American soldiers to fortify the area and prepare for their arrival. The convoy arrives escorted by Tiger I tanks, but are ambushed as they enter the town. The trucks carrying Duchamp and Toledo are freed and the artwork recovered.

Normandy

On 6 June 1944, the night before the Normandy landings, Hancock and Toledo infiltrate a German encampment serving as reinforcements near Caen. They destroy a fuel depot, munitions building and as many Tiger I tanks, Schwerer Panzerspähwagen armored cars and Sd.Kfz. 251 half-tracks. At daybreak, James Blackwood infiltrates a port in Le Havre, disabling two German E-boats using mines. As the landings commences, O'Hara joins the Americans as they converge on Omaha Beach. Together, they take out the coastal artillery and clear the bunkers of all German troops.

Reception

Commandos 3 was relatively well received. However, it was also criticized for being difficult to play on account of having fewer hotkeys than its predecessors. The player has to control the commandos using the buttons in the pop-up menu at the bottom of the screen. Also, the game is locked at an 800x600 resolution^[6] which was relatively low at the time of release.

References

External links

• Official Commandos 3: Destination Berlin website