4 Pulses

Genre: Shooter

Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 has arrived just one year after the first GRAW showed us the real power of Xbox 360 with its beautiful visuals and large stages.

But just one year after GRAW1, GRAW2 doesn’t seem to give the same explosive and mind-blowing experience the first one had given gamers. It makes sense because the developers weren’t really given much time to do anything special or innovative to really add to a sequel. Some of the things that impressed gamers in GRAW1 lose some of their sparkle in GRAW2 because vets of the game will already know what to expect.

Don’t get me wrong, though, GRAW2 is a great game. When I first popped the game in, I got the same chills that I had gotten when I first saw the graphics and visuals of GRAW1. They are still amongst the best looking graphics on the Xbox 360, right next to Gears of War.

The GRAW2 game play is still much like its predecessor and it still rocks. Some of the few things added to the advanced warfighting experience include enemies charging in greater numbers and helicopters swarming from the skies. But there are a few things that feel a little different in GRAW2. One thing is how the stages don’t feel as wide open now, and I can actually feel where the level boundaries are. Another thing I noticed that I didn’t like was the predictability of where the enemies will appear from. This predictability makes GRAW2 a little bit easier and less intense than the first game.

And just like the last game, the multiplayer is really the best part of the game. Getting on Xbox Live and playing with 15 other players is one the best online experiences, right next to Halo 2.

Because it was released only a year after GRAW1, GRAW2 doesn’t seem to add enough to the experience to really call it a true sequel. While the visuals and game play are just as incredible as the first game, the sequel seems more like an expansion pack and might as well be called GRAW1.5.