The Sum of all Fears - PC Games

Plot hokum aside, this is a very good game. The visuals are strong, with gorgeous textures showing off the Ghost Recon engine to superb effect. The missions take place indoors, and every location has a very clearly defined identity. The result is palpable tension whilst creeping around trying not to set off alarms or be shot, whether you're in a warehouse or Viennese private bank. This is heightened by the exquisite sound: the effects really show off an EAX card, while the music does an excellent job of scene-setting. Weaponry is well modelled, and while you don't have the ability to pick and choose your shooter of choice, the pre-defined loadouts offered should prove more than adequate.

You also have the choice of difficulty settings for the campaign, and while the easy settings don't provide a challenge, realistic--with auto-aim and in-game saves switched off--means you'll usually finish a mission surrounded by the bodies of your team-mates as well as terrorists.

For those new to this type of game, the tutorial is excellent, and here you are introduced to the effective yet simple squad-level commands. While the squad commands are adequate for the single player campaign, those looking for pinpoint control will be disappointed, and they aren't really good enough for the excellent multi-player game, where a voice-comms package really shows it's worth.

The Sum of all Fears is only let down by a single-player campaign that's far too short, but balanced by a very well implemented multi-player experience. --Jonathan Keith