When I heard Battlefield 2 was being released on the consoles, I was pretty excited. I hadn't had a lot of hands on time with the PC version when the console release was announced, but I from what I experienced I really enjoyed. When I learned it wasn't so much as a port as a game specifically made for consoles, I still held out hope that it'd play like the real deal, or a very reasonable facsimile.

Modern Combat is definitely an entertaining shooter, which is saying something in the gun filled land of current first person shooters, but it doesn't manage to capture that look and feel of its PC brethren.

MC's story revolves around a somewhat non-inspired but practical plot involving problems in the region of Soviet-controlled Kazakhstan, which in turn causes US and UN forces to move into the area. Kazakhstan's neighbors, the Chinese, don't care too much for this idea either, and also move their way into the area, thus creating conflict on both sides, etc, etc. The unique part of the storytelling comes in the form of news broadcasts from both sides that are, for lack of a better way of explaining it, made up. Full-blown propaganda. It's an interesting approach to the story considering the world climate and some of the current events that have called a couple newspaper and television reports into question in the past few years. Because of this storyline, the game will put you in the role of both sides in this conflict depending on the campaign, as you advance the story along thru various maps and objectives, ranging from simple run and gun missions to missions that require you to hold down a base or location, or infiltrate an area and blow it the hell up. All standard FPS fare, but the maps are large enough and at times challenging enough to make it fun to play.

MC also introduces a game mechanic called "Hot Swapping" which allows you to switch control between anyone on your team with the simple press of a button. Once you get the hang of doing it, you'll find yourself using it more and more, and it becomes almost second nature by the time you zip past the first third of the game. It's also very useful and damn near necessary in the later campaigns, so it's definitely not there just to be a gimmick.

Enemy and team AI are both well done, your team will have no problem accomplishing goals without you holding their hands, and thankfully the AI is intelligent enough to not constantly walk out into open fire. However, some of the enemy spawns will get pretty cheap, and you'll find yourself yelling at the screen when you're being shot in the back by a group of enemies who've just Nightcrawlered their way onto the map when the area was clear just a second ago. This happens quite a bit in fact, so it's a good idea not to feel too safe or stay too still even when the radar shows an all clear.

Each mission completed will see you earning a certain amount of points based on kills, swapping, health, and time. Accumulate enough and you'll unlock ranks and more weapon sets. The progression of weapons you unlock to the missions you'll play thru are pretty well balanced out as well, which is nice to see.

Multiplayer online allows for up to 24 players on both the XBOX and PS2 builds. Unfortunately the game only includes two modes, Capture the Flag, and the more popular Battlefield PC mode of Conquest. The maps are large enough to comfortably accommodate 24 players, but don't quite reach the scale of the PC version. There are quite a few maps to select from, however, and there weren't any overtly noticeable glitches to be found in online multiplayer.

The game looks pretty good, but the visuals aren't anything to write home about, especially when certain games released in this genre along have really upped the standards in what's capable on current gen hardware (Farcry anyone?). The sound, most notably gun effects, vehicle noise, and general chatter from your team are all present, but seem to be lacking the oomph that the PC game has. For whatever reason, MC just doesn't pull off that realistic wartime noise that old Battlefield 2 does. It's a minor gripe though, and the sound still works well on the consoles.

All in all, a solid FPS and war based entry for the year, but not quite as good as a few games that have come before it already this year, nor as its namesake on the PC. Worth picking up if your trigger finger is itching to blast away at something new, and even if you find yourself bored with the genre, the "Hot Swapping" feature is worth checking out at least once. You won't be finding the same experience here as you do on the PC, but you should give this at least a rental anyways.