Jagged Alliance Online
Jagged Alliance Online Jagged Alliance Online Review
The original Jagged Alliance game was an old tactical role playing game that was released back in 1994. Since that time, the series spawned a few sequels and was even re-released for the Nintendo DS in 2009. Jagged Alliance Online is the latest iteration of the long running series and it is a free to play browser based game you can play on your PC.
Much like every other browser based game, registering your details is easy and you should be able to play the game in no time. Unfortunately, I had a very tough time trying to even start the game as all I would see was an annoying loading screen taunting at me all of the time. I tried playing the game on several different computers with different specifications and I would still suffer the same problem..
I ended up having to play the game via the Mozilla Firefox browser using my sisters more powerful computer. My own laptop wasnt able to load up the game, nor could I play the game using Google Chrome for some odd reason and the game would freeze and be left unresponsive forever. Its also best to play the game on a full screen as some buttons are cut off if you are playing the game with the browser window still visible. Anyway, I just thought it was important to highlight this because Im sure I wont be the only person that found it hard even start playing this game.
Before you start the actual game itself, you have the option of creating your own military business. You can give your business its own name and then you can choose what type of mercenary you want to be. Theres a selection of both male and female characters you can be and also the class type. There are five class types and they include the following: Scout, Commando, Sniper, Gunner and Soldier.
The first thing I noticed about the game is its impressive 3D graphics. If you only played the Jagged Alliance games back in the 90s or just played the Nintendo DS version, you will love all of the detail created in this modern take of a classic video game. Another thing to note about Jagged Alliance Online is that the production values are very high. Not only are the aforementioned graphics great to look at, but the audio included here is of a high quality as well. Its not often that browser based video games include full audio and some of the characters even have voice-overs which is not common either. This gave atmosphere to the game and made playing it a lot more exciting than just playing in silence like in most other free to play browser based game of the same kind.
Tactical turn-based video games like Jagged Alliance were common back in the 90s. They played like RTS games, although you usually controlled human soldiers as they navigate their way through the battlefield. Unlike in RTS games though, there are a certain amount of ability points you can use until its the end of your turn. Once you turn has ended, its now a chance for the enemy to attack you. You cannot just keep attacking the enemy until it is dead like in most RTS games.
The only modern video game that plays a lot like Jagged Alliance Online is X-Com: Enemy Unknown, although X-Com itself is a newer version of a game that was made famous in the 90s as well. Once I started playing Jagged Alliance Online, I was instantly hooked because the action style of gameplay is not as frantic as in FPS games, nor is it slow paced and boring like in a lot of free to play RTS games that are out.
To know how to play this game effectively you have to mind your surroundings and position your mercenaries in each level to catch the enemy soldiers off guard. There is only a certain amount of actions you can do in one turn in this game and you will have to conceal yourself before an enemy can attack you. The level design in Jagged Alliance Online is commendable because there are always walls and other obstacles you can hide behind to catch an enemy off guard. There is even conveniently placed explosive barrels that are located so you can blast more than one enemy at a time. Overall, I found the gameplay to be very addictive and if you havent played a game like this before, you will be pleasantly surprised how fun it can be.
Once I started the game it ran very smoothly, although loading times for the game are still longer than in any other browser based video game Ive ever played. This is to be expected since the graphics are in 3D, but it can be an annoying experience when the game needs to load every time it goes back to the main menu.
All in all, Jagged Alliance Online is a very fun video game that gamers from the 90s will enjoy. If youve been playing the recently released X -Com: Enemy Unknown video game, you will fall in love with the unique turn-based style of gameplay offered in this game as well. Too bad some of the technical issues the game suffers will prevent some people from playing the game. However, once you are able to get the game up and running, Jagged Alliance Online offers a unique gameplay experience that not many other video games can provide.
