If you or your partner are injured, either character can drag the other to safety and heal. If it shifts to your partner, you become nearly invisible, allowing you to covertly flank enemies and kill them quickly. If you cause a major battlefield ruckus, your Aggro soars and you turn red. Tied in to this is Aggro, an aggression meter measuring which character enemies are most focused on. Press twice, and he turns more aggressive. Pressing once sends your partner into a defensive stance. The directional pad hosts three commands: Advance, Regroup, and Hold Position. You and your partner must work as a cohesive unit to navigate each environment and complete the objectives. You don't move as one soldier but as two. The duo works for the SSC, a contractor who deploys them on missions to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other global flashpoints.Ĭentral to Army of Two's action is the cooperative play. Players control both Salem and Rios, mercenaries in a world where private contractors dominate the United States' military efforts.
Salem presents a less endearing, but very loyal character, valuing money and making risky bets with large sums of money, but this often provides an outlet for Rios to be a better role model, advising Salem against those activities. Rios inparticular presents a good role model, insisting on investingating leaks of troop positions, and passing up a monetary reward to ensure that a criminal goes to prison for his crime. The main characters, Rios and Salem, are well fleshed out, defining there personalities and showing background in the clever method of inserting it into the gameplay itself. The story is also intriguing, presenting a philisophical dilema and debate. The use of the agro meter is brilliant, allowing for real strategy in advancing forward or setting up to snipe. The cover system in the game is well designed, allowing for tactical advances, and at times, exploiting weaknesses in cover, such as gaps or an enemy being partially exposed. This is were the game shines, especially for couch co-op where you can effectively comunicate strategy back and forth.
The reason this is only a nit pick however, is that the game was obviously designed for two players. The few nit pick problems with the game stem from the single player mode, where your partner AI is not always helpful and sometimes impedes your strategy. Which Side of History? How Technology Is Reshaping Democracy and Our LivesĪrmy of Two is a fun game with an interresting story, but just enough problems to keep it from a five star rating.