Revision of Frontlines: Fuel of War from Tue, 03/03/2009 - 15:37

Here is the promised review

This game is based in the not to distant future where the world has almost run out of oil. The lack of fuel is causing world economys huge problems, with smaller countrys struggling to survive. Most countrys join up into one of two teams. Most of what is now NATO joins the Western Coalition. Russia and China create the Red Star Alliance.
Red star launches attacks because of suspision that a coup in a oil rich Red Star Nation was caused by Western Coalition. As both teams scramble to secure the fast dissapearing oil supplies it turns into all out war.

This game has acutally been out for quite a while but to be blunt when it was released it was crap. It was buggy and nothing worked. There was lots of hype but it did not live up expectations.
5 patches later ands its become a really good game. They have fixed all the issues and I have yet to find any new ones.

It is mostly a multi-player game with the single player being a short intro into how to play the game. Prob between 4-6 hours of single player.

Most the multi-player servers have around a 50 player limit so they are big maps. The gameplay is far different to most other fps games. Rather than just doing one obj then another. In this game you are constantly trying to advance the front line. Normally this means you need to hold all the required objectives in this area of the map(normally 2-3).

There are most of the normal classes except medic who has been replaced by Close combat. With the style of game play a medic is not needed thou. In the way of health it goes along the same lines as COD4. As you get hit your screen starts going red (maybe blue or pick for u aussys who really knows what happens over there) it takes about 2-5 hits in general body area or one in the head. So you have no health bar so there is not alot of need for a medic

Anti-Vehicle

Designed to combat enemy armor, the Anti-Vehicle class is armed with anti-tank landmines capable of dealing large damage to enemy armor. The Anti-Vehicle class also utilizes a heat seeking rocket launcher that allows him to track the target, lock on, and select the rocket’s trajectory before firing. These missiles can be blocked by vehicles by deploying thermal flares.

Assault

The Assault classes comes equipped with a standard Assault Rifle, as well as a grenade launcher that allows him to deal with lightly armored threats.

Heavy Assault

The Heavy Assault class trades mobility and accuracy for firepower. Their heavy assault rifle is capable of firing a constant stream of bullets, helping suppress enemy soldiers. By using the crouch or prone position, the Heavy Assault soldier can become more accurate at the cost of mobility.

Sniper

Utilizing a sniper rifle, the sniper can locate and eliminate enemy infantry at long range. However, the class is weak at short distances or against large numbers of infantry, or armored vehicles.

Special Operations

Armed with a scoped Sub-Machine Gun, the Spec Ops class is designed for both short and medium ranged combat. Spec Ops can also use their C4 to destroy armored vehicles. In the single-player campaign, the C4 can also be utilized to destroy cover and some barricades.

Close Combat

Armed with a shotgun, the Close Combat class excels in close-quarters situations, but is very vulnerable to both medium and long range fire due to the shotgun’s lack of range.

Frontlines also adds a another new aspect to the multi fps game called roles in which you can become even more specialised.

Ground Support

The Ground Support subclass has a repair torch that allows you to fix any vehicle, turret, or drone. In some cases only the ground support class can take objectives back because of his ability to repair structures. Depending on which faction you play as in multiplayer you can acquire different turrets as you rank up in your class. Western Coalition has the grenade launcher which is effective at taking out groups of infantry. Red Star Alliance has the mini-gun which is effective against light armor and infantry. High ranking Ground Support allows for the rail gun and an automated turret. The rail gun is effective against all vehicles with the exception of fighter jets available to WC forces. The automated turret can be placed in strategic locations for defense and is available to Red Star forces.

EMP Tech

The EMP tech Role starts out with “mini-map stealth”. It allows one to walk past a UAV Drone without showing up on the enemy radar. Mid role EMP techs are granted a lighting rod that disables any electronic device in its radius. It also removes any threat of air-strikes in the vicinity. High ranking EMP Techs have a prototype EMP Rocket launcher, which releases an EMP rocket on impact instead of exploding. It doesn’t affect infantry unless they’re in a vehicle.

Drone Tech

Drone Techs use a wide variety of drones. They start out with UAVs that highlight any enemy in the vicinity (with the exception of the EMP Tech Class). Mid-ranked Drone Techs have access to two different types of drones. The C4 drone is available to the Red Star Alliance and uses a RC car to deliver its ordinance. It is powerful enough to take out any armored vehicle. Western Coalition uses a drone outfitted with a mini-gun. While it has the edge in firepower, it is also slow and useless against armored vehicles. High ranking Red Star Drone techs use a Tiger Claw Attack Drone which is outfitted with mini rockets. The Western Coalition uses a mortar drone which uses four mortars.

Air Support

The Western Coalition Air Support role has a precision bombing which will destroy anything in one hit. These bombs are easily dodged, though, so they work best when they target a checkpoint or objective. The second level can use a cluster bomb that is very efficient at taking out men and clearing objective points. The third level can use a gunship that flies above a designated area and kills any enemy in that location.

Red Star Alliance Air Support subclass has the same precision bomb but instead of a cluster bomb they receive a carpet bomb instead, which can easily clear an enemy battle line. Their third level is a fuel air bomb that will kill anyone in a wide area.

Another Very important aspect of this game is vehicles.

Western Coalition

Light Armor

The LVS is a late-generation, workhorse light four-wheel-drive vehicle used for a wide variety of missions – scouting, patrolling, technical and supply, and fast attack. When designing it, Western Coalition R&D labs took inspiration from the French VBL, the German Fennek, and the U.S. Humvee and combined the best elements into this new light tactical vehicle. An LVS will typically mount a heavy machine gun on a 360-degree cupola on its roof, plus a Firefly advanced decoy launcher. It is a favorite of the troops for its solid reliability, speed and firepower.

The M4 Powell is a mainline, infantry fighting vehicle. It’s design was advanced by Coalition shared development between the U.S and Italian technology. It is designed to carry troops, unload them during high-speed armored assault, and then provide general fire support. Mounted in the turret is a laser-guided anti-tank missile, which is excellent for taking out ground vehicles and even low-flying helicopters. Furthermore, it mounts a wire-guided ATGM in the roof, making the Powell feared even by main battle tanks.

The threat alert system enhances both inter-vehicle communications and threat detection and awareness by providing target designation abilities between primary and secondary positions. Lastly, an Active Defence Countermeasures System (ADCS) makes it nearly impossible to hit with any sort of guided rocket, grenade, or mortar type ordinance. Incoming threats such as these will literally be shot out of the air by the automated, or manually operated ADCS.

The Railman is a dedicated air defence vehicle designed to protect itself and friendly vehicles near it from low to medium altitude enemy aircraft and drones. It’s remotely-controlled turret sports a 20mm gatling cannon, and heavy guided air defence missiles. The gatling cannon a tried-and-true mainstay weapon, is capable of firing at a rate of 6000 rounds per minute.

The Railman’s air defence missiles are an interesting case. They use infrared-/radar-/laser-guidance and, like many such weapons, operate in a self-homing, “fire-and-forget” mode. They were originally intended to be all-around guided missiles – capable of homing on both aircraft and ground vehicles. However, while their ability as an anti-air weapon remains exceptional, as anti-tank weapons they were found to be disappointing – hence they are now exclusively dedicated to air defence. The M7 is a fast, wheeled vehicle, inspired by the success of the U.S. light attack vehicles earlier in the century. It’s wheeled base makes it quickly able to get into a defensive position to provide air suppression coverage. Red Star aircraft find it a great trouble when carrying out their missions – and frequently a lethal adversary.

Heavy Armor

The M1B Fuller – sometimes called the “Mib” – is an evolution of the tried-and-true American and British battle tank technology. The Coalition named this tank the Fuller the British Major-General JFC Fuller, who was one of the original fathers of armored warfare doctrine (which, ironically, the Germans later adopted and proved in WWII). The turbine powerplant of the Fuller is not as fuel-efficient as the diesel-hybrid designs prevalent in other armored fighting vehicles. However, being a turbine it can burn virtually any liquid or gaseous fuel, offsetting the gas-guzzling nature of the engine somewhat.

Of particular interest is the M1B’s main gun: a 120mm advanced propulsion cannon that yields greater velocity than a conventional 120mm. It uses a new gun propulsion technology: electro-thermal chemical (ETC). An electrothermal gun fires a projectile with as much as 50% more kinetic energy as standard gun of the same diameter and length. It does this by injecting a powerful charge of electricity into the ignition-combustion chamber of the shell (whereas a standard shell simply relies on a low-order explosive primer to ignite the shell’s main charge). This electrical surge imparts additional energy to the warhead as it travels down the barrel, permitting acceleration the entire time the warhead is in the barrel (whereas the warhead of a standard shell begins to decelerate the moment after ignition, even while in the barrel).

Vehicle operators are situated in the base of the tank and the turret and weaponry is wire-operated. The secondary gun position shows an advancement to previous tank designs in not exposing the gunner, but instead using a camera system from safely inside the vehicle. The Fuller also sports advanced defensive measures: including composite armor and Firefly decoy launchers. The threat alert system enhances both inter-vehicle communications and threat detection and awareness by providing target designation abilities between primary and secondary positions.

Aircraft

F/A-40 Stalker = The F/A-40 (or simply “F40”) is an advanced and versatile fighter/attack, descending from American fighter jet technology. The aircraft has the ability to adopt a low-drag cruising mode, in which its rear vertical surfaces fold down to minimize drag, increasing the aircraft’s overall mission range. Every external piece of this plane folds in to create a smooth, stealthy profile.

On this highly agile and efficient platform is a payload of fearsome weaponry, stowed in internal low-drag, low-radar-signature bays. It mounts an array of versatile air-to-air and air-to-surface fire-and-forget guided missiles, as well as the standard fall-back 20mm gatling gun for close-in “snapshots” at enemy aircraft during a dogfight. It also is capable of deploying universal Firefly guided-weapon decoys.

The AH67 Mohawk Development of the AH67 followed directly on the heels of cancelled recon and attack helicopter programs in the West. The Mohawk was a direct replacement for the aging attack helicopters of U.S. forces, to be used by all Western Coalition countries. While all modern attack helos are purpose-built to avoid detection and survive in a combat environment, the Mohawk incorporates advanced stealth technology features, and dual operation modes. This means that the side mounted rocket pods were built to retract into the frame giving two advantages: increased stealth against radar, and advanced evasive handling. With the pods exposed, automated systems engage to help stabilize the helicopter, providing an assisted platform allowing Coalition pilots to focus on attacking targets.

The Mohawk’s pilot controls a pod of 80mm rockets aligned with the forward axis of the aircraft as well as a Firefly decoy dispenser. The gunner controls a remotely-operated turret in the nose that houses a 25mm auto cannon, and the sighting/launch system for a payload of wire-guided anti-tank missiles carried by the aircraft. The threat alert system enhances both inter-vehicle communications and threat detection and awareness by providing target designation abilities between primary and secondary positions. Western Coalition ground commanders particularly love having this aircraft on their side, knowing it is an excellent fire support platform in both close air support and stand off missions.

UH66 Seneca. The Seneca is a workhorse utility helicopter, purpose-designed to withstand the rigors of deploying troops in and out of combat. It mounts 7.62mm miniguns on either side for defensive protection when deploying troops to a hot landing zone. It also sports advanced Firefly decoys to ward off incoming missiles.

The UH66 sports gunner positions on either side. These positions include computerized laser target designators, which permit each gunner to highlight specific targets of interest, and share them between gunners and with the pilot.

Red Star Alliance

Light Armor

The GZ 550 is a no-nonsense light armored vehicle. The latest in a long lineage of similar light ground vehicles, the Red Star have manufactured tens of thousands of these basic, lightweight and efficient machines, entrusting them to missions in everything from logistics to Mede-vac, to recon to raiding. When armed, a GAZ will mount a heavy machine gun in a 360-degree cupola on its roof, and is built to mount anti-vehicle rocket or grenade launcher ordinance as well.

The BTZ 110 is a no-nonsense infantry fighting vehicle. It descends from a long ancestry of Soviet/Russian armored personnel carriers (which also includes the first infantry fighting vehicle: the BMP1) that specialize in large-scale infantry-based warfare. It’s remotely-controlled auto-cannon turret can make short work of enemy combatants with nearly no risk to its own passengers while a side-mounted medium-sized anti-tank missile can destroy most lightly armored vehicles.

Without question though, the BTZ110 strongest asset are it’s manoeuvrability, speed and troop carrying capacity. Acting as an infantry deployment rallying point, the BTZ 110 changes the profile of the battle in a matter of minutes by re-massing the Red Star troops at nearly any location on the frontlines.

The 2S10 is the Red Star Alliance’s primary tactical air defence vehicle. The Telker is a slight evolution of Russian technology, however input from Chinese scientists and their favour of their own Air Defence systems account for several changes. The Telker supports four 27mm auto cannons, mounted in a quad configuration and extremely high rate of fire. Multiple guided air defence missiles (which use a combination of radar and infrared guidance, and are fired in a self-homing manner) are included. These weapons are arrayed in a single, remotely-operated main turret.

As such this weapon platform imposes a fearsome array of firepower against Western Coalition aircraft and aerial drones.

Heavy Armor

The T119 Blackbear is the latest Red Star main battle tank. Drawing its lineage from a storied ancestry of Russian tanks, the T119 is the Red Star’s answer to the M1B. The Blackbear sports a 140mm main gun of conventional design as a stopgap answer to the “one-upmanship” of the M1B’s advanced propulsion 120mm main gun. The 140mm is a monster of a gun. It does slightly less damage against armor than the M1B’s ETC main cannon, but ground troops love it in urban warfare because the fatter shell carries more explosive, making it more effective against Western Coalition infantry, and the radial damage it can cause.

It sports a Domovoi decoy launcher, similar in operation to the Firefly. The threat alert system enhances both inter-vehicle communications and threat detection and awareness by providing target designation abilities between primary and secondary positions.

Aircraft

The Su-48 is the Red Star Alliance’s newest jet fighter, one evolution past previous swept wing design experiments. In the Su-48, the Russians got it right. It carries a powerful array of missiles – air-to-air and air-to-surface – to engage a wide variety of targets. It has the mandatory, last-ditch 20mm gatling cannon for close-quarters fire and strafing, as well as a Domovoi universal missile decoy launcher.

However, of interest is its old-fashioned external hardpoint weapon mounts which carry its fearsome array of missiles. These mounts reduce the overall range of the aircraft (it increases drag), but not having to open a weapon bay makes it faster than the F40 to launch a snapshot missile during close-in dogfighting. All-in-all, because of its lesser stealth capabilities, (as measured by the F40) some call it more of a ‘budget’ aircraft. However Russian designers strove for a design that would win a split-second dogfight standoff vs. evading radar to get deep into enemy territory. In all tests to date, all evidence points toward the F40 having a counterpart to be concerned with.

The K-55 (known as “Hyper” among Western Coalition intel analysts) is an attack helicopter developed by the Russians, but in certain ways heavily copies advances made by western designers. It goes back to a 2 seat design, utilizing a classic attack helo layout, with pilot and gunner seated in tandem positions (pilot above and behind, gunner forward), to minimize the aircraft’s profile when seen from in front.

The Hyper mounts a pair of 23mm auto cannons – one aligned with the forward-axis of the vehicle, the other in a nose turret – as well as a 75mm rocket pod and an anti-tank missile. This makes it slightly better armed than its Western Coalition counterpart, the AH67 – but then again it lacks the stealth technology of the latter aircraft. The threat alert system enhances both inter-vehicle communications and threat detection and awareness by providing target designation abilities between primary and secondary positions. Unlike the AH67 which was built more with stealth and evasion in mind, this helicopter was built more as a gunship. It is capable of easily destroying even the most heavily armored targets.

The Mi-11 is a latest-generation utility helicopter now fielded by Red Star forces. It is multi-role in that its design fits civilian use as well, but the military variant has been given basic armor, side-door weaponry, and a military avionics package to adapt it to military operations. It is a solid and capable vehicle, well-suited to the job it has been given in the RS military.

The Holder sports dual 7.62mm gatling guns in a defensive left and right “doorgun” configuration, plus Domovoi decoy launchers for defensive measures. The door gunners also have laser target markers, to designate and “hand off” specific targets.

There is also talk from the directors that they may implement a live anywhere feature so that PC users can play against XBOX users.

I have found this game to be great and lots of fun. Not a huge amount of people on servers but hopefully more will start coming back to it.
I highly recomend this to IPXers as it is a great fun game.

I give it a 8.5/10 blood drops