Ghost Recon: Wildlands Beta Final Thoughts

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PS4/XBOX ONE/PC

Beta review by Robert Coffil

The Ghost Recon franchise was around before I started gaming, and will probably be around long after I’m done. I occasionally dip my toes into this tactical war series to see if it’s accessible to someone who isn’t a hardcore shooter enthusiast. Wildlands wasn’t even on my radar. After this beta, its one I’m seriously considering buying.

When it comes to games about American soldiers at war, it’s easy for stories to devolve from simple patriotism into jingoism. They aren’t morally complex for fear of disrespecting the American service person. But the bits of the story you see in the beta actually do a wonderful job of conveying moral complexity. The members of the team talk about everything from their love lives, to their clothing habits and you realize that these people aren’t just automatons to wind up and send out to capture the enemy. It’s interesting.

As for the weapon set, I haven’t played a modern shooter in years. When I did, the reloads took like 5 seconds. In Wildlands, the reloads take longer because the character goes through the actual movements of reloading a weapon. Every weapon has a distinct reload movement, and it’s pretty cool. Though one thing you don’t want is to be caught reloading during a firefight!

One of these days, I’m  going to stop being impressed by how visually sumptuous modern video games are, but that day isn’t today. Wildlands is stunning to behold. The two areas in the beta only hint at the gameplay diversity that will be available in the full game. You go from frozen mountain tops to small city landscapes, and each setting is visually distinct.

The Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands Beta completely took me by surprise, and made a strong case for me to purchase the game when it hits shelves on March 7th!