Army of Two: The 40th Day (Bromance on the Rocks)

When did Michael Bay movies become the blueprint for videogames? Because Army of Two: The 40th day feels very much like it could be Bad Boys 3 between the gunplay, the bromance and the big action setpieces. In other words, this sh*t just got real.

My first playthrough of Army of Two: The 40th day was a co-op session with a friend of mine. In the midst all of the back and forth chatter between us, I though I had missed most of the plot because I wasn't paying attention. Turns out, I didn't miss much, because on my second single-player playthrough, the plot was just as insignificant as in my first co-op playthrough. Basically, you're a pair of mercenaries tasked with a job in Shanghai where all hell breaks loose so you decide to shoot your way out.

There's really not much more to be said about the story, in spite of being presented with a number of moral choices throughout the game. Things like, "shoot the tiger? yes or no?" and "ask a small child to get you a rifle in the middle of a firefight? yes or no?". But the vast majority of those choices don't affect the direction of the plot. What they do get you are various tangential stories following the characters involved and illustrated by a pair of comic book artists, Chris Bachelo and Jock.

Morality also comes into play in other gameplay situations. There are scenarios where you can choose to save civilian hostages or choose to apprehend enemy soldiers rather than kill them. By taking either positive or negative actions, you receive different things, from cash to gun parts to upgrade your weapons depending on what you choose to do. The moral choices in the game essentially extend the relatively short campaign mode for those of you who are looking for that specific gun or those of you who just have to unlock everything.

One of the main components to the game is weapon customization. You can switch between three different weapons, your primary, secondary and a special weapon, all of which you can customize until your heart's content. Different parts will raise some attributes while lowering others. You can also customize the look of your weapon with different paint styles... so your dream of owning that tricked out gold plated tactical shotgun with a shield mount? Or an AK-47 with a scope and a soda can for a silencer? Totally attainable.

As the title of the game suggests, the campaign mode is designed for two player cooperative play and that's where the game is at it's best. There's an element of tactics in the action as you can build up your "aggro" meter and draw enemy fire, allowing your partner to move undetected. All of the maps are open enough where you can try different routes and tactics for the missions on subsequent playthroughs, but realistically, if you play with the same partner, you're probably going to default to whatever worked for you the first time. Teamwork is especially important because the enemies also work as a team in trying to kill you. I was especially impressed with the enemy AI as they directed each other to hold position and advance. (They can even try to heal each other!) It seemed like the enemy AI was a simplified version of what your partner has when playing single-player.

And The 40th Day is also surprisingly competent as a single-player game. You can direct your AI-controlled partner to hold position, advance or regroup and you can switch between passive and aggressive versions of each. There was really only one instance where my virtual partner couldn't save me because I had dropped down to a lower level and he (it?) couldn't figure out how to get down to where I was in time. While it's preferable to play with another player, you won't be frustrated (*cough*Resident Evil 5*cough*) if you can only play with yourself. I mean, by yourself. But how can you really have a bromance without a bro?

Rating

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