I rented Army of Two on the 360 on Thursday and beat it last night. It was amazing! I wrote a review for GameFaqs, and here it is:
Army of Two, recently released on March 6 in the United States, is a new game that introduces a fantastic plot, two amazing lead characters, and memorable game play. In Army of Two, you first start at a selection screen, choosing to play as one of two characters: Tyson Rios or Elliot Salem, in which both protagonists are active in game as your partner, the opposite of whoever you choose.
The game begins in 1993 in Somalia when Elliot Salem and Tyson Rios are still in the U.S. 75th Ranger Regiment, where they are tasked to work with Phillip Clyde of Security and Strategy Corporation (SSC) to assassinate Abdullahi Mo'Alim. After this mission, Philip Clyde, on behalf of SSC CEO Ernest Stockwell, invites Lieutenant Colonel Richard Dalton (commander of the 75th Ranger Regiment) to join the company for a desk job. He agrees, asking to bring Salem and Rios with him as contractors, and, the following year, the three enter the private sector. Later on, you're sent on a new mission, which is believed to be present day 2003.
The original character of Phillip Clyde foreshadows him as perhaps being the lead antagonist in the story, what with his narcissistic behaviour, inappropriate sarcasm and belittlement, and of course, showing off.
Later on in the game, by completing the assignments for SSC (which are all somewhat related in idea), a shocking twist occurs leaving you with your mouth dropped and hell to pay.
The game play itself is the best I've seen so far. It's somewhat like Gears of War, but a lot better than that. It's related to Gears of War because of the control mechanisms, the sliding and hiding behind cover, blind firing, and all of that. However, as I said, it's way better than Gears of War by a stretch. In Army of Two, you have the ability to go Back-To-Back when you're outnumbered, in which you do the obvious with your partner and kill the enemies surrounding you
During game play, more or less in between mission "breaks" where fire fights die down, and before any major ones begin, you have the option to do mid-mission shopping for Primary, Secondary, Special Weapons, and Gear using the money you earned by completing contracts and completing bonus objectives.
All of the weapons in the game are customizable, such as barrels, extended magazines, front mounts, suppressors, shields, grips, attachments, and the option to "pimp out" it's appearance for $10,000 per weapon. Also, secondary weaponry isn't just handguns. There's also Micro Uzis, P90s, and MP7s. The Special weapons categorize as sniper rifles, RPGs, and heat seekers. Like I said, all of the weapons are customizable.
The PAI (Partner Artificial Intelligence, which is Rios if you play as Salem, and Salem if you play as Rios) is very interesting and helpful. Of course, with AI, there's flaws, such as not battling strategically when necessary, but that's okay. You can't expect it to do all of the work for you. Do you part in partnership and you'll get through the game. On the opposing side, the AI of the game is mildly challenging. You'll find that they are indeed smart, and if you don't pay attention, they'll flank you before you even realize what's going on. On top of that, they get more challenging as the levels go on - so I recommend starting at the Novice level before advancing to Contractor, and then Professional (after beating the game on either latter difficulties).
The musical score for Army of Two was, nay is indeed amazing as well. While in fierce battle, the music intensifies and while your enemies are down for the count, it lightens up.
There is multiplayer involved as well: Co-Op, Splitscreen, and Xbox Live. All of which are incredible to play, and the Xbox Live is just like campaign mode, which also requires good teamwork, strategic thinking, and a good eye for any windows of opportunity to outflank your enemies. Also, the achievements in Army of Two are interesting, and very fun to earn.
The general game play of Army of Two seemed short, but the replay value is worth it. You can go back and redo missions to earn more money and unlock and upgrade the rest of the guns. Once you first beat the game, all of the primary weapons are unlocked, so all you have to do (if you wish) is upgrade those, purchase the others, and upgrade them. Or, if you're feeling up to it, you may play the game on Professional difficulty and unlock all of the remaining weapons once you beat the game on that difficulty setting.
All in all, Army of Two is definitely one of the year's best games for the Xbox 360 and PS3, and I definitely recommend giving it a try. If you love it enough, then feel free to buy it, but if you're not a big fan of games like this, I still recommend trying it, but just rent it first. Either way, Army of Two is undeniably an amazing game.