Windows

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Mission Pack: Eagle Watch

Aside from those few minor quibbles, Mission Pack: Eagle Watch is an awesome addition to the original game. I would like to have seen more than five new levels, but with six added multiplayer modes, gamers will hard pressed to complain about the circa $20 price tag. The truth is that we just want more, more, more Rainbow Six.

Five missions may not seem like much considering their linear nature, but they remain as replayable as those in the original. The graphics are noticeably better and the animation smoother. There are definitely some missed opportunities though, especially the lack of stealth missions, which provided the more demanding and involving aspects of the original game. The sense of danger and atmosphere really fades when compared to a game such as Thief: The Dark Project, (PCZ #72, 90%), which is a shame as it draws attention away from some of the innovations Rainbow Six introduced. And if our objective is safeguarding world peace and democracy, why are there no politicians for us to kill in the Houses of Parliament level?

Overall, Eagle Watch adds up to a pretty good addon. As a start to the addons of 99, it comes out nicely done and has enough new ideas to give R6 a fresh face. While lacking in a multitude of levels or weapons or whatnot, it does provide a nice addition to the unique experience that Rainbow Six created.

On the Final note Eagle Watch has not improved many single player aspects. But through the mutliplayer aspect numerous and interesting things were added in. Most noticeably a game that doesn't crash so much. As in all add-ons the question is was the game revamped completely. Well let's just say that Red Storm's motto is "if it ain't broke don't fix it".

This expansion pack adds more than its twenty bucks' worth to Rainbow Six, which is every bit as good as Thief and Half-Life. Eagle Watch further secures its place in the vanguard of the first person shooter renaissance.

For the most part, the multiplayer modes work, and there don't seem to be too many problems with crashing servers, though of course the connection speed matters a great deal. Unfortunately, that is about all Eagle Watch has to offer. Eagle Watch adds absolutely nothing else to the Rainbow Six mix except a little more of the same, more or less. None of the major complaints with Rainbow Six were fixed (such as moronic AI and superaccurate terrorists), and those interested in the single-player game will be left with very little to cheer about. Multiplayer fiends, of course, will have a field day and should remain satisfied until someone comes along with a nifty mod (like the "NATO" patch) or the sequel hits the shelves.

Rainbow Six ist noch immer ein tolles Spiel, das merkt der Spieler spätestens dann, wenn er voller Anspannung durch die neuen Schauplätze schleicht. Tatsächlich ist dieses "Was lauert bloß hinter der nächsten Ecke?"-Gefühl so intensiv wie eh und je, was sogar über die noch immer unausgereifte KI der computergesteuerten Kameraden hinwegtröstet. Es ist schon faszinierend, die Räumlichkeiten des britischen Parlaments zurückzuerobern oder das Taj Mahal von Terroristen zu säubern. Die interaktiven Trainingslevel mit zurückschießenden Zielen sind eine interessante Herausforderung, für die zusätzlichen Multiplayer-Modi gilt dasselbe.

When the smoke has cleared and the dizzying effects of the flash bangs have abated, what you’ll find is a pretty skimpy expansion pack, and one that doesn’t improve upon any of the parent game’s shortcomings. Rainbow Six was too short to begin with, and Eagle Watch just pours salt in the wound by offering only five new single-player missions. Sure, the new multiplayer options are cool, as are the two new training scenarios, but let’s face it: without a solid single-player component, a game add-on is a mere shadow of what it could have been. Such is the case with Eagle Watch, a mission pack that, in the end, offers very little bang for the buck.

Overall, what is offered in the expansion pack is very good. It's just that there is very, very little of it. We at Game Revolution typically feel that an expansion pack should always have more bulk to it than the original game. In this way, Eagle Watch is somewhat reminiscent of the expansion packs to the Command & Conquer games, a few new interesting ideas, some great levels, but not enough here to recommend it highly to anyone but the die-hard fans. In fact, the entire expansion pack can be played through in under a day by a reasonably skilled gamer. That sort of brevity is nearly unforgivable.