Commandos 3: Destination Berlin

Commandos 3: Destination Berlin is a real-time tactics video game, the third installment of the Commandos series. It is developed by Pyro Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. The game is the first in the series to use a true 3D engine, and the last to use real-time tactics before being converted to a first-person shooter genre.

Commandos 3: Destination Berlin
Developer(s)	Pyro Studios Zonic Limited (OS X)
Publisher(s)	Eidos Interactive Feral Interactive (OS X)
Designer(s)	Ignacio Pérez Dolset
Series	Commandos
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X
Release	Windows NA: October 14, 2003 EU: October 24, 2003 OS X May 28, 2005
Genre(s)	Real-time tactics
Mode(s)	single player, multiplayer

The Mac OS X version of the game was released in May 2005 by Feral Interactive along with Commandos 2: Men of Courage as part of the Commandos Battle Pack.[1]

Gameplay

The player is in control of a group of Commandos to use to complete missions. Each of the six Commandos, down from eight in the previous game, offers a specific expertise: diver, Green Beret, sapper, sniper, spy, and thief.

The game contains very similar gameplay to the previous games, with the similar 'point and click' approach. However, it has fewer hotkeys compared to the previous installment, and the user has to press buttons at the bottom of the screen on the action bar.

The player is able to see all enemies on the map, follow their movements, and make attacks depending on their behavior. There are a few differences, such as the addition of an assault rifle, a weapon less powerful than a rifle, but more powerful than a pistol. Also, all units are able to use weapons such as the grenade, rather than just the Sapper as in previous games. The previous "knapsack" setup, simply showing a picture of all the items the currently selected commando has in his possession, superimposed over a picture of a rucksack, has been abandoned in favor of a "box".

When searching enemies bodies or supply crates, a similar, but smaller box is shown for their capacity. Commandos such as the Green Beret or Spy, who in earlier games have only been armed with the regulation pistol, can now use almost all the small arms available, except for the sniper rifle. While adding realism (the Commandos are no longer useless outside their area of expertise), some players complain that this robs the Commandos of their individual roles within the group, making them more generic. This does however, make the missions less linear, because the same job can done by different Commandos.

The new "cover mode" ability allows the player to leave Commandos waiting at a door or behind cover ready to shoot at any enemy that comes within range, often with more accuracy than when controlled manually. This gives the option of ambushes, and more defensive tactics.

Commandos 3 is broken down into three campaigns: Central Europe, Normandy and Stalingrad; each containing a various amount of missions, some shorter than others. Each campaign has different players involved but not all. Destination Berlin has a time limit on most missions.

Synopsis

Characters

There are six commandos in Commandos 3: the Green Beret (Jack O'Hara), the Sniper (Sir Francis T. Woolridge), the Marine (James Blackwood), the Sapper (Thomas Hancock), the Spy (René Duchamp), and the Thief (Paul Toledo).

Plot

The tutorial begins with Jack O'Hara clearing out a bunker, Sir Francis T. Woolridge killing a few German soldiers with his sniper rifle and Thomas Hancock destroying a Panzer III tank with explosives. The game then shifts to 21 February 1939, where René Duchamp and Paul Toledo infiltrate the German Embassy in London and steal documents from a safe.

Stalingrad

In the Battle of Stalingrad, Woolridge kills an elite German sniper, lifting the siege of a Soviet command post at the Barmaley Fountain. A General Franklin O'Donnell then arrives for a meeting with Soviet personnel, accompanied by Hancock and O'Hara. A massive German airstrike ensues followed by airdrops of the Fallschirmjäger. In an effort to protect the General, the commandos repulse waves of infantry attacks including a 7.5 cm Pak 40 anti-tank gun. When the meeting ends, O'Donnell crosses behind German lines and boards a Junkers Ju 52, much to the commandos' confusion. When they too enter the aircraft, O'Donnell orders the Germans to arrest them.

While in an underground prison cell, O'Hara subdues a jail guard and frees Woolridge and Hancock, telling them of O'Donnell's betrayal. When they make their way through the sewers, they run into René Duchamp, who informs them that O'Donnell plans to reveal top secret information to the Germans. Unknown to the three, Duchamp tells them they are in Berlin. The player is then given three tactical ways to kill O'Donnell before a timer initiates, after which he would appear. After O'Donnell is assassinated, the four commandos enter a Kübelwagen and escape the capital.

Central Europe

In Saint-Avold, René Duchamp and Paul Toledo board an armoured train carrying stolen artwork but are discovered. The Germans warn the next station and they try to derail the train using explosives. Jack O'Hara discovers this and he single-handedly clears the area before boarding the train just as it passes. Together with Duchamp and Toledo, the three take control of the train. The Germans, however, destroy an incoming railroad bridge, forcing O'Hara to stop the locomotive. Duchamp and Toledo are captured and loaded onto a truck along with the artwork, while O'Hara hides in the back of another truck.

With the German convoy scheduled to pass through a small town in Forbach, Sir Francis T. Woolridge and Thomas Hancock eliminate the town of all German resistance, allowing American soldiers to fortify the area and prepare for their arrival. The convoy arrives escorted by Tiger I tanks, but are ambushed as they enter the town. The trucks carrying Duchamp and Toledo are freed and the artwork recovered.

Normandy

On June 6, 1944, the night before the Normandy landings, Hancock and Toledo infiltrate a German encampment serving as reinforcements near Caen. They destroy a fuel depot, munitions building and as many Tiger I tanks, Schwerer Panzerspähwagen armored cars and Sd.Kfz. 251 half-tracks. At daybreak, James Blackwood infiltrates a port in Le Havre, disabling two German E-boats using mines. As the landings commences, O'Hara joins the Americans as they converge on Omaha Beach. Together, they take out the coastal artillery and clear the bunkers of all German troops.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score Aggregator Score Metacritic 72/100[2] Review scores Publication Score CGM [3] CGW [4] Edge 6/10[5] Eurogamer 8/10[6] Game Informer 6/10[7] GamePro [8] GameRevolution B−[9] GameSpot 7.9/10[10] GameSpy [11] GameZone 8.9/10[12] IGN 8.9/10[13] PC Gamer (US) 78%[14]

Commandos 3 received a "Gold" award from the Asociación Española de Distribuidores y Editores de Software de Entretenimiento (aDeSe), for more than 40,000 sales in Spain during its first 12 months.[15]

Commandos 3 received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[2] The game was criticized for being difficult to play on account of having fewer hotkeys than its predecessors. The player has to control the commandos using the buttons in the pop-up menu at the bottom of the screen. Also, the game is locked at an 800x600 resolution[10] which was relatively low at the time of release.

References

1. "Commandos Battle Pack is now shipping everywhere". Feral Interactive. June 3, 2005. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
2. "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 2, 2010.
3. "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". Computer Games Magazine. theGlobe.com. January 2004. p. 67.
4. Kapalka, Jason (January 2004). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 234. Ziff Davis. pp. 92–93. Archived from the original on December 4, 2003. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
5. Edge staff (December 2003). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". Edge. No. 130. Future plc. Archived from the original on December 3, 2003. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
6. Taylor, Martin (October 20, 2003). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved September 2, 2010.
7. Biessener, Adam (January 2004). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". Game Informer. No. 129. GameStop. p. 157. Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
8. Vicious Sid (October 29, 2003). "Commando[s] 3 Destination Berlin Review for PC on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 7, 2005. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
9. Mr. Tickle (November 2003). "Commandos 3 [Destination Berlin] Review". Game Revolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
10. Parker, Sam (October 20, 2003). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
11. Dy, Bernard (November 23, 2003). "GameSpy: Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment.
12. Wrentmore, John (November 2, 2003). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin - PC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
13. Butts, Steve (October 15, 2003). "Commandos 3: Destination Berlin". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
14. Poole, Stephen (December 25, 2003). "Commandos 3 [Destination Berlin]". PC Gamer. Vol. 10 no. 13. Future US. p. 118. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
15. Dossier de prensa Galardones aDeSe 2004 (PDF) (Report) (in Spanish). Asociación Española de Distribuidores y Editores de Software de Entretenimiento. March 2004. pp. 5, 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 2, 2005.

External links

• Official Commandos 3: Destination Berlin website
• Commandos 3: Destination Berlin on IMDb
• Commandos 3: Destination Berlin at MobyGames