Everyday Gamer

Now this is what I’ve been waiting for folks - the next Soldier of Fortune! In 2001, hours upon hours were spent on my Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix for the PC and the case still sits in my CD rack - yet to be retired to the back of the closet. In November 2007, Activision will release Soldier of Fortune: Payback for the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3; I will be picking up the PC version thank-you-very-much. A nice shoot-em up trailer is below.

One thing I did pick up on is the ESRB warning at the beginning which made me look at the ESRB warning on my SOF:II. Both are rated “M” but SOF: II only has Gore and Violence… SOF: Payback has Gore, Violence and Drugs, Sexual Themes and Adult Language. Why does the game need all that? The series was great with just the gore and violence! I don’t need some NPC shouting F*** you at me through every cinematic scene or when they are gunning for me - nor do I need to see anything sex related, that’s what I have a hard drive and the internets for. The “Drug” portion of the rating may stem from the storyline of drug trafficking or something along those lines and that I can understand. I guess I can’t complain as my $50 bucks is going to the game, right?

A snippet from the official press release:

Soldier of Fortune Payback evolves the signature gameplay of its predecessors with refined controls, tension-packed warzones, and an enemy damage system that may be shocking to even experienced FPS players. Boasting more weapons options than any previous Soldier of Fortune installment, Soldier of Fortune Payback’s impressive arsenal includes an array of more than 30 weapons including sub-machine guns, assault rifles, sniper rifles, projectile explosives, weapon attachments and cutting-edge tactical weapons.

The - storyline reflects today’s trend of “outsourcing” wars. When a routine escort mission goes horribly wrong, freelance mercenary Thomas Mason finds himself battling an insidious enemy that knows no boundaries. Traditional armies can not handle these extremists – only underground guns for hire can fight a war this dirty and get results.