Software:SOCOM II

From HandWiki
SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs
Developer(s)Zipper Interactive
Publisher(s)Sony Computer Entertainment
Director(s)David Sears
Designer(s)Graham Keys
Programmer(s)Bob Gutmann
Michael Gutmann
Artist(s)Russell Phillips
David Kern
Composer(s)Inon Zur
SeriesSOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs
EngineKinetica
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • NA: November 4, 2003
  • EU: March 5, 2004
Genre(s)Tactical shooter
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs is a tactical shooter video game developed by Zipper Interactive and published by Sony Computer Entertainment exclusively for PlayStation 2. It's the sequel to SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs.

The online servers for this game, along with other PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable SOCOM titles, were shut down on 31 August, 2012.

Gameplay

SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs is a third-person tactical shooter. There are 12 different single-player missions: split equally between Albania, Algeria, Brazil and Russia . There are five different ranks that can be played in the game: Ensign, Lieutenant, Commander, Captain and Admiral. The player starts with the first three ranks unlocked, but must finish the single player game on Commander to unlock Captain, and on Captain to unlock Admiral. Players can unlock new models for multiplayer, as well as movies, music, concept art, and credits by completing certain objectives.

Each mission has primary, secondary, and hidden bonus objectives. Players have to complete all the primary objectives to win the mission, and secondary objectives are optional, but add to the overall score for the mission. The hidden bonus objectives usually help make other missions easier. For example, finding a map in one mission means the player will not have to work to find that place in the next mission. A letter grade is received at the end of each mission based on 4 categories of score: Stealth, Accuracy, Teamwork, and Objective Completion. In single player, orders can be given to the rest of the team. This can be done using either the command menu or a USB headset. The menu features new command options, enabling the player to order their teammates to drop to the ground and hold position when outdoors.[citation needed]

The online and lan multiplayer portion of SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs requires a broadband connection for play. This mode sets two teams of up to eight, SEALs and Terrorists, against each other. The default round time is six minutes, and each game is decided based on the first team to win 6 of 11 possible rounds. Each team spawns at opposite sides of the map, and proceeds to pursue its objective. When a character dies, the player must wait for the next round to resume play. While dead, the player may monitor the status of his teammates, and may change his weapon load. In a room created by a given SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs user, factors such as the number of rounds, round type, round time, weapon restrictions, and friendly fire can all be adjusted to the creator's liking. [citation needed]

SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs supports chat and prohibits in-game loitering. Voice chat is permitted in server lobbies, but not while in the armory of game lobbies. There are in-game options to mute certain players and to switch to different channels of communication (offense, defense, etc.). Problems with locating acquaintances in the original SOCOM online lead to the development of both a Friend List and a Clan Roster.[citation needed] The game features twelve new online maps, along with ten maps from the original SOCOM.[1] The maps carried over from SOCOM have undergone minor changes such as turrets and breaches being added, daytime maps being switched to night and some paths being blocked, while others have been opened.[2] Three additional maps could be played by purchasing an issue of the Official PlayStation Magazine which came with a CD. Players would then install the contents of the CD onto their PS2 hard drive.[clarification needed] Online capabilities were terminated on August 31, 2012.[3]

Plot

The game first begins when the SEAL team members Specter (Paul Mercier), Jester (Jason Spisak), Wardog (Michael Clarke Duncan), and Vandal (Larry Cedar) are alerted by an informant codenamed MALLARD of a black market group called the Sesseri Syndicate, led by a man named Cassrioti Sesseri (Kast Hasa), who are trafficking and selling weapons and plutonium from their bases in Albania and sending them to cities from London to Cairo. The SEALs are sent in to investigate, locate and destroy the Syndicate's weapon caches and if possible, capture a mid-level member named Besnik for interrogation. In the second and third missions the Bravo element in the team are replaced by two, highly trained SAS operatives designated Sabre and Reaver. The SEALs and their SAS counterparts are charged with bringing down the Syndicate, first by shutting down an abandoned factory in Shkodër as well as capturing or killing the man over the factory, A general named Mizlech Rugova, then capturing or killing the remaining leaders at their stronghold, the Sesseri family castle in the Albanian mountains. The team is able to neutralize the Syndicate's leadership and the organization falls apart.

In Brazil , a group calling themselves the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Brazil (RAFB) have threatened to seize control of the government there. In the opening cutscene, a rebel deserter who had stolen cocaine escapes through the Amazon jungle until Quixada Christo (Fátima Marques), a leader of the RAFB, apprehends and murders him. Christo, the daughter of a prostitute and a wealthy industrialist, harbors a strong resentment of men, explaining for the RAFB's majority demographic of females. In the first mission, within the slums of Rio de Janeiro, the four-man SEAL team is sent to recover information from an informant. When the SEALs arrive at the target building, the informant is not there, but is being tortured by RAFB members on the opposite building. The team recovers him and later follows him to a discreet location, where he discloses information about a meeting between Christo and the Lucimar, the leader of the local RAFB cell. They eventually capture the cell leader who reveals the whereabouts of an RAFB training camp. The SEALs traveled deep into the Amazonian rainforest and destroyed an underground cocaine factory, which was being used by the RAFB to fund their operations. With their funds cut, Christo and the RAFB made a last desperate attempt to destabilize the government by seizing the "Grand Parana Dam." The RAFB threatened that if their demands are not met, they will blow up the dam, crippling the Brazilian economy. The SEAL team is sent in to retake the dam, defuse any explosive devices on site and kill Christo. The SEALs are successful and the RAFB is no longer a threat.

In Algeria, a separatist faction called the Algerian Patriotic Front (APF), under General Heydar Mahmood, are instigating a coup to take control of the Algerian government. APF soldiers are overrunning the city of Bejaia, where CHA (Coalition for Humanitarian Aid) workers and peacekeepers (similar to United Nations peacekeepers) were staying on a Humanitarian mission. The SEAL team is sent to recover the CHA personnel and protect them from APF troops that are in control of the city. They later have to secure an area around the U.S. Embassy, where two State Department workers were left behind in the confusion of the evacuation of the city. They recover them and defend them from continuous attacks from the APF. After a long, intense firefight, an HH-60 Pave Hawk arrives and evacuates the group.

In Russia , a group calling itself Force Majeure, also known as the Global Liberation Front, is planning on making and using nuclear weapons to attack the United States. Intel from operatives in Eastern Europe suggests that Force Majeure's movements in the abandoned Kellski naval shipyard in Kamchatka, is a potential terrorist threat. The SEALs are sent in to investigate, supported by two Spetsnaz operatives, codenamed Polaris (Jim Ward) and Bludshot (Quinton Flynn). The team discover evidences that Force Majeure is creating a nuclear bomb. With their findings, the team gets extracted by the USS Michigan. With Force Majeure nowhere to be found, things look grim, but fortunately the Russian Federal Security Service detects the presence of the terrorist group after investigating a supposed nuclear fuel spill. Disguised as members of the decontamination crew, Force Majeure operatives infiltrated the plant with additional terrorists arriving later. Their plan was to steal a vast amount of enriched uranium to be used in their "dirty bomb". The SEALs and their comrades are sent into the plant to escort a radioactive specialist, codenamed Flatfoot, to see how much uranium had been stolen. The findings were not good, as almost all of the uranium storages had been emptied. In the final mission of the game, the SEALs infiltrate a ship, the Bitter Moon, with a large payload of radioactive material, bound for Seattle, Washington. The terrorists are planning to detonate the ship near to the Seattle. Aboard the ship, the SEALs discovered that MALLARD, the informant from the first mission, is actually an operative working for Force Majeure. He had used SOCOM to eliminate the Sesseri Syndicate, thus tying up a loose end, as Force Majeure had bought plutonium from the Syndicate before. The SEALs moves in and defuse all bombs placed on the ship. The female leader of Force Majeure, Valeska Lukanov, is either killed or captured. Mallard, whose real name is Arjan Manjani, is killed. The team releases a smoke grenade as a signal to the USS Michigan to stand down, and the mission is complete.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic87/100[4]

SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs received "generally positive" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Lewis, Ed (November 4, 2003). "SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs II Review". IGN. http://ps2.ign.com/articles/457/457886p1.html. 
  2. ↑ Gerstmann, Jeff (November 4, 2003). "SOCOM II: U.S. Navy SEALs for PlayStation 2 Review". GameSpot. http://uk.gamespot.com/ps2/action/socom2/review.html. 
  3. ↑ "Archived copy". https://community.us.playstation.com/thread/4699021?tstart=0. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "SOCOM II U.S. Navy SEALs for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-2/socom-ii-us-navy-seals. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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