SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3 Hands-on

Now with 100-percent less Michael Biehn.

When will those former Soviets just let the dream die? I mean, the USSR had a good run, but it seems like every time you turn around, some extremist has grabbed a weapon of mass destruction and taken the world hostage in the name of "Mother Russia." Just look at (fictional) Northern Koratvia and the team of Navy SEALs sent in to make things right (see: you).

SOCOM is back, but this time SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3 is dropping you into a world conflict in a different way -- this time, you're in the boots of a seasoned SEAL named Wraith. Now, rather than get orders from the all-knowing eye in the sky, FTB3 puts you in control of a four-man, in-game squad. Wraith's the leader, and he'll get to direct his men as he sees fit. This can be as quick as issuing a kill command via targeting a bad guy and tapping button or as complicated as holding a button and navigating the on-screen command tree for options such as holding fire, firing at will, and holding positions.


Don't worry, though; Wraith won't be a sideline reporter. This iteration of SOCOM features 70 weapons and attachments that you can fool with before a mission -- you get two primary weapon slots and can customize each piece with four attachments such as scopes and lasers -- along with flack jackets, grenades, and claymores that you can take into the fray. Inside battle, things move from the typical third-person perspective.

My demo began with the four SEALs arriving on the shore of a winter wilderness. The team pushed the gray camo boat to the side, and we began navigating the trees in steady snowfall. When the first enemy popped up, I got greedy and waxed the guy with my silenced machinegun via the scope, but as more foes came up in the distance, I began issuing commands to Able squad, Bravo company, and the entire Fireteam. The command tree is actually pretty easy to get the hang of, and allows you to customize how your men will react to the situations ahead -- even though there is the tried and true mechanic of point and press to tell your men to go over there now.

You can currently lock on to a target by holding R, and if you're in cover doing this, the game knows to let you stand up when you fire and to put you back into the crouching position when you lay off the trigger. The left shoulder button allows you to strafe, up on the D-Pad is your scope, X fires, and so on. This version of SOCOM is also packing regenerative health so that your team can take a licking, recover, and keep on ticking.

SOCOM games are usually hard to get the full scoop on in a five-minute play through, and Fireteam Bravo 3 is no exception. There will be four-player multiplayer, but the team wasn't ready to talk about how that would work -- this build was still pre-Alpha, which means it's still really early in the game's lifecycle. If you are wondering how you'll get all those nifty scopes and weapons, well, you'll be earning Command Equity as you successfully knock off missions and objectives. That Equity will be your in-game moolah so to speak and it'll allow you to pimp your piece.


Need more SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3 action? Who doesn't? Keep checking IGN, and we'll keep you updated on when we get to go knife-kill the bad guys again.

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SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3 Image

SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3

Rated "T"
DeveloperSlant Six Games
PublisherSony Computer Entertainment
Release DateFebruary 16, 2010
PlatformsPlayStation Portable