The first thing you’ll notice about R.U.S.E. is its daring presentation. The combat zone is depicted as a scale model sitting on a table in a murky war room. Units are represented by colourful poker chips and troop movements are illustrated by arrows sweeping from one end of the table to the other. You can then magnify your view to the extent required and once you’re close enough, the poker chips will be replaced by more realistic models of your soldiers, tanks and aeroplanes. Alas, the bold art design is undermined by frequent texture pop-in. This is probably to be expected when the camera is zooming, but it also occurs during lateral camera movement. The animation and special effects also have a distinctly budget feel.
The action is set during World War II. You’ll take on the role of Major Sheridan, a brash but brilliant American determined to defeat Germany’s master strategist General Von Richter. While the story is quite cheesy at times, it is interesting to watch the events on the ground being shaped by the soaring egos of supposedly allied, but deeply competitive, generals. You’ll also soon realise that you have a spy in your midst. While you’ll probably identify the culprit almost immediately, Sheridan isn’t quite as perceptive. When the spy is finally unmasked, it results in a laughably over the top clash of armies that, frankly, stretches the credibility of the plot to breaking point.
When it comes to gathering resources, building units and battling enemy forces, the core gameplay isn’t striving for originality. The innovation comes from the inclusion a range of tactical powers known as ruses. The first few aren’t particularly noteworthy, serving merely to manipulate the ‘fog of war’ typical of the RTS genre. As you roll deeper into the campaign, however, you’ll gain access to more interesting gambits. You’ll move your forces under radio silence, construct fake headquarters and disseminate false intelligence. The latter can be particularly effective. By tricking your enemies into perceiving your infantry units as tanks, you’ll encourage them to deploy their army in a woefully inefficient manner.
Some of the ruses are not as useful as they initially promise to be, with the decoy offensive among the party poopers. Imagine employing wooden tanks to draw your opponent to the left flank while your genuine forces prepare to strike from the right. It sounds exciting, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, by the time your engineers construct the dummy tanks and they rumble ever so slowly onto the battlefield, the war will be all but over.
Movement in general is an absolute chore. The first time you order an infantry unit to relocate, you’ll notice that your fighting men are in no hurry to reach the front line. Even the airborne units take an eternity to travel from one location to another, often encountering nothing of interest along the way. You’ll probably find yourself spamming the blitz ruse, not to surprise your opponent, but to force your gun-shy soldiers to march at something approaching an acceptable tempo.
The sluggish pace of the game will have a profound influence on your tactical thinking. On some levels, you’ll have to make all of your major decisions within the first minute of play. Where will you position your troops? What ruses will you employ? When will you use them? Try not to dither, because once the bullets are flying, you’ll discover that there is precious little scope to make meaningful changes to your approach. These design decisions may well appeal to you if you’re a patient strategist looking for a more authentic depiction of World War II combat. If not, you’ll probably feel like you’re wearing a straightjacket.
Speaking of limitations, many of the campaign maps are heavily segmented. You’ll begin a mission with access to one or two areas, while the others are cordoned off until you tick off certain objectives. This is an ultra linear experience in which tank commanders inexplicably refuse to advance upon enemies and bombers bump into invisible walls high above the action. Too often, R.U.S.E. forgoes the promise of a sprawling and dynamic battlefield in favour of a series of small rooms separated by locked doors.
If you happen to enjoy the single player aspect of R.U.S.E., I have some good news for you. The multiplayer component is virtually identical in terms of look and feel. You’ll choose from one of six national armies and strive for supremacy across more than 20 maps. Unit availability is governed by the era in which the action occurs, with three pivotal years available for selection (1939, 1942 and 1945). One of the more popular modes involves a frantic battle between four teams of two. Crowding the map with so many active armies also tends to ameliorate the aforementioned pacing issues. The multiplayer package is rounded out with a generous assortment of solo and cooperative scenarios against AI opponents.
R.U.S.E. is a reasonably competent war game with imaginative art design and handful of interesting tactical options. If you’re a serious RTS addict, you may well be able to live with the texture and animation issues. The real question is this. Do you have the patience to command the world’s most lethargic army?
