Army Men vanquished, Cube game still coming
Even if you kill virtually all of them, they still come back under some guise
Washed up, that's what Sarge has become. He sits around all day puffing on a cigar and yelling "maggots!" to an empty mess hall. His compatriots were all wiped out in a sizzling textbook example of how to fry a piece of plastic, and he's all that's left, and he's all washed up. But still, he's starring in his own GameCube game; Army Men: Sarge's War, and in this adventure players get to take on the role of the burly old-school alcoholic drill instructor-cast plastic commando himself. Sarge is waging his own personal war against the Tan Army for managing to reduce his platoon into pools of plastic, but Sarge is made of stronger stuff [fired -Ed] and heads off on his own to take the whole bally army on. Presumably players will be expected to combine outrageous weaponry with pulling the trigger in time-honoured tradition, but 3DO is putting an emphasis on combat tactics, improving enemy AI and creating a compelling experience. This is something which Army Men: Sarge's War will have to do if it is to arrive within the same century as the Cube conversion of Medal of Honor, and still make an impact at retail. We are told that the graphics engine has been significantly overhauled, and since this is no fuzzy N64 outing we should hope so too. Character-specific damage makes an entrance beyond the typical "death" scenario, with melting animations, comical hole-blown-through-chest shotgun antics and all sorts of other variations on dismemberment, which could stretch beyond breaking point the Army Men's already tenuous grip on the friendy BBFC certificates. One hopes that 3DO's claims of a Spring 2003 release date will give them enough time to do something creative with the power of the GameCube. We also have hopes that someday the series will culminate in a visual tour de force to put Toy Story to shame, but some might describe those hopes as "high". Or they might just accuse us of being high. Still, Sarge's War will rage next year. Related Feature - 3DO to announce Cube plans