Meet Ghost Recon’s grandson, Black One Blood Brothers

Last night, Uncle Steam, noticing I was at a loose end, whispered in my shell-like: “Players like you love Black One Blood Brothers”. After I responded with a sceptical “Is that so?”, he realised he still had work to do. Grabbing my lapels and pulling my face close to his, with a hint of menace he urged me to “Imagine Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon with modern graphics, drones, amazing weapon customisation, and an absolute gem of a mission generator”. This I duly did.

Thanks, Uncle Steam. On this occasion you were spot on. My first three hours with this generously proportioned and attractively priced Early Access tactical shooter flew by. One moment I was in the killhouse marvelling at the way I could alter my weapon’s position and flip hinged sights as I moved, the next I was climbing the wooden hill to Bedfordshire, a Level 4 tango topper with a host of vivid combat memories crowding my cranium.

All of the half-dozen missions I attempted last night were ‘lone wolf’ sorties (I plan to try team ops over the weekend). All were shaped with the help of BOBB’s corking custom mission generator.

Currently backed by a roster of 26 maps, said generator lets the player alter just about everything about the coming op. Team composition and equipment, insertion and extraction points, weather, the abilities, behaviour, and weaponry of foes… almost nothing is nailed down.

Best of all, you get to choose one or more ‘tasks’ from a list that includes activities such as rescuing hostages, eliminating High-Value Targets, destroying weapon caches, and covertly installing listening devices. Even if Helios abandoned BOBB tomorrow (a very unlikely prospect given their roadmap and EA track record) the game’s replayability would be hard to fault.

Amongst other things, the most recent update introduced man-portable drones. Comparatively easy to pilot, these new toys have the potential to transform tricky missions into cakewalks. The turning point during one of last night’s balmier/palmier forays was the moment I got too cocky with my eye in the sky.

Before my drone was swatted by the enemy it was ogling at far too close quarters, I was virtually unstoppable. A few minutes after I lost it, I was slotted by an unnoticed sniper while skirting a clearing.

Compared to its most obvious touchstone, BOBB is very tolerant of ineptitude and inexperience. Dull the senses and reduce the reaction time and weapon proficiency of enemies, and choose to play with survival aids like medikits and foe ‘warnings’* on, and this is a surprisingly forgiving FPS.

* An arrow appears and an alarm sounds when you’re in danger of being seen/shot at.

Right now the most damning thing I can say about the brill Black One Blood Brothers is that some of the venues are pretty spartan, and some of the items within them, unnaturally robust. Prowling around levels like the Gabriel (a container ship), Elegance Airport, and the University, there’s not much in the way of incidental detail to catch the eye or stimulate the imagination, and – although rounds can zip through wooden doors – most (all?) furniture seems to be indestructible and immovable.

(Chances are, I’ll share more thoughts on BOBB next week)