Army of Two: 40th Day Review

Another of the original’s strong suites (and a surprisingly neglected aspect of most shooters) was the weapon customisation. Supposedly there are some 10,000 possible combinations of guns, scopes, silencer and stocks to combine, though the majority of enemies you encounter require little strategy in terms of weapon choice throughout the campaign – perhaps these subtleties will be better appreciated in the multiplayer arena. The inclusion of an online design tool for mask editing is however a great superficial touch that adds some individuality to the proceedings.

Melee animations can make Tyson and Rios look like they are swatting flies, but it's generally effective up close. Especially with a Bayonet.

Morality systems have become the new stealth sections in modern gaming and 40th Day presents our ethically ambiguous twosome with a number of set-piece choices, from saving the life of innocents to… well, it’s pretty much saving the lives of innocents. While EA seem keen to tout the co-operative decision-making aspect of the morality system, it effectively falls to whoever presses the button first to drag their partner along their own moral path. Certainly a bit of in-fighting over the decision making process would have added a little spice to your choices.

The most innovative aspect of the morality system kicks in following your decision where a short cut scene plays out the subject’s future and ultimate conclusion. The morality here is seemingly haphazard with your compassion in saving a life often leading to far more malevolent actions taking place. It is bizarre, indiscriminate and totally unpredictable and therefore far more in line with the actual concept of morality than many more sophisticated games achieve, whether by design or accident.

This kind of flagrant disregard for the cover system will result in a quick death.

Following a spectacular opening level, 40th Day slides into more uncomfortably conservative territory, with each successive level failing to capture the explosive excitement of the terrorist attack. Only six levels long, the slide is all too apparent, and when you finally wrap up the campaign mode via a shockingly uneventful final chapter after only six hours, you have to wonder what might have been if EA could have furnished the entire game with the thrills of the first chapter.