Paul RobertsFebruary 12, 2021Maxi Geek Review, Commandos 2, Switch, Kalypso MediaComment

Commandos 2 HD Remaster - Review

Paul RobertsFebruary 12, 2021Maxi Geek Review, Commandos 2, Switch, Kalypso MediaComment

Of all the HD remasters, remakes and re-releases, one that I didn’t expect to pop up on the Switch was Commandos 2 HD Remaster. Trying to think back to when I played it back in the day on the PC as a demo, I realised it’s not quite as old as I remember, but it’s still old. With it feeling very much like a mouse and keyboard game, I was curious how it would fare on the Nintendo Switch. It turns out war is hell, and so are Commando 2’s controls.

Set during WW2, you take control of a group of specialist commandos to perform a series of missions taking on both the Nazis and the Japanese armies. Missions involve infiltrating, minefield sweeping, sneaking around in disguises, rescue and taking out plenty of enemy soldiers. There is a story, just as there are also characters. Each commando has particular skills and equipment to help navigate the deadly world around them. The Sapper can get out the metal detector to sweep for mines, the Spy can interact with enemy soldiers while in disguise, the Sniper snipes and so on. They all interact with each other (depending on who’s on the mission) as little talking heads.

In remastered HD they can look a little goofy, but they do alright for the olde WW2 voices. The missions and elite group of commandos all make for some entertaining WW2 real time tactics. With the different specialists you really have to think about how you want to get the best use out of them as you try to clear each objective. With the missions, you are shown at the beginning and as situations change what objectives you need to keep everything moving along. Even from the beginning, the speed they throw these objectives feels overwhelming. You're just trying to find your footing in a training mission and they bombard you with objectives. You do get used to it and at the worst there are 20 years worth of guides to help out too, but overall the difficulty isn’t the most forgiving while you try and navigate the games controls.

You’re introduced to the controls at the tutorial section. It covers the screen in information, too much to start off with. Given how long ago it was since I last played this game, for a brief time I had to relearn everything and the game certainly wasn’t going to help me out. Some important camera controls I only discovered by sheer chance! If this was on the PC or even on a phone or tablet it would solve some of the bigger problems of this remaster. This is all made even stranger given that the Switch has a touch screen that would help, although on the handheld everything’s even harder to see.

The controls just never feel learnable. Every section involves a degree of chance that you hit the button in the right way, because it can do two different actions. It can be difficult interacting when two or more items or people are close together. This is less than ideal when you tend to need to act quickly, especially when out in the open. It’s here where the game is limited by its own real time tactics. If you screw up sneaking or attacking or anything really, the enemy is quick to punish you and send you back to a slightly too long reload. To add insult to injury even if you master the controls, you can still be let down by the game failing to perform the control you inputted. Within minutes of the first training mission I struggled to get my commando to climb a telegraph pole, and knocking out enemies wasn't reliable either.

Commandos 2 in itself isn’t a bad game. It's a decent older game that is completely let down by its controls. If you have nostalgia for the old Commandos games or just want a tactical WW2 game you’ll find yourself disappointed. It really is a shame because there is an enjoyable game underneath all the mess. Approach with caution.