SOCOM 4 is most certainly gaining a lot of preparation for the launch of it operations on the PS3 on April 19th. As avid gamers like myself have seen, preparation can go a very long way. We see this preparation in the form of multiplayer betas, the chance for many of us to test out a game before its launch. Usually, they, the games, come out much better at launch this way with a variety of problems and issues been ironed out. And, we’ve seen the result of multiplayer not having a beta.(example: Call of Duty: Black Ops)
For those that purchased Killzone 3 on launch day new, chances are you got a special pamphlet with SOCOM 4 on it. Well, I can’t do anything if you threw that out, fed it to your dog, turned it into a paper airplane and threw out a high rise hotel.
BUT, I can tell you that starting today, you can download the SOCOM 4 beta and get playing online. It is unclear if it will be when the PS Store update hits today but be sure to have that code handy and ready. That is part of your purchase after all.
Personally, I am pretty excited for this particular title. SOCOM: U.S Navy SEALs was one of the first modern tactical shooter I had ever played on the PlayStation 2. The first one was awesome as I loved the shooting mechanics with the tactical play-style of giving out commands. The game was made in conjunction with NSWC (Naval Special Warfare Command) which lends itself to the authenticity of the missions styles and the realism to which they are executed in the game. However, this also meant that the game would be very challenging, and it was! There were times where you needed precise planning and stealth. Breaking those rules, especially at a higher degree of difficulty, lead to your team getting taken down faster and harder then the Navy SEALs did in the movie, The Rock. Throughout the years, I played all the following installments of SOCOM from SOCOM 2 to SOCOM: Combined Assault, each being worthy successors to each other as they added more story, more levels, more weapons, more tactics, more commands, and most importantly, specially modified special ops vehicles. The PSP versions, SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 1-3 and SOCOM: Tactical Strike, are exceptional games on the PSP as well. As for SOCOM: Confrontation, uh….yeah I kind of went past that.
Overall, the SOCOM series is not another shooter franchise and cannot be put anywhere near Call of Duty. SOCOM is a tactical shooter that feels and looks realistic, and, at same time, plays very well. If you have a PS2, I suggest cracking down on some of these titles at your local GameStop and getting familiar with what SOCOM is all about in preparation for SOCOM 4.
Hit the link for the newest update on the PS Blog which shows two first looks at the multiplayer maps in the beta.
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/03/29/socom-4-multiplayer-map-first-looks-2/
Keep your feet wet and your powder dry team!
For those that wish to play along, my PSN ID is Vectorman88