Hardcore Paints It BLACK

BLACK™ presents an intriguing dilemma to the hardcore gamer that wishes to embrace the most challenging path to conquering a game. It's a relatively straightforward shooter that possesses more manic energy than an over-caffeinated Conker, but how to find the more subtle challenges within the in-your-face gameplay?

The key is not to slow the game down, but to expand it. In fact, while you may take a more deliberate pace, the game actually ups the ante action-wise. After all, if you give the enemies more time while you devise a more original way to eliminate them, more bricks and mortar fall, more explosions rip through scenery, more bullets scream, and the tension of imminent danger is far more present.

Let the mayhem begin.

With that in mind, utilize the following suggestions to ratchet up the challenge when blitzing through the destructible set pieces BLACK so artfully provides.

Artistic Interpretation
It should come as no surprise that the film Man on Fire gets frequent rotation in my DVD player, and there's a scene with Christopher Walken's character that summarizes my philosophy for BLACK gameplay. He compares Creasy's (Denzel Washington's character) mastery of violence to art, and suggests that he's about to "paint his masterpiece."

BLACK is an explosive treat, made all the more
so by the creative destructive direction you offer.

BLACK is your empty canvas. Paint well. More than any other first-person shooter (FPS) on the market, BLACK offers you a choice. Take the simple path and shoot down the waves of enemies as they come, or examine your surroundings and create an artful display of rippling destruction that doesn't just eliminate an enemy, but annihilates whole platoons with cataclysmic force.

Starting to get creative. Hardcore can dig it.

For instance, instead of picking off enemies one by one in one of the early compounds, look for an opportunity to toss a grenade just between the gas tank of a truck and the giant canister of petrol connected to the nearby building. Right before the grenade goes off, shoot the exploding canisters underneath a guard tower and watch your whole field of vision erupt.

Creative Destruction
The truck explodes, sending enemies flying; a whole side of the nearby building collapses, tearing apart the enemies within and leaving a gaping hole (a secondary objective?); and a chain reaction of fiery death consumes the sniper atop the tower.

This is not a special circumstance. Opportunities for creative destruction exist in every level. For example, in the third mission, complete a primary objective by clearing out five structures in close proximity. You can, of course, do a walkthrough of each one individually, but take a moment to examine your arsenal and your environment and I'm sure you'll agree that eliminating the threat in rapid explosive succession is far more satisfying.

Silencers are a no-no.

Miscellaneous Suggestions
Nere are a few more Hardcore-specific suggestions to help augment the challenge:

• Secondary objectives: Each mission is filled with secondary objectives, though you need to only complete a quarter of them to finish a mission. I don't know what kind of half-ass soldiering you plan on doing, but if there are objectives to be completed, the job ain't done till all the loose ends are tied up.
• Stealth the solo: Imposing stealth requirements too liberally can reduce the amount of explosive fun BLACK provides, but try to follow this rule; sneak behind and melee-kill an enemy if he's traveling alone. It helps break up the pacing and offers some additional challenge.
• Banned silencers: When I shoot someone, they're going to damn well know where it came from, so unscrew your silencer and make your presence known. Worried about alarms going off? Hey, that just means more fodder is set to arrive.
• Black Ops: Unlocking and completing this difficulty mode should be your priority from the start. You can unlock the Black Ops difficulty by completing the game on Hard, so make that your default setting. A full run through on Hard should give you just the training you need for the ultimate BLACK experience.

BLACK is an explosive treat. Like a great action movie, the set pieces provided can be truly memorable, but they're made all the more so by the creative destructive direction you offer. Plow forward mindlessly and you may smile at the end of the day, but take your time to make a roaring memory and enjoy BLACK as a classic you only wish you could experience again for the first time.

Article by Hardcore