Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3 from the Clancy-obsessed geniuses at Ubi Soft offers yet another grippingly realistic combat experience from the same folks that brought us Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Island Thunder. (When do these guys sleep?) In addition to a wickedly addictive traditional multiplayer component that includes the standard death match, capture the flag, and team variants, Rainbow Six 3 lets up to four players take on 14 artfully designed story missions in co-op play. (You can even design your own co-op missions, if that isn’t enough for you, and who knows what might come in the form of Xbox Livedownloads … ) You’ll need your companions, since this is no ordinary shooter; a single bullet can maim or kill even the most cold-blooded soldier. But, even with plenty of back up, nobody goes into the firefight blind in the Clancy-verse. Check out this advance intel on some of the missions you’re going to face.
Alpine Village Your first real mission (after tutorials and training) takes place on a fairly small map, and your opponents will be carrying mostly small arms. That doesn’t mean they can’t kill you, though. There’s also a lot of snow, so fast movement is crunchy, noisy movement. Approach slowly, and use long-range fire to take out any terrorists you see. Right before you reach the first checkpoint, you’ll hit a pocket of resistance that includes malicious enemy sitting up on a roof. Take him out first. After you get into the first building, use the “Open and Clear” command to take out the terrorists waiting in the first room. Then, cautiously clear out the rest of the building. Remember you can draw the bad guys into an ambush by taking out their lookout and then picking them off when they come to check out the noise. Eventually, you’ll make it into the church, where the hostages are being held on different floors. Be ready for a terrorist to come blasting out the door as you approach. After you’re inside, use more care in choosing your targets—dead hostages don’t help.
Oil Refinery In a possible shout out toSplinter Cell, the third mission takes Team Rainbow to an Oil Refinery, where they must defuse a pair of bombs and rescue the hostages. You’ll see a pair of terrorists almost immediately; take them out quietly, and recon the area. Head through the shack that leads into the big warehouse, or move around the warehouse and go in from another angle. When you run into the first bomb, be sure to clear out all enemies in the surrounding area, or you’ll leave your explosives expert wide open. Before you reach the next one, you’ll face a sniper. Keep your eyes peeled in the next room, and start watching for hostages. Enemies in this level have picked up a lot more firepower, including rocket-propelled grenades.
Meat-Packing Plant Even Tony Soprano wouldn’t go this far. Terrorists have taken hostages at a meat-packing plant, where they’re also holding some seriously deadly VX nerve gas. Make your entrance on your own, but be quiet about it—you have the chance to take out a half-dozen terrorists early, if you’re fast on the trigger and light on your feet. Bring the team in after you’ve done the bulk of the work, and they’ll mop up any you missed. Clear the next area with gunfire or grenades, giving you two doors into the first hostage. If you’re feeling ballsy, take them out on your own, or you can Zulu the team in from one side, while you enter from the other. Be careful with that hostage, though. You’ll face snipers on catwalks next, so be ready for them. You’ll have ample opportunities to surprise the bad guys from above, once you clear these guys out. The second hostage is being stored in the vat room, with the nerve gas. Convenient.
