Rising Storm 2: Vietnam is the next in the series that has twice been PC Gamer’s ‘Multiplayer Game of the Year’, bringing the franchise into the era of automatic rifles, man-portable grenade launchers and more modern weapons systems. Still with the authentic look and feel and realistic weapon handling that the series is known for.
Continuing the Tripwire tradition of providing strong support for games post-launch, Vietnam has already been updated multiple times, providing the player with:
- 64-player battles
- 6 different armies to play, each with their own weapons and abilities:
- United States Army and Marine Corps
- North Vietnamese Army (PAVN) and National Liberation Front (Viet Cong)
- Australian Army
- Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)
- Over 50 weapons, covering everything from rifles and pistols to flamethrowers and rocket launchers
- 4 flyable helicopters - Huey, Cobra, Loach and Bushranger
- Asymmetric warfare - VC traps and tunnels vs. US napalm and choppers
- More than 20 maps
- 3 distinct game-modes
- Proximity VOIP
- And hundreds of character customization options.
Rising Storm 2: Vietnam offers intense action for up to 64 players in battles between the forces of South Vietnam (the US and their Allies) and those of the North - the regular, main-force units of North Vietnamese Army, plus the guerilla fighters of the National Liberation Front (or Viet Cong).
SOUTHERN FORCES - US, Australian and ARVN
The Southern forces have firepower and mobility on their side, with each army having its own unique supporting arms:
- US Army/Marine Corps - airburst artillery, the Spooky gunship and napalm strikes
- Australian Army - Pair of Canberra bombers and heavy artillery
- ARVN - medium mortar barrage and napalm strikes from older A-1 Skyraiders
For mobility, they have access to full helicopter support:
- UH-1 “Huey”: provides rapid transport for a squad across the map
- OH-6 “Loach”: acts as both a spotter and airborne command post, as well as a fast gunship, with its miniguns
- AH-1G “Cobra”: heavily-armed gunship with massive firepower for a pilot and weapons officer
- Australian “Bushranger”: a Huey, with dual M60 machine guns, minigun and rockets
Tactically, the Southern squad leaders become important - so long as the squad leader is alive and in a smart location, the rest of his squad can spawn in on his location. So keep your squad leaders alive at critical moments!
As for weapons, the Southern forces had a wide range of the best weaponry of Western nations, ranging from older, WWII-era leftovers, through to the latest technology of the time:
- M1 Garand, M2 Carbine, M3 “grease gun”, BAR and M1919 .30-cal LMG
- M14 Battle Rifle, M40 and XM21 sniper rifles
- M60 LMG and M16 automatic rifle
- For heavier support - the M79 grenade launcher and M9A1-7 flamethrower
- Explosives - M61 frag grenade, M8 smoke, C4 explosives and M18 Claymore
NORTHERN FORCES - NVA and VC
The Northern forces offer a broader mix, with the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN - or NVA) as the regular, disciplined and better-equipped main fighting force, in comparison to the National Liberation Front (NLF) guerrilla fighters, equipped with whatever weaponry was passed down the chain to them from Russia and China - known as the Viet Cong. For supporting weapons each has:
- PAVN/NVA - heavy artillery, surface-to-air missile defenses and rapid reinforcement from the Ho Chi Minh trail
- NLF/VC - a mix of ordnances (mortars, rockets, white phosphorous) used in a heavy barrage
To compete with the Southern forces’ mobility, the Northern forces have their own mobility - and stealth:
- NVA and VC squad leaders can place spawn tunnels widely across the maps, allowing themselves and their squads to spawn much closer to the action - or even behind the lines
- Given their “home field advantage”, any NVA or VC crouching or prone in cover can’t be spotted by Southern helicopters or aircraft
- SA-2 Missiles - the quick way to counter Southern air assets is by calling on surface-to-air missiles, if the commander can time it right
- “Ho Chi Minh Trail” ability - the NVA/VC commander can activate this ability to accelerate his team’s spawning rate, when times get desperate
- “Ambush Spawn” ability - the NVA/VC commander can also cause anyone on his team who is waiting, to spawn on his location for potentially devastating ambushes.
The weaponry for the Northern forces is wide-ranging - the PAVN well-equipped with modern weapons delivered from Russia and China, while the VC have to work with a wide variety of weapons:
- AK-47 and Type 56 Assault rifles
- Russian SKS-45 and US M1 Carbines and Mosin Nagant 91/30 rifle
- MN 91/30 and SVD sniper rifles
- PPSh-41 and French MAT-49 SMGs
- IZh-58 double-barrelled shotgun
- DP-28 and RPD LMGs
- RPG-7 rocket launcher
- MD-82 toe-popper mines, Tripwires and Punji traps
