4

4 /5

In 2007, an unidentified group of terrorists attack a number of high-profile targets, beginning with the G8 summit in Switzerland and continuing with a Venezuelan oil refinery in the Caribbean. Their demands are obviously targeted at disrupting the oil trade between the United States and Venezuela. Enter veteran international anti-terrorism unit Team Rainbow, who must stop the terrorists and discover who is behind the attacks.

Rainbow Six 3 is an entry in the long-running series designed especially for consoles. It does away with the heavy strategy and planning elements the series was known for on the PC and offers an experience more focused on the first-person action. The game features 14 single-player levels (15 in the PS2 and GameCube versions). In each, the player controls Domingo 'Ding' Chavez, who leads a team of three other Rainbow operatives. Goals in each mission include taking out terrorists, defusing bombs and protecting hostages. Ding's squad mates will act on their own in supporting the mission, but they can also be given specific orders through a context-sensitive menu: holding position, advancing, clearing a room or defusing a bomb. It's also possible to give delayed orders which are only carried out once a special signal is given. The Xbox version features voice recognition: team orders can be given through a headset.