Socom: Confrontation beta is here.

The Socom: Confrontation beta has arrived and I have been playing it as much as possible. As a huge fan of the Socom franchise, I am very impressed that Slant Six (the games developer) stayed so true to Socom II's feel. They have said all along that they are using SII as a template for what they want the final game to be and if the beta is any indication; they nailed it. Crossroads is the only map in the beta but that's ok, it's slightly refined but I can still find my way around from memory of the old layout. Firing your gun, the health system, character movement speed, it all just feels right but it's not just Socom II on PS3. There are now knife kills (Awesome!), weapon customization from Socom III is back and the all new armor system adds a bit more to the already strategic gameplay. Granted it's a beta, I still have to complain about the long load times, system lock-ups, unplayable lag and overall just how unstable it is. These things don't even bother me that much though, the load times are just like the later days of Socom II; uncomfortably long to sit through but perfectly long for sandwich making. Substitute the lag for cheaters and lock-ups for server errors and it feels more and more like Socom. The more things change, the more they stay the same I suppose.