Commandos 2: Men of Courage is a tactical action/strategy game set against the backdrop of World War II. Take control of an elite group of commandos who must venture deep into enemy territory and utilize their combined expertise to complete a series of mission-based objectives. For Commandos 2: Men of Courage on the PC, GameFAQs has 3 FAQs (game guides and walkthroughs).

We've been noticing around here lately that there aren't all that many games that really make you sit back and puzzle out how to get through a level. And there certainly aren't that many that give you an interesting backdrop and stress-enhancing atmosphere while you're about it.

Commandos 2 does both of these things in droves, providing a game, that while a squad-based strategy game, comes off as a puzzle title at heart. The problem is, the word 'puzzle' seems to set people going the other direction a lot of the time, but this is one title that you should definitely give a go. That is, if you have the patience to fail a bit, cause this game is hard. As you probably know, Commandos 2 is a World War II era game where the Allies are coming to the point of desperation at beating back the advance of the Third Reich. If you payed attention in those history classes at all, then you'll know things weren't looking so good for Europe in the early 40's. The British Isles were pretty much the only sanctuary left in Western Europe for the forces of freedom and justice and happy kittens and puppy dogs. So in order to head up the rest of the war and take the hurt back to the attackers, the Commandos were formed.

A group of highly trained and specialized soldiers bent on wreaking as much havoc with their little group as possible. Missions take place over beautifully rendered maps that can be zoomed in and out if you need to have a closer look or an all encompassing look. Zooming out all the way brings up stunning scenes with incredible attention to detail. I'm not really going to fault this though considering all that the game actually does do, and I really didn't find myself minding the pixelization that occurs upon zooming. Animations are also done very well. Watching the little people react and run around is a treat and each of your commandos has a different gait showing off their personalities in the way they move.

Aside from some small control issues which I'll go into in a minute, and some minor crash bugs when loading up saved games, Commandos 2 is a solid product. Yet this solid product manages to be soft and pliable in all of the right places. This happy little paradox amounts to levels that can be played through in a ton of different ways to explore your own thought process and try some new ones on for size when you're done. Wanna be a gun toting freak? Wanna be a sneaky back-stabbing freak? Go right ahead.

But one thing is for sure. No matter which way you play the game, it's going to take some thought to win through and complete your missions even with the help you receive in briefings and the objectives handbook. Basically, you'll begin each mission with different Commandos. Sometimes, you'll have one. Sometimes you'll have a few. Sometimes you'll have a few, get all of them except for one caught, and then have to rescue them so that you can complete the mission with a few again.

You get the picture. Each of the Commandos has a special purpose and ability. Drivers Biostar Nf61s Micro Am2 on this page. My two favorites had to be wiry thief who is nimble enough to climb walls, is good at hiding, and can lockpick, to the big and burly Green Beret whose hobbies include shooting and knifing members of the Axis forces while not really minding the pain of bullets and punches. A few of the characters are proficient in distractions including the dog Whiskey that barks to distract, Natasha the seductress, just point her lipstick at a soldier and watch them watch her, and the spy, who can adopt the role of German leaders due to his impressive language skills and French 'I'm better than you attitude.'