Narcos: Rise of the Cartels is the latest video game adaptation based on a TV show and unlike the show, the game is not as good as we expected it would be. You should know that this is a top-down, turn-based strategy title with a little bit of its own unique elements thrown in the mix. However, these new mechanics fail to impress and do not really do much to make the game better. Narcos: Rise of the Cartels is a game developed by Kuju and published by Curve Digital. We played the PS4 version of Narcos: Rise of the Cartels for our review.
Let’s start with the good bits of the game. Narcos: Rise of the Cartels is heavily inspired by the show Narcos which is natural since the game is based on the show. You will find plenty of familiar faces from the show featured in the game as well which really puts things in perspective. The game features two distinctive campaigns, one for DEA and the other for Cartels however the base gameplay is exactly the same. Most of the missions include blowing up resources of the opposite faction, collecting intel on some big fish and then finally taking them down. After you’ve played a few missions, it does start to feel a little repetitive however the visuals and levels keep the game fresh.
Probably the best aspect of the game is the setting. The visuals and the surroundings where you battle look amazing and are full of different references to the main game. As you play story missions, you will often get to see clips taken directly from the show however they do not really fit in the story of the game. This is yet another problem with the game. The story is not really related to the show at all. The game might be based on the show and it might feature some of the characters from the show however, it lacks the tension of the show. This is shown clearly by the fact that every time a key character dies, the mission is over and you have to restart it.
The campaign menu is a menu that shows the map of Columbia and different places where you will need to go next. The main story is not very long however the side missions provide a decent distraction from the main story and are also a good source of some extra income because you need funds to carry out your operations. Without funds, you cannot hire new members for your team because better they die like cattle while on the missions. Also, better their stats, the higher the cost but in return, they might last a little longer but in the end, they will die and you will dish out more money on new recruits.
The normal recruits you hire for the missions are literally disposable. You can hire them, get them killed and continue the cycle without any remorse until you get what you want. Both sides are really well-funded and you will get plenty of funds after each mission you complete. Apart from the main story missions, you can also complete different side missions such as collecting intel, blowing up some stuff, capturing (or killing) some and so on. The side missions cost more however they will reward you with more money as well. Higher the cost of the mission, the higher the reward amount you will get once you manage to complete it.
As you complete missions and earn more money, you can easily recruit more people in your squad before the next mission. You will always suffer heavy casualties in the game no matter what. Even the most armored units in the game die like they are made of cotton. However, the class diversity in the game is pretty good. Each class brings with it its own unique abilities that you can use during combat. These special abilities will not allow you to do anything else in the same move however some of these are really worth using and will give you a big advantage in the game. You can use them to your advantage but you will be required to sacrifice a whole end just to attack the enemy or use the special ability of the recruit depending on their class.
A small bit that Narcos: Rise of the Cartels adds on the turn-based combat is little shooting sequences between the moves. If the enemy moves its unit or you move your unit and it comes in the view of an opposing character, you will have the opportunity to shoot them manually in third-person view to deal some extra damage to their characters. This is a really unique mechanic and if you missed the opportunity to shoot an enemy during your own move, you can place your unit in a strategic place and once the enemy unit is moving, you can take the opportunity and shoot them however it is timed and if you miss the window, you cannot shoot them. Also, this works both ways so enemy AI can also use this mechanic against your characters.
Probably the weakest mechanic of the game is the combat system. This is made even worse by the fact that you can only move a single unit during a single turn. Most of the turn-based titles allow a more tactical approach to each turn as you are free to perform a different number of actions involving multiple units however that is not the case here. If you move a single character, the turn is over and you will need to wait until the next turn to move more units around the map. The AI of the game is absolute worst and comes with a death wish. I have never seen an enemy in my game taking decent use of cover and will always run out of it and will try to shoot your characters right in their faces. There is also no way to revive your fallen characters in the game. Once dead, they are gone forever unless they are a leader. Then your mission will fail and you will need to restart the game again.
They would simply run out of cover and straight into your face to shoot you. At this point, I would also like to point another factor that despite some units wearing armor and some just T-shirts, they receive the same amount of damage which is just absurd. It shows that different characters are just re-skins of the same base character. You order a DEA agent complete with armor to shoot on a Cartel member wearing just a T-shirt and he would do just the same amount of damage as he would deal in return. This is extremely weird and makes the game lose its tactical factor. The lack of cover used by the AI also negates the game’s claim of tactical combat.
Despite being a huge fan of games based on the turn-based system and more specifically, Xcom’s turn-based combat system, I could not really get myself to like Narcos: Rise of the Cartels. I loved the show and the was really looking forward to the game however the first time I heard about a game based on Narcos, I was expecting more along the lines of Scarface: The World is Yours and not a clone based on Xcom. Apart from the amazing visuals and setting inspired by the show, nothing in the game really compels you to stick to the game.
Final Verdict:
Narcos: Rise of the Cartels could have been an amazing game just like the show it is based on. However, we have seen tons of video games simply failing to live up to the hype of the movie or show they are based on. Narcos: Rise of the Cartels is one of them. It is trying to be a lot at the same time. The AI is dull and stupid while the gameplay itself is really boring. The controls are really clunky and you will often find the game to be extremely easy whereas it should not be. The game certainly feels like a rushed release. The only good thing I can see in the game is the level design and the setting portrayed by the game. If you really want to experience the thrill of the war between DEA and drug Cartels, I’ll suggest that you stick with the original show.
Final Score: 5/10
