Without getting too long winded, last year Sony launched its online plan with a few key games. Although most were sports or racing games, one title managed to stand out among the rest. This game was, of course, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs -- an addictive squad-based shooter that managed to sell a lot (and I do mean a lot) of network adapters. SOCOM soon became Sony's flagship online title and the most popular online game for the fledgling online network. Things were not all sunshine and rainbows for the game though since it did have some major problems. First there was the lag, which was contributed to Sony not anticipating the type of success they had with SOCOM. Next came the cheaters -- gangs of faux gamers who had to compensate with their lack of skills by using cheat devices. The latter problem proved to be a disastrous turn for the game which caused many of the original players, such as myself, to leave the game all together. With SOCOM: U.S. NAVY SEALs 2, Sony and developer Zipper Interactive set out to fix these problems as well as win back AWOL players.

SOCOM 2 looks great, but its more of a graphical cleanup job than a full-blown overhaul. Player models look great and the animation has lost some of the mechanical feel it had in the previous game. When your squad members drop to the ground, they drop immediately into a nice looking dive. Environments have also received some touching up and look even more realistic than before. As I led my team through Middle Eastern streets, many of the locals looked like the images seen on the nightly news every day. It's clear that a lot of research went into planning environments. Foliage has received the biggest, and in my opinion most welcome changes. In the first game, bushes would just disappear when you approached them. This time around, they remain. This is both a help and a hindrance to your tactics. Since the foliage is so dense, you can now easily hide. However, if you move around, it will too -- tipping off your enemies. Aiming is also effected by the foliage since you can no longer take pot shots at people from within a bush. Now you have to pop out of the bush in order to fire off a round, opening you to attack.

Audio is just as authentic as the graphics. The audio in SOCOM was already top notch, but SOCOM 2 takes things to an entirely new level -- especially if you have your PS2 hooked up to a Dolby Pro Logic II sound system. Much as been added to the ambient white noise of the game -- making you feel like you're really there (digitally speaking, of course). Sounds happen all around you and can even tip you off to the locations of other people. One of the more entertaining aspects of the game is sneaking up on a group of terrorists and listening to their discussions. The sound team did a really good job with this aspect of the game since you sometimes feel for the guys you're about to kill. Listening to them discuss things -- such as their family or doubts about the revolution (or it's leadership) gives them a quality usually not seen in games since you're able to put some sort of personality with them instead of seeing them as mindless drones. Just as in the first game, everything is recorded in native languages, so expect to read subtitles in order to understand the game's plot. The fully orchestrated soundtrack adds a cinematic quality to the action. As the action on the screen gets intense, so does the music.

The single-player campaign in SOCOM went largely unnoticed by many players, and with good reason. SOCOM's strengths lie in its addictive multiplayer options. SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs 2 is largely the same way, but a few changes have been made to make the single-player missions a little more appealing. The game places you as the leader of a four man SEALs team as you take on various black ops missions in areas like Albania, Brazil, Russian and the Middle East. Stealth and teamwork are major components of these missions and can mean the difference between success and failure. Among the changes to the game, your team actually communicates with you and will let you know if they don't understand what you're telling them to do. Team members also show a little autonomy and will break orders if they have to in order to stay alive. For example, if you tell a guy to hold position and an enemy starts running him down with a bomb strapped to him, your teammate will shoot at him.

The single-player aspect is improved - but who are we kidding, you want to play online. A variety of new features accompany the already solid online game. But, as a word of caution, the game ONLY SUPPORTS BROADBAND CONNECTIONS for online play. In addition to the 10 original SOCOM maps, SOCOM 2 also features 12 new maps. The original maps have gone through a few minor changes, such as the addition of stationary guns and night time conditions, making them feel almost brand new. All of the original multiplayer games return and are accompanied by two new mission types. Breach plays much like the Demolition mode with one team trying to destroy a base while the other defends it. Escort has a SEALs team trying to move a group of civilians to a safe zone.

A few new options have been added to the original online games. A respawn option can now be turned on in Suppression mode, allowing the game to become more like a deathmatch. The game also runs for 20 minutes as opposed to the 8 in SOCOM. Clan play, which is a big draw for me personally, has been enhanced. Although Zipper Interactive claims that SOCOM 2 is harder to cheat in, I have run into a few cheaters online (sometimes you have to wonder if these guys even try to play the games without cheating). It didn't take long before I started running into players using an invisible code. Hopefully this is just an opening day glitch. Lag hasn't been much of a factor in the game since most of that issue was cleared up during Beta.

Completing missions in SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs 2 is much easier thanks to the retirement of Boomer. Readers will remember from my review of SOCOM that Boomer was a detriment to the morale of my team and was the member who enjoyed walking into bullets. This meant that you would have to always keep an eye on him in order to keep him alive and couldn't completely focus on the mission. Thankfully, there are no Boomers on this team and the game has a much tighter feel to it overall. Missions are challenging but aren't too difficult if you manage your team efficiently and realize that the game is more stealth based than a typical shooter. The experience is completely different online. There are some REALLY good players out there, so don't expect to jump right in and tear up the joint. Keeping this in mind, Zipper Interactive has included a ranking system, making it more likely that you'll get into games with people at your own skill level.

Hiding in shadows plays a much greater role in the game, as does lighting. Most of the time you're going to want to slink around in the darkness and remain undetected, but there are times when you have to leave these dark places and enter lighted areas. The neat thing is, when you do this your digital eyes will have to adjust (just as they would in real life). This effect also shows up when using flash grenades. Instead of just giving you a bright flash for a few seconds, your eyes will have to readjust. First all the shapes begin to materialize, they colors slowly begin to fade back in. Adding yet another level of gameplay, your team has access to night-vision and thermal goggles. Get used to seeing the game through these eyes.

Ordering your team works in the same manner as it did in SOCOM. Using the headset (which does come packaged with the sequel), you can give specific orders to your team. If you want to have your backup guys move to a specific location, you call order them by saying 'BRAVO - MOVE TO - (whatever location you want them to)'. I will readily admit that this takes a lot of adjustment to get used to and you will feel like a complete jackass when you first start - but that is part of the fun. The game also offer a menu based command system, but where's the fun in that?

Although the PS2 hard drive is still a ways off, plans for SOCOM 2 to fully utilize the HDD are already in effect. Much like most Xbox Live games, players will be able to download new content for the game. Nothing specific is known right now, but this could include things like new maps, character models and new match types.

Other than that - there's really nothing else to say about the game. If you loved the first SOCOM, I've more than likely already played you online already. The game has been refined and offers enough new stuff to warrant the purchase. Anyone looking for some team-based action, or has been looking for a really good multiplayer experience, give this one a shot.