Spec Ops: The Line

Spec Ops: The Line is a first-person shooter developed by Yager Entertainment and published by 2K Games in 2012 for PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3. A version for OSX was released in 2013. This is the eleventh entry in the Spec Ops series, though the first in quite some time. The game follows Captain Martin Walker as he and his squad are sent on a reconnaissance mission to Dubai after a major catastrophe; upon finding dead American soldiers, Walker and his crew search for survivors. Things begin to take a turn for the worse.

Incomplete Tags for this Review

Bones

Blood

As a modern first person shooter, blood is present.

Dead Bodies

In addition to the corpses produced by the Player Character during normal gameplay, there is more notably a pit where decaying bodies have been thrown, and another instance where freshly burnt corpses are discovered.

Death of Family/Friends

The Player Character's two friends and tactical support are killed in the course of the game.

Dehumanization

A primary theme of the game is the dehumanization of people required to be able to kill them. This includes both enemy combatants and neutral noncombatants.

Emotional Abuse

The game's antagonist taunts the player character in such a manner. The game itself, via loading screen messages, engages in this with the player.

Existential Despair

The game heavily pushes the theme of futility and criticizes both the player and Player Character for thinking they are more than they are. (i.e. "If you hadn't come here, this wouldn't have happened.")

Explosions

As with most modern first person shooters, there are a number of explosions. Notably, uses of heavy weaponry or carefully aimed shots may result in explosions.

Eye Horror/Eye Trauma

In a particular instance, the player character discovers the burned body of a woman, her eye sockets empty.

Fire

Fire is a common result of explosions, also occurs as a result of the use of white phosphorus.

Gore

As a modern first person shooter, there tends to be a lot of gore. Notably, gunshots to the head cause heads to explode. Additionally, there is a pit of rotting corpses, bodies that have been horrifically burned, and likely other instances.

Graphic Violence

In addition to the standard violence committed as part of the genre, a number of sequences involve violence against civilians.

Guns

As a first person shooter, guns are omnipresent.

Heights

Almost every level starts from a very high point. At the end of one level, the player character falls very far.

Murder

In addition to the standard acts of killing common in the genre, as an important plot point, the player character and his companions unwittingly murder many civilians, and later engage in depriving other civilians of their only water source. One of the player character's companions murders a radio host. The same companion is later lynched by enraged civilians, which the player character has the option of massacring.

Mutilation

Gunshots to the heads of targets explode heads, and attacking downed enemies will lead to an 'execution' move, which sometimes includes bashing their head in. White phosphorus is employed in the game, leaving the few survivors horribly mutilated.

Offensive Language

Swearing is common in the game.

Psychological Horror

The game eventually explores the player character's severe denial of the things he's done and as a result he occasionally hallucinates.

Psychological Trauma

The player character and his companions suffer trauma from killing innocent people.

Racism

The content of this tag is in the game's subtext. The game explores current attitudes regarding the Middle East and especially racist trends in modern warfare shooters.

Stalking

The player character is taunted by two antagonists who are watching his movements.

Suicide

The main antagonist of the game is revealed to have committed suicide. The player character has the option of committing suicide as well.

Torture

The sounds of someone being tortured is broadcasted over the radio. Deceased torture victims are later found. The player character may also find the log of a torturer, who describes those who survive his torture as brothers and sisters.

Unreality

The game opens with the Player Character in a helicopter, firing a gun. Then it flashes back to the beginning of the story and eventually you get back to this same point, in the helicopter, firing a gun. But then the protagonist says "Haven't we already done this?" After a bit, the helicopter crashes and the protagonist sees some disturbing visions of the men he's killed along the way. in the climax of the game, the protagonist & player realizes that a large chunk of the game has been a hallucination.

Also, a more subtle example: each chapter of the game starts in a high place, but you spend the duration of each chapter heading downward.

Victim Blaming

The Player Character (and player) are variously blamed for the things that happen in the game, but other times are told that they aren't bad people.

Weapons

As a first person shooter, weapons are omnipresent. Nearly every person encountered possesses a gun of some description.

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